Episode 6: Poetry, and Other Things Worth Staying Up Late For

Kimberly Phinney

is a night owl. I, on the other hand, prefer to nestle down for the night when most six-year-olds go to bed. When she asked if we could record this podcast at 8:30 P.M., I put on my big-girl pants (and by that I mean my comfy pants), threw back a shot of espresso, and hoped I could keep my eyes open.

I’m happy to report that I had NO trouble staying awake for this conversation. We talked about all of our favorite things, dreamed of being neighbors, and made theoretical plans to come back together for Part II, ASAP.

Kimberly is a poet, professor, endometriosis survivor, and the founder of The Way Back to Ourselves literary journal and community. Her debut poetry book, Of Wings and Dirt, will be released in April, and she just launched a new course on growing your writing life. In short—she’s the kind of person you want to stay up and talk with all night.

We talked:

• Kimberly’s journey with endometriosis and infertility & the way God’s been showing up and redeeming her story

• A Paul & Ananias metaphor that I still can’t stop thinking about

• The Christian celebrity conflict…and possible alternatives

• How on earth to handle social media, self-promotion, and all those other fine lines creatives walk

• Oh, and poetry. LOTS of poetry, including:

  • The inside scoop on Kimberly’s new poetry book & Deidre’s new chapbook

  • Our processes for writing poetry

  • An exclusive reading of some favorite, original poems by Kimberly & Deidre

So buckle up—this is going to be a fun one.

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Links you’ll want:

• The Way Back To Ourselves literary journal

• Grow Your Writing Life Course

• Kimberly’s Substack, My Way Back

• Connect with Kimberly on Instagram @thewaybacktoourselves

• Deidre’s Chapbook, The Shape I Take

• Connect with Deidre on Instagram @deidressecondcup

• The Second Cup website

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