What:
I am a poet. I also write non-fiction, travel writing, and am an avid journal keeper. Most of my published work is poetry. I write much about the natural world, the National Parks, my devotion to the energy of the Earth, and the healing power of wilderness.
My first book To the 4 a.m. Light is a full-length poetry collection to be published March 26, 2021 by Finishing Line Press. It is available for pre-order now through January 29, 2021.
To the 4 a.m. Light addresses the celebrations and challenges of daily life; joy and grief, pleasure and pain, light and dark, connection and solitude. Poems also explore themes of the self, independence, reclaiming empowerment, and connecting to nature.
I have been working this particular collection (with vastly varying levels of focus) off and on since I was in graduate school at the University of Southern Maine in the Stonecoast MFA Program. This is where I met Linda, along with many other fabulous writers, who are still part of my creative support system.
Currently, I am working to refocus on a writing project I started last year about the time I spent working as a wilderness instructor at wilderness therapy treatment program for at-risk and trauma-affected youth. It took 5 years before I felt able to address this experience in a way that would allow me to write about it. It is developing into something that is part poetry, part nature writing, part memoir, part guidebook, part release. I am also working on a children’s book based on one of my poems called “The Bird Banquet”. To my delight, my mom, a very talented self-taught artist, agreed to illustrate it.
Why:
I write to understand myself and the world around me. Like most creatives, I have been this way my entire life. Writing and making art has always been the best way for me to reflect on and learn from my life and myself. A postcard I picked up at the AWP book fair years ago states it well: “I don’t know what I think until I write what I say.” This one reason why I journal. Writing is how I process. It’s not instant clarity to be sure, but when I allow myself to just write without controlling what comes out, I very often figure out what the issue at hand truly is. For me, journaling is like talking to a good friend. Sometimes, you hear yourself say something raw and honest out loud that you would never say to someone other than a close friend. Sometimes, it’s not until the words leave our lips that we realize their truth. The page offers me this safe space to reflect, respond, and regroup.
I love working with sound in my writing. The sounds of words and within words. I love that sound can create rhythm and it can break it. It can develop a mood, a landscape, a space for the reader to settle into.
I spend much time reflecting, pondering, considering, wondering, and imagining. I can easily become lost in my contemplation, following a concept or idea deep into the rabbit hole of myself. This is often where I find poems.
How:
When I don’t write, I go crazy.
No, really.
Well, at least I feel crazy.I try to break up my writing days by spending time outdoors, taking walks, and doing yoga. I am so very grateful to live in the north woods of Wisconsin, in a little house on a ridge, with my husband. We have rolling, wooded land to roam, a small pond, marshes, and a developing network to trails. I also love to write outside when I can. I will pack up my foldable camping chair, lap desk, and journal and walk out into the woods until I find a nice spot to settle and take it all in.
We recently acquired a new room in our house, along with a new-to-me leather top desk. This new addition was the first major “pandemic project” my husband and I tackled when we were working from home in 2020. This new space has become my refuge, my writing den, my space to ponder. In between lines, I can stare out the window at the trees and birds and weather and it is glorious. It is also a short walk from the den to my crafting station in our basement, which is busting with art supplies and beautiful bits that will inspire. (Yes, I am a Collector of Things.)
I have always felt compelled to create. When I am stuck on the page, I often turn to another creative outlet. Anything from wreath making to stamping, to collage, to painting, to crafting, I seek something creative that will allow my mind freedom and space to explore.
Bio:
Adrienne S. Wallner (Jaeger) is a poet, photographer, and grant writer. She holds an M.F.A. in Poetry from the University of Southern Maine-Stonecoast and B.A. in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing from St. Norbert College. Her poetry can be found in The Aurorean, Stoneboat Literary Journal, Minerva Rising, Uncommon Core: Contemporary Poems for Learning and elsewhere. She lives and writes in Hazelhurst, Wisconsin, with her husband and road trip companion, Derrick.
Links
To read some of my travel writing, get a glimpse into my writing life, and check out upcoming events, please visit my website: www.inkinthebranches.com
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Reserve your copy of To the 4 a.m. Light here: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/to-the-4-a-m-light-by-adrienne-s-wallner/