Welcome to the February 2016 edition of Blue Heron Speaks! We are very pleased to share the gifts of poetry and artwork, by Karla Van Vliet. Her latest collection is, From the Book of Remembrance (Shanti Arts Publishing, 2015). These poems are lit from within. With an attention to the beauty of language and the embodiment of soul, these poems sing of core emotions, with a raw honesty. Pairings of abstract art and verse provide the reader with a close examination of the human heart, which we must explore by reading, and re-reading, each line. These poems are meant to be savored.

Please visit the Blue Heron Speaks Featured Author page of our site to experience the depth and beauty of 3 selections from Karla Van Vliet’s new book.

(photo credit: Sadie Newman)

Karla Van Vliet is a poet, artist and Integrative Dreamwork analyst. Her poems have appeared in such journals as Poet Lore, Blue Heron Review, The Tishman Review, Found Poetry Review and Green Mountain Review. Her most recent book From the Book of Remembrance (Shanti Arts, 2015) is a collection of poems and paintings. The River From My Mouth, her first book of poems, is being reissued by Shanti Arts this coming year. She is currently working on a full-length collection of poetry titled Iterate and a collection of poetic non-fiction pieces titled Beholding, which explore her deep relationship to the Vermont landscape she lives within. She is the co-founder and editor of deLuge, a literary and arts journal and is the administrator of the New England Young Writers’ Conference at Bread Loaf, Middlebury College. Find out more about this author at her website: www.vanvlietarts.com

From the Book of Remembrance (Shanti Arts Publishing, 2015)