Today, I’ve been thinking about writing, whether poetry, fiction, non-fiction, or even well-crafted shopping lists. More than that, though, I’ve been thinking about reading, something I’ve always done at the expense of things that were probably more practical. My mom was a kindergarten teacher and taught me how to read before I was able to form memories, or at least that’s how it seems. I don’t remember learning how to swim, either, which makes sense considering I grew up close to the ocean. I’ve long imagined family members vying for the chance to throw me into the water for the first time. And who could blame them, really? My first…

Over the past few years, my writing habits have been–well, honestly, they’ve been nearly non-existent. Sure, I write for work, but who doesn’t? Even if you aren’t a writing teacher like I am, chances are good you write something during your day. Me, I write volumes of feedback to my students on their essays, and on a good day, I type more emails than a Russian internet scammer during American voting season. About three years ago, I lived through a summer that saw more publication than I’d seen during the rest of writing my career. Three magazines accepted my short stories, and three of my poems were published within two…