Susan Isla Tepper is a twenty-year writer and the author of 11 published books of fiction and poetry and 5 stage plays. She has been nominated 21 times for the Pushcart Prize in both fiction and poetry. Her play ‘Crooked Heart’ concerning artist Jackson Pollock premiered on October 25, 2022 at the Irish Repertory Theatre in NYC and will be featured at ORIGIN THEATRE COMPANY, NYC, later this year. Adapted from an earlier novel, it was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Another play, LADY IN A POST BOX, co-written with poet and writer Ciaran O’Driscoll is moving toward production in Ireland. Her play DUCK, DUCK, GOOSE! will be part of ORIGIN THEATRE COMPANY ‘PLAYS IN MAY READIG SERIES’, NYC. Susan is a Brand Ambassador for The Galway Review. http://www.susantepper.com

Giving It Up

Say a prayer for the dead
giving it up
in both hands
I pray hardest
down the basement
Where floods can come
at any time
from my eyes from beneath
the floor rising
Shadows flickering through
small high windows
I pray for my mother
when loading the washer
as she did
picking and sorting
through my childhood
For my father if I come across
a piece of saved wood
some tile or any type
of screwdriver or hammer
Can of paint he might’ve used
to turn my house
into something more beautiful.

Glenn Bowie is a published poet, lyricist, and photographer from the Boston area. He also owns and operates an elevator company that supplies custom-built elevators for clients from New England to Hollywood.

Author of two poetry and photograph collections (Under the Weight of Whispers and Into the Thorns and Honey) on Big Table Publishing, he donates all profits from his books to various charities for the homeless and local animal shelters.