Alarie Becomes a Muse
On April 10, 2025, I was officially named the 2025 Muse of The Writers Place here in Kansas City. Before Christmas they asked if I’d accept the role . (You didn’t think I’d turn that down, did you?) I had a mighty hard time keeping the secret, but it wouldn’t have been very polished or goddess-worthy of me to blurt out the good news in advance. There was plenty of advanced planning to take care of.
We don’t name a Muse every year, and we certainly didn’t risk having the big celebration when COVID plowed through. Thank goodness we learned to host Zooms to keep our members from forgetting us.
Of course, I’m a mere mortal, which is why I’m only the Muse for one year. It’s a challenge to stay up here in the clouds.
Alarie (in Red Tunic) Is Ready to Bolt for the Microphone. Twenty Years Ago, I’d Have Run the Other Way.
How Did Alarie Become a Writer?
Slowly. Before I flood you with more photos from my Muse celebration, I should mention how I became a writer and editor. When I was in elementary school, Mama taught me scansion, for the fun of it. I mainly used rhymed verse for humor and song parodies. Like many creative people, I loved to sing, dance, and paint. Writing was my third choice of art, but I was such an avid reader that I breezed through my English papers in college. I also took art history classes and wrote papers interpreting art. It was little surprise to me that I became a mostly ekphrastic poet, writing about art.
Gradually writing became more important to me, and writing workshops truly inspired me. It wasn’t long before I gathered enough poems from my workshops to start publishing. Without that progress, I suspect I wouldn’t have been invited to serve on the Board of Directors of The Writers Place. After several years my term was finished, and I became a member of the Emeritus Board and the programming committee. I helped out at events, emceed at the Rose Garden for ten years (aside from COVID’s interference), taught workshops, and invited poets to read or teach. In other words, I was grateful for all the ways The Writers Place expanded my poetry world. So why was I surprised they chose me to be the 2025 Muse? Because everything I did was a labor of love.
If you’ve viewed my books on my blog or on Amazon, you’ll see that I have a chapbook and three poetry books. Becoming a Muse may jump start me to finishing another book.
Because a Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words
Our Muse event was larger than it seemed, because our gracious hosts Ann Slegman and Tom Isenberg have such a large, gorgeous home for entertaining.
Barbara and Andrea
My Display Table
I wanted to add a few more pix, but my computer says it is tired, so I’ll wrap up with my poet’s version of an Emmy or Grammy: my Poetry Award – Erato.
I’ll Stay Up in the Clouds for a While