Private Mentorship with Tina Barry

BIO

Tina Barry is the author of Beautiful Raft (Big Table Publishing, 2019) and Mall Flower (Big Table Publishing, 2016). Tina’s poems and fiction have appeared in numerous literary publications such as The Best Small Fictions 2020 (spotlighted story) and 2016, Drunken Boat, Connotation Press, The American Poetry Journal, Lascaux Review, Nasty Women Poets, A Constellation of Kisses and upcoming in Rattle. Tina holds an MFA in creative writing from Long Island University, Brooklyn. She is a three-time Pushcart Prize nominee and has several Best of the Net nods. Tina is the vice president of the board of Aim Higher. She teaches poetry and short fiction at The Poetry Barn, Gemini Ink and Writers.com.

ARTIST & TEACHING STATEMENT

I’m a city person relocated to a hamlet in upstate New York, where I’m trying hard to be a country person. I’m getting there, bit by bit. One thing I love about my country life, is sitting at my desk that looks out over a great expanse of woods. Sometimes a bear wanders by; deer are ever present. In the city, I peered out on a busy, noisy parkway. When the quiet here is deafening, I miss the busy language of trucks and motorcycles. 

I must always live near a library. Libraries are my happy places. I’m lucky to live close to a very good one now and I’m there all the time. After that, it’s a place for a decent cup of coffee. Besides a good library nearby, I must be a part of a writing community. I need the back and forth of sharing work. That communication is as close as I come to a religious experience. And that’s not hyperbole; being entrusted to read and comment on someone’s work is a privilege. As an instructor, watching a workshop member hone their writing, to see it come alive for them, enriches me too. 

I try to read widely and in many genres. Right now, I’m returning to Maggie Nelson and Anne Carson. I return again and again to Sharon Olds. I love e.b. White. One of my favorite poems is Michael Collier’s “Grandmother with Mink Stole, Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, 1959” for the rich picture it paints, its humor and deep humanity. 

What else do I love? Green markets and cooking great food. Standing in a warm ocean up to my neck. Discovering a new wine. The theatre. Reading a great book in bed is the ultimate luxury. Sharing my life with family and friends. My dream job would be a travel guide who brought people to fabulous locations to explore and write. I’d like to have enough money so that I could make the experience free for them, too. If I had enough money, I’d say to whoever handled my finances, “Give a million to this charity, and a million to that woman presidential candidate” and so on. I’m passionate about saving our democracy, supporting women, LGBT rights, keeping the arts alive, treating animals humanely, and ending sex trafficking. 

No way to narrow down my favorite food. Nothing is more delicious than a perfectly prepared Thai curry, until I have a slice of sublime sour cherry pie, or a perfectly crisp yet tender scone. 

SPECIAL INTERESTS

Image-making, metaphor, tightening, understanding the writer’s intention and helping them implement it, humor, suggesting sources to help guide a writer, syntax.

INFLUENCES

Maggie Nelson, Anne Carson, Sharon Olds, Dorianne Laux, Averill Curdy, Joyce Carol Oates, Jo Ann Beard, Lydia Davis, Alice Munro, William Carlos Williams, Jean Valentine, Matthew Dickman, Michael Collier, Sigrid Nunez

TESTIMONIALS

“What makes Tina stands out as a teacher, my teacher last year, is her capacity to combine deep knowledge of form, craft, and an eye for pointing to what may make your poems better.  Her commitment to her students is as deep as her commitment to teaching excellence. Tina is an avid listener to your words, respecting and pushing you to your best work.” —Juan Mobili

“The depth of Tina's preparation is evident from the start. Throughout, Tina stays in contact with every participant with excellent and challenging critiques and comments. I have never been disappointed.” —CR Green

“I thoroughly enjoyed the mentoring process with Tina Barry.  She was thorough, quick to respond and read the manuscript thoroughly for sound, movement and fit.  She reviewed the choice of words, punctuation, point of view, voicing, color, specificity and offered positive suggestions for change as well as  suggesting poets to look at to clarify my voice.  She was fearless in suggesting what to cut and what to leave in. I trust her eye and ear completely for in every case where a suggestion was made, it was from a carefully considered viewpoint.  She never tried to give me "her voice", but rather to clarify and solidify my own.  I highly recommend her!  She is a treasure and a gift.” —Elizabeth Vrenios