Jackie Craven writes poetry and prose steeped in magical realism. Her new collection, WHISH, won the Press 53 Poetry Award. Previous books include Secret Formulas & Techniques of the Masters (Brick Road Poetry Press), chapbooks from Headmistress Press and Omnidawn, and illustrated books on interior design. Shorter works appear in AGNI, Alaska Quarterly Review, The Cincinnati Review, Pleiades, Ploughshares, and many other journals and anthologies. After completing a Doctor of Arts from the English Department at UAlbany, she worked for many years as a journalist covering architecture, art, and travel. She lives in Schenectady, NY and on Zoom, where she hosts an open mic for writers.
Academic Life
Jackie graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University and earned a Doctor of Arts in Writing from the University at Albany, New York. She received fellowships from the New York State Writers Institute and other workshop programs. Jackie’s teaching background includes stints as a high school reading specialist, a distance learning instructor, and an English instructor for the University at Albany, Russell Sage, Schenectady County Community College, and Hudson Valley Community College.
Life in the Electric City
Jackie has lived in Schenectady, NY for most of her adult life. Home to the Edison Electric Company (now known as General Electric) and the American Locomotive Company (ALCO), Schenectady became known as “The City that Lights and Hauls the World” and is often called “The Electric City.” Jackie’s poetry collection, WHISH, mythologizes Schenectady, creating a surreal world where seconds, minutes, and hours become human-like characters. The poems reference City Hall, Erie Boulevard, Liberty Park, the statue of Thomas Edison, and other familiar landmarks. Schenectady is a gold mine for architecture lovers and Jackie adopted several dilapidated Victorians on her street. With a partner and several helpers, she set up a small but chaotic business restoring and renting out Victorian apartments. She served on the Schenectady Historic Commission for twelve years and remains a passionate advocate for the preservation of older buildings.
Much of Jackie’s writing draws inspiration from her mother’s art. She works at a cluttered desk in front of her mother’s painting of a juggler, a monkey, and a davenport drifting in mid-air.
Jackie’s Love Affair with Art & Architecture
Jackie Craven grew up in a family of magical realists. Her mother and sister were painters who filled their northern Virginia home with the scent of turpentine. Many of the poems in her first collection, Secret Formulas & Techniques of the Masters, are based on paintings by her mother and sister. Their artwork is featured on the covers of Jackie’s books.
Architecture is also a recurring theme in Jackie’s writing. After completing graduate school, she became a columnist for House & Garden and Realtor magazines, wrote two books on interior design, and for twenty years wrote the architecture content for an online media company. She currently lives in a 1920s school building that has been converted into condominiums.
Q & As and Interviews
- Time and Memory: A Conversation with Jackie Craven, Poet Lore
- An Interview with Jackie Craven: Writers House Review, Rutgers University
- Poets Talk Poetry. Interview at Saratoga Public Library (video recording)
- “My misery sleeps through sunrise”: Interview in How to Grow a Poem
- 10 Questions for Jackie Craven: Q & A in The Massachusetts Review
- Q & A for Brick Road Poetry Press
- Interview with Jackie Craven in R.kv.r.y Quarterly Literary Journal