Jane Greer (born May 25, 1953) is an American

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

. She founded ''Plains Poetry Journal'', a quarterly literary magazine that was an advance guard of the

New Formalism New Formalism is a late 20th- and early 21st-century movement in American poetry that has promoted a return to metrical, rhymed verse and narrative poetry on the grounds that all three are necessary if American poetry is to compete with novels an ...

movement, in 1981, and edited it until 1993. Her poetry collections include ''Bathsheba on the Third Day'' (1986) and ''Love like a Conflagration'' (2020).

''Plains Poetry Journal''

In 1981, Greer founded ''Plains Poetry Journal'', a quarterly literary magazine that was an advance guard of the

movement. In her "Editorial Manifesto," Greer wrote: "Through history, the best poetry has used certain conventions: meter, rhyme, alliteration, assonance, painstaking attention to diction. Not all good poems use all of these conventions, but if a poem uses none of them, why call it a poem?" She decried the sort of conversational free verse "that reads like random thoughts randomly written," and wrote, "All these attempts at unfettered individuality sound alike." In 1984,

Writer's Digest ''Writer's Digest'' is an American magazine aimed at beginning and established writers. It contains interviews, market listings, calls for manuscripts, and how-to articles. History ''Writer's Digest'' was first published in December 1920 under ...

named ''Plains Poetry Journal'' the "#1 Non-paying U.S. Poetry Magazine." Greer edited ''Plains Poetry Journal'' until 1993.

1980s–1990s

In the 1980s and early 1990s, Greer's poems appeared in the anthologies ''A Formal Feeling Comes'', edited by

Annie Finch Annie Finch (born October 31, 1956) is an American poet, critic, editor, translator, playwright, and performer and the editor of the first major anthology of literature about abortion. Her poetry is known for its often incantatory use of rhythm, ...

, and ''A Garland for Harry Duncan'', edited by W. Thomas Taylor, and in many journals, including ''

Yale Literary Magazine The ''Yale Literary Magazine'', founded in 1836, is the oldest student literary magazine in the United States and publishes poetry, fiction, and visual art by Yale undergraduates twice per academic year. Notable alumni featured in the magazine whi ...

'', ''

First Things ''First Things'' (''FT'') is an ecumenical and conservative religious journal aimed at "advanc nga religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The magazine, which focuses on theology, liturgy, church history, religio ...

'', '' America'', and ''

Chronicles Chronicles may refer to: * ''Books of Chronicles'', in the Bible * Chronicle, chronological histories * ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', a novel series by C. S. Lewis * ''Holinshed's Chronicles'', the collected works of Raphael Holinshed * '' The Idh ...

''. For ''Chronicles'' she also wrote the monthly "Letters from the Heartland" column. Her ideas about poetics and esthetics are elaborated in a short essay, "Art Is Made," in ''A Formal Feeling Comes''.

''Bathsheba on the Third Day'' (1986)

In 1986, Greer's first poetry collection, ''Bathsheba on the Third Day'', was released in a limited hardcover edition of three hundred copies hand-typeset and hand-printed by Harry Duncan at The Cummington Press.

Return to publication

After nearly three decades working as a civil servant for the State of North Dakota, teaching writing at

Bismarck State College Bismarck State College (BSC) is a public college in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the third largest college in the North Dakota University System with 3,781 students as of September 2016. Established in 1939, it is a comprehensive community c ...

, and working in advertising and marketing, Greer returned in 2019 to writing poetry and being published in major journals, including ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief ...

'', ''Modern Age'', ''

'', '' St. Austin Review'', The North American Anglican, and ''Angelus''. She has been featured in several podcasts, and writes reviews for publications such as Literary Matters and ''

Angelus The Angelus (; Latin for "angel") is a Catholic devotion commemorating the Incarnation of Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ o ...

''.

''Love like a Conflagration'' (2020)

Greer's second poetry collection, ''Love like a Conflagration'', was published in May 2020 by Lambing Press (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). The collection of new poems also included a reissue of ''Bathsheba on the Third Day'', and received strong advance endorsements from

Samuel John Hazo Samuel John Hazo (born 19 July 1928) is a poet, playwright, fiction novelist, and the founder and director of the International Poetry Forum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is also McAnulty Distinguished Professor of English Emeritus at Duquesne ...

, James Matthew Wilson,

Anthony Esolen Anthony M. Esolen is a writer, social commentator, translator of classical poetry, and Writer-in-Residence at Magdalen College of the Liberal Arts. He taught at Furman University and Providence College before transferring to the Thomas More Co ...

, Ryan Wilson, C. C. Pecknold, A. M. Juster, and Jennifer Reeser.

Bibliography

* ''Love like a Conflagration'', Lambing Press, Pittsburgh, Pa. 2020 * ''Bathsheba on the Third Day'', The Cummington Press, University of Nebraska, Omaha, Neb. 1986. * Greer, Jane. "Rodin's 'Gates of Hell,'" ''A Formal Feeling Comes: Poems in Form by Contemporary Women,'' Annie Finch, Ed., Story Line Press, Brownsville, Ore., 1994. pp. 79–80. * Greer, Jane. "Professor Dobbs to Jayleen Nichols on Semantics and the Fact of Myth," ''A Garland for Harry Duncan,'' W. Thomas Taylor, Ed., W. Thomas Taylor Press, Austin, Texas, 1989. pp. 37–38.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greer, Jane Living people Formalist poets 1953 births American women poets 21st-century American women writers