Enter and be welcome, my dear digital friends. Thank you for stepping into my little world of words and contemplation.
I have so many new projects in flight for 2026. Top of mind is finishing the manuscript for my new book of poetry – hopefully in the next three to six months. And, as always, access to my current published books is listed further below, if interested.
Now on to some new poetry….
This week’s poem came to me as I was reading recent published poetry in some major literary journals.
These days, there seems to be an editorial focus on what I like to call domestic realism. In a literary world shaped by online brevity and the need to be “seen,” this poetic form aligns with a post-ironic, post-grand narrative moment.
It says:
• I’m not here to impress you.
• I’m here in this specific place.
• I’m here to be honest.
• I’m here to be immediately understood (and seen).
That stance carries enormous literary capital right now.
Don’t get me wrong, plenty of journals print more diverse work. But spend time with a few mid- to high-end journals and you’ll see how dominant this mode has become.
So, with this week’s poem, I tried my hand at domestic realism. Submitted it to six not-to-be-named journals and was summarily rejected by all six (don’t judge me for generalizing, they just might be reading my blog).
Friends, that is not uncommon. Most major journals accept less than 1% of submissions, so rejection becomes a norm for us emerging poets craving to be seen.
Much like the chipped cup (as metaphor) in this poem, I poured a lot into it. No ego intended, but I knew it was a very good, domesticated poem.
Perhaps I got too clever for my own good. I built a deductive form that moves from a seven-line stanza, to six, and ends (for emotional impact) with a single line. Or perhaps the Oppenheimer quote was a bit much. Or maybe it wasn’t real enough.
You be the judge. Did it work for you as a reader?
As always, I look forward to hearing your thoughts, feelings, and reactions to this week’s poem in the ‘Leave a Reply’ comment section at the very bottom of this page.
-PS Conway ☘️☘️☘️
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the cup you made me
washing dishes in a sunset kitchen
lights off. the room is dim.
but i feel the tepid memory with my fingertips
the cup you made me
chipped where your lips once kissed it
breath once cooling what was hot – coffee? tea? …love?
lukewarm becoming colder
touch is a funny thing. a living thing.
so of the moment – like your ghost,
and in this twilight
existence is tactile
thick with unseen eyes by the tens of thousands
a numinous light rising within them
you once warned: i am become death
i laughed. you did not.
how could you be serious? how could you know?
how fierce the winter snows that year
when warmth was a fleeting wish spoken toward redemption
for another gloaming washing dishes
knowing clean by touch and the experience of life
how tears blur second sight
and “alone” has too many meanings
streetlights. starlight.
witnessed through a window stripped bare of blinds
seeing for the first time
life and being –
my finger bleeds, cut on that cup.
and the water grows warm again.
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This Week’s Links…
- Purchase Echoes Lost in Stars
- on Amazon USA: https://a.co/d/eZPzwxX
- on Amazon Canada: https://a.co/d/ebjqinU
- on Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/avWTF19
- on Amazon DE: https://amzn.eu/d/8IDYSIv
- Purchase Life Sucks
- on Amazon USA: https://a.co/d/arnze2N
- on Amazon Canada: https://a.co/d/8sBYofv
- on Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/brzfJ4l
- on Amazon DE: https://amzn.eu/d/95Y4WAA
- My author website: https://psconway.com/
- My Interview with AllAuthor : https://allauthor.com/interview/psconway/
Media News…
*NEW* My interview with Editor-in-Chief, Gabriela Marie Milton of Literary Revelations Publishing House: https://literaryrevelations.com/2026/01/25/the-portrait-of-a-poet-ps-conway/ ☘️🌹
*NEW* My interview with author Tricia Copeland on her podcast Finding the Magic Book is now available to watch: https://youtu.be/NhieYECI-H4 🥂🤯
Latest Publication News
December was a productive month for me. Eight poems published. If you are interested in a copy of any of these, I have embedded the Amazon links below.
- I have six poems published in FromOneLine Volume 7, an anthology of poems/stories where the writers were given one opening line to maintain, then build a poem/story around it. Gratitude to Meghan Dargue for including my work and for editing such a thoughtful compilation from a deeply talented group of writers.
* - I have two poems published in The Belfast Review, Winter/Spring 2026. Based in the north of Ireland, this gorgeous emerging literary magazine, in addition to poetry, “aims to create a dialogue between the arts, featuring genres not usually included in literary journals such as song lyrics, plays, screenplays, and hybrid forms, to better reflect the lived experience of art, the self, and the city.”
Latest News – Life Sucks…
So far, Life Sucks has received so many ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Editorial Reviews. More to come soon.
I’m anticipating a whole bunch of solid Reader Reviews to begin populating Amazon in the next few weeks, too. The goal is to get to 50 Reader Reviews asap to kick Amazon’s promotion engine into a higher gear.
Speaking of Editorial Reviews, we secured a BIG ONE – BookLife. This is the indie press division of Publishers Weekly and represents a major credibility lift to my published work. Here is a link, in case you’re interested in reading the entire review:
And here are a few other snippets of other editorial reactions so far!
– “Snort-laughs and gasp-worthy wit – PS Conway goes there, and it’s hilarious.”
– “A must-read for anyone stressed, cynical, or just in need of a damn good laugh.”
– “Darkly funny, brutally honest, and weirdly comforting – like therapy, but with colonoscopies.”
☘️ COME BACK EACH WEEK FOR NEW POETRY ☘️
🤔 … for once I’m not sure about this poem PS. The first half caught my attention, loved it, visualised it. Thereafter I lost the connection, even after reading it again.
Prefer your usual style I guess, or maybe in the wrong mood.
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Appreciate the candor, Sandie. Definitely trying for something stylistically outside my usual comfort zone. Thanks so much. 🙏🏻🥂🌹
I feel your pain! I’ve had that experience of feeling like a poem worked really well, was a good match for the publication…but no go. I like the sunset kitchen with the lights off–can see that immediately. I feel a tension in this poem, between you trying to focus on a small, domestic moment, and your impulse to go big. That’s not a bad thing. That tension might be impacting the tone, though. Congrats on the recent publications! I will check them out…
Thanks so much, Laura. I think your thoughts may be spot on in how/why the tone wobbles a bit. It’s always felt just a smidge incongruous to me. 🥂🙏🏻