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Beth Gylys

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Beth Gylys
BornBeth Ann Gylys
1964
Passaic, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationPoet, Professor of English and Creative Writing
NationalityAmerican
Alma materAlleghany College, BA
Syracuse University, MA
University of Cincinnati, PhD
SpouseThomas Forsthoefel

Beth Ann Gylys[1] (born 1964 Passaic, New Jersey) is a poet and professor of English and Creative Writing at Georgia State University. She has published eight poetry collections, three of which have won awards.

Early life and education

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Gylys grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Allegheny College with a bachelor's degree in 1986.[2] She went on to receive a master's degree from Syracuse University and a Ph.D. in English and Creative Writing from University of Cincinnati. She has also attended the Stonecoast Writers Conference in Portland, Maine.[3]

Career

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Gylys formerly taught at Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pennsylvania.[4] She is currently a professor of English and Creative Writing at Georgia State University.[5] Her poems have appeared in The Paris Review,[6] The Southern Review, The Kenyon Review, The New Republic, The Antioch Review,[7] and The Columbia Review.[5]

She received a MacDowell Colony fellowship in 2001.[8] In 2023 Georgia State University received a Mellon Foundation grant to start a literary journal called Beyond Bars. Gylys is the principal investigator for the project which connects incarcerated individuals can contribute writings and artwork for the journal. The journal's board includes four graduate students and three incarcerated students.[9]

Events

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Gylys' poem "Erratic Gardener" was featured on an episode of Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion in 1999.[10] Her book of personal ads, titled Matchbook, has been set to music by composer Dan Welcher.[4] She was a featured guest poet at the January 2013 meeting of the Georgia Poetry Society.[11]

Personal life

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She is married to Thomas Forsthoefel who is Professor of Religious Studies at Mercyhurst College and the Erie County, PA, Poet Laureate.[4]

Awards

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  • Quentin R. Howard Award for Balloon Heart[12]
  • Gerald Cable Book Award for Bodies that Hum[13]
  • The Ohio State University Press/The Journal Award in Poetry for Spot in the Dark [14]

Works

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Collections of poems

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  • Balloon Heart, Wind Publications, 1997, ISBN 978-0-9636545-8-8
  • Bodies that Hum, Silverfish Review Press, 1999, ISBN 978-1-878851-12-3
  • Spot in the Dark, Ohio State University Press, 2004, ISBN 978-0-8142-0981-3
  • Matchbook, La Vita Poetica Press, 2007, ISBN 0-9786159-3-X
  • Sky Blue Enough to Drink, Grayson Books, 2016, ISBN 978-0996280921
  • Body Braille, Iris Press, 2020, ISBN 978-1-60454-260-8
  • The Conversation Turns to Wide-Mouth Jars, with Cathy Carlisi and Jennifer Wheelock, Kelsay Books, 2022, ISBN 978-1639801541
  • After My Father: A Book of Odes, Dancing Girl Press, 2024

Anthology appearances

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References

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  1. ^ "Marriages: Licenses Issued July 5 to 9". Erie Times-News. July 19, 2010.
  2. ^ Beth Gylys '86 Archived 2012-03-19 at the Wayback Machine - Allegheny College profile
  3. ^ "High Five". JMWW. Summer 2006. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c "Singers perform poetry in 'Matchbook'". Merciad.
  5. ^ a b "Department of English - Beth Gylys". Georgia State University. Archived from the original on 2009-11-14.
  6. ^ Issue 136 - The Paris Review
  7. ^ Summer 2001 Issue Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine The Antioch Review
  8. ^ "Beth Gylys". MacDowell.org. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  9. ^ Nunez, Gabriella; Perez, Dalia (April 7, 2023). "GSU receives grant for 'Beyond Bars,' literary journal for and by incarcerated people". 11Alive.com. WXIA-TV. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
  10. ^ Schneider, Michael (August 15, 1999). "'Bodies That Hum' by Beth Gylys". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
  11. ^ "Beth Gylys - Morning Speaker" (PDF). Winter 2013 Newsletter. Georgia Poetry Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 19, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
  12. ^ Beth Gylys Archived March 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine - Author profile on Wind Publications website.
  13. ^ Gerald Cable Book Award Winners.
  14. ^ "The Ohio State University Press/The Journal Award in Poetry". Archived from the original on 2016-03-25. Retrieved 2018-11-30.
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