The Journey So Far

This is a directory of my works published on Substack.

Why Oaks? This is the first piece I published on Substack. It could be considered an “about” piece.

 
Poetry, Fiction, Literary Nonfiction, and Writing about Writing.

Scroll down for book reviews, author profiles, travel, nature memoir, and journalism.

Family is a work of fiction.
Orange is a selection of three poems.
What’s Your Genre is a story about the writing process.
Life After Writing is a spoof on writing groups, editing, and the publishing process.
The Names of Trees includes a photograph of my father in his later years and a poem in which a forest fire parallels his journey into dementia.
The Story Behind Glen Falls Trail includes a photo of the falls, the poem Glen Falls Trail, and a verified link to the story “How I Became a Poet,” published in Waxing and Waning.
Amorous Alligators includes a photograph of an American Alligator and a poem about alligators in mating season. The poem is titled “Prom Night.”
Spirit Bird includes a photograph of a Sandhill Crane and the poem “Spirit Bird.” Custer and the Buffalo is a set of three poems.

Nature’s Voice is an essay on the destructive forces of nature.

More Poems is a set of three poems.

Poems of Abundance and Shortage is a set of three poems.

Travel Writing, Journalism, and Nature Memoir

Traveling Okefenokee is a diary from a weekend trip to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
The Tonic of Wilderness is a brief memoir of caring for my elderly father and the healing power of nature.
Guild Trail is a brief story about a hiking trail near my home in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Everglades Journal 1991 is the first half of a diary written during a week-long adventure in the Everglades National Park.
Everglades Journal Concluded finishes the Everglades journal.
Birds at Hiwassee Refuges is a haibun travel journal modeled on the works of Matsuo Basho.
Owl Aboard is a short journalistic piece about rehabilitating an injured saw-whet owl.
Cape Cod Days: Arrival is the first of a series of stories drawn from my 1986 and 1987 journal kept during a ten-month stay on Cape Cod. 
First Impressions: My Cape Cod Adventure Continues is the story of me settling in at the educational facility where I would live and work for most of a year.
The Search for the Red-throated Loon illustrates bird life and bird watching at Cape Cod.
A Large Migrant is the story of my encounter with whales on Cape Cod Bay.
A Living River is the story of migratory species on Cape Cod, which is both a barrier and a haven.
America’s Giant Salamander is an interview with Dr. Brian Miller, Hellbender researcher.

 
Book Reviews and Author Profiles.

Missing Mountains is a review of the book with the same title.
J. Drew Lanham, Black Birdwatcher, Scientist, and Poet, is an author profile.
Margaret Renkl Writes About Southern Culture and the Natural World is an author profile.
Marilou Awiakta Speaks for a Living Culture is an author profile of the Cherokee/Appalachian author Marilou Awiakta.
Writing Chattanooga: Southern by Nature is a discussion of historic nature writing in and about Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Finn Bille’s Danish American Poetry is a book review.