I am a Michigan-based writer of poetry and non-fiction. I have over 20 years experience in magazine and newspaper writing, public relations, technical communications, and copy-editing.
I have not been blogging for some time, but here you can find links to some of my publications and samples of my freelance work.
Poetry and Creative Nonfiction
- Encore Magazine: “Epiphany” (January 2019)and “I’m not going to say labyrinthine” (May 2017)
- Panoply Issue 11: “Bride of Porcupine”
- The Offbeat Spring 2018: “Bride of Turpentine”
- *82 Review Issue 6.1: “Insurance”
- New Verse News: “2018 Lament”
- 3288 Review Vol. 3, Issue 1: Five Poems
- Immigration and Justice for Our Neighbors: “Talking to Strangers”
- Silver Birch Press: “All This and More” and “Self-Portrait as Dog with a Mouthful of Feathers”
- Great Lakes Review Narrative Map: “You Can’t Go to Town and Back in Less Than Two Hours”
- City of the Big Shoulders: A Chicago Poetry Anthology: “Routes”
- The Smoking Poet Spring 2012: “Six Years Later, You’ll Tell Me How Much You Enjoyed This Weekend”
- All Poetry is Prayer: “You Cannot Breathe and Swallow at the Same Time”
Articles, Editing, and More
As a freelance writer, I have written about local news and civic issues, nature and outdoor recreation, science and technology, education, and general human interest topics.
- Native Gardening – Encore Magazine, May 2016
- Bonnie Jo Campbell – Encore Magazine, October 2015
- The Art of Sign Language – Encore Magazine, August 2015 (p. 36)
- Meditation for Beginners – Encore Magazine, February 2015 (p. 18)
- Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy – Encore Magazine, January 2013
- Bells Will Be Ringing (Jeff Smith and the Bells of Kalamazoo College) – Encore Magazine
- Family Tree (Marty Kakuk researches her grandmother, Florence Inch) – Encore Magazine
- Theatre is In the Genes (Theatrical Family Kathy Mulay and Denene Mulay-Koch) – Encore Magazine
- Time in the Woods is Good for the Soul – Kalamazoo Gazette, column for Kalamazoo Nature Center
- Noted Environmentalist Inspires Hope – Kalamazoo Gazette, column for Kalamazoo Nature Center
- High Tech Teacher of the Year – Press Publications newspaper group
- Family Shelters Help Break Cycle of Abuse – Press Publications newspaper group
- Determining Healthier Way to Raise Dairy Cows – Kellogg Biological Station newsletter
- Software Usability – Corporate newsletter
- Installation of Church Bells – Letter to editor
I served three years as volunteer editor and designer of a quarterly association journal. I have copy-edited an instructional guide book for property tax assessors, newsletters and annual reports for a large non-profit nature center, several papers for research journals, and various other documents.
As a technical writer with a focus on usability for a governmental software company, I authored on-line help systems and training manuals for multiple products, produced configuration and implementation documentation for system administrators, and created and maintained a style guide for documentation standards.
Kathryn Almy 