Nancy, Tina and Me

 

When I was seven, my cool older cousin gave me her copy of the Nancy Drew novel The Mysterious Mannequin, and I was hooked. I didn't just love Nancy, I wanted to be her, to have her sharp eyes and calm, clear mind that always got to the truth.

I've been trying to write about Nancy for years, but I struggled to get it right. How to express my fangirl status while also acknowledging that the books are pretty funny, with their formulaic plots, impossibly perfect heroine and outdated stock character sidekicks ("tomboy" George and dithering, "plump" Bess). 

How did I finally tap into my delight in these stories? By making a list of the goofy, delicious language penned by "Carolyn Keene," and then turning that list into a poem. Many thanks to the editors of VoiceCatcher Journal for publishing my poem "Nancy Drew's Fancy" as well as "Sighs of the Mermaid" in their latest issue. 

What's even better than getting published? Getting published alongside your students. Congratulations to the fabulous Tina Klammer, whose poems "Sir Nicholas the Brave" and "This Is What We Know" appear in this issue! And...congratulations to Jaymee Martin, a former student, on the publication of her nonfiction story "Hechizo"!

Here's the table of contents with links to all the current VoiceCatcher writing, including poetry by Shawn Aveningo Sanders and Carolyn Martin.