I have the most wonderful news : I just
received word from Senator Durkin’s office in Washington
that (while official word is yet forthcoming) I have
won a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
for Creative Writers. The Fellowship is for $10,000
and should free up a bit of time for writing and
travel.
It is an award that is given (as you may know)
for “quality of writing.” The judges, many of whom
are poets, review I guess hundreds of submissions
in poetry – each submission is 15 pages in length.
I sent them no golden oldies – all the poems
were quite recent – and this makes me feel
even better about getting the award…makes me
feel, that is, that newer stuff is as reliable
as the better examples of the old.
I am writing this letter somewhere in outer
space. It is all floaty and nice up here.
It is just great to know others think you can
write!
