Fast Five with Vicki Hellmer

“Poetry is everywhere these days if we are open to it.”

— Vicki Hellmer


Welcome to Fast Five, an occasional series in which I ask my favorite writers five questions as a way to open the door to know more.

Today, something different.

Every story needs a reader. Every poem, an appreciator. Thank goodness for Vicki Hellmer, who has spent decades amplifying poetry.

Every week for 21 years, Vicki has chosen a poem, researched and written a background on the poem and poet, and shared these treasures via email. To date, she’s shared over 1,000 poems — each hand-picked, thoroughly researched, and lovingly shared — for free.

She is not paid for her time and effort, and charges nothing for her work. She is simply, powerfully, fueled by the love of poetry. She’s not a writer; in fact, for years she worked as a legal secretary before attending law school at age 34. She then spent her career in commercial real estate finance law and retired in 2017.

Vicki lives in Denver, Colorado. An avid reader, she has served on the Denver Public Library Commission and the Denver Public Library Friends Foundation. A self-described “public library super-user,” she currently has six books checked out “and only 25 on hold!”

1.
You’ve shared poems and poets to hundreds of people every week for 21 years — for free!

How did you start this project, and why?

I’ve read poetry for many years, since high school in the mid-1970s. It was mostly a solitary pleasure for years. Then I met a friend, Jon, who also loved poetry, and he curated a weekly poetry email list (no supplements, just poems). Back in May 2005, I “babysat” the list for a couple of weeks while Jon was on paternity leave. When he came back, I decided to start my own list. I mostly recruited friends and co-workers, but over the years many friends of friends (of friends. . . ) have joined.

Each year I ask people to confirm that they want to stay on the list; a handful of people usually decide not to continue (too many other demands on their time), but there are always emails saying, “I have this friend who’s interested. . .”

I started with maybe 35 people, and the list has hovered around 125-130 for the past handful of years. I started writing one-page supplements after a few years, when an ex-boyfriend said he was sure he wasn’t the only person who would appreciate some more information about the poems and the poets. I learn so much, researching for the supplements!

2.
While most poetry websites or social media poetry accounts are created by and for poets, your effort is unique; you are not a poet, and many of the people who sign up for your free service are not poets. How do you explain the appeal?

My list includes several poets, but also several people who don’t regularly read or write poetry. I think there are a lot of people in the U.S. who want and need poetry in their lives, but don’t know how to find it. This way, it’s delivered to their email inbox once a week, and they can choose how and when to read. Some people read each poem right away, some save up the emails until they have time to read a bunch of poems at once, some only sometimes read the poems; and at least a few people from my past have told me they just like seeing my name in their inbox once a week! There’s no pressure to read any certain way, or at all.

3.
Your weekly emails include a poem, along with a lengthy backstory of the poem and poet. What do you look for when you choose a poem and poet to share with others?

I am always on the lookout for sources. Poetry is everywhere these days if we are open to it – there are references to poems all around us. I read many books of poetry (from the library), including anthologies, for myself and for the list.

Most of the poems I choose are contemporary. I try to send out some poems that are timely (politically or seasonally), or are likely to strike a chord with people on the list. I keep in mind specific people who are on the list, and choose poems that I think will resonate with them for some reason. And I strive to include diverse voices. Keeping in mind the range of people who receive these emails, I try to choose poems that are accessible yet not too simple.

4.
What’s a favorite poem and/or poet you’ve shared?

Wow! I’ve shared almost 1,100 poems, and I have many favorites among them. The poets who’ve written the most poems on my list are probably Dorianne Laux (16 poems), Edward Hirsch (13), Jane Hirshfield (12), and Lucille Clifton (10), but I strive for variety.

One of my favorite poems (I loved it so much, I sent it out twice) is Joseph Stroud’s Manna:

5.
What has surprised you about this project?

One of the most interesting aspects, for me, has been to read poetry list recipients’ responses to the poems (most people don’t comment, but some do). It has made me realize how much the reader brings to the poem. Poems don’t exist in a vacuum. Each reader’s life shapes how she or he will read and respond to each poem.

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To sign up for Vicki’s Free Weekly Poems, send an email to: vhellmer@msn.com