by Mary E. Cronin | Apr 13, 2025 | FDNY, Poetry, SCBWI
“There is something about this manuscript that cries out for publication. It may take you a while to ‘get there’ but you must.” Noted poet and anthologist Lee Bennett Hopkins saw something in me and in my firehouse poems that was worth nurturing and...
by Mary E. Cronin | Mar 21, 2025 | FDNY, Poetry
Writers often talk about the long road to publication. This is one of those stories, and it isn’t over yet! I started writing poems about firefighting after my father died in 2006. It was a grief project, a way to feel closer to him. And it helped. I was so proud of...
by Mary E. Cronin | Feb 7, 2025 | Community connections, Poetry
In late 2016 I answered a call for submissions for a poetry anthology entitled IF YOU CAN HEAR THIS: POEMS IN PROTEST OF AN AMERICAN INAUGURATION. My poem “We Know How to Do This” was published in that collection, and I was honored that it was the closing...
by Mary E. Cronin | Oct 28, 2024 | Poetry
Hmmm. What’s the best way to set up my poem about immigration and the Statue of Liberty– a poem that was just published? Should I … …share it in light of today’s anniversary — the Statue of Liberty was dedicated on this date in 1886! …share it in...
by Mary E. Cronin | Aug 19, 2024 | Cape Cod, Community connections, Poetry
Summer is winding down! One of the sweetest treats this month was my visit to Barnstable West Barnstable Elementary School here on Cape Cod. As a Visiting Poet, I presented to a class or rising second graders in the Literacy and Arts summer program. We drummed along...
by Mary E. Cronin | Jul 5, 2024 | Poetry
As the school year was winding to a close, I had the delight of returning to P.S. 86 in the Bronx to lead a series of poetry workshops. I attended P.S. 86 as a young child. The students were all-in– welcoming, and ready to have fun! We talked about how every...