Victoria Heartwood

Grid Images

The Skinner and the Elephant

This flash of gentle horror was written to be a gift for someone with a Halloween birthday. It was published by Danse Macabre just in time....

Turning the Vessel

For a short time, I tried my hand at woodturning and some of the metaphors in this story come from that cursory knowledge. I am stunned by the exquisite parallels between turning wooden vessels and developing resilience in life....

Wake

I was honored to have this poem become part of an anthology dedicated to the work of Canadian paddler, poet, and artist Thom Thompson....

Quake Circle

Taslima Akhter’s heart-wrenching photo of the man and woman who clung to one another as they perished in the collapse of a Bangladeshi garment factory still moves me to tears. I wrote this poem in contemplation of the fragility of...

Tired Bones

Sometimes, the snark must come through. That’s happened when I wrote this poem in response to reading so many works published in literary magazines that featured the tired trope of bones… bones that crack audibly, can be felt from within,...

Cannot Be Destroyed

After love, mystery is what sustains me. CANNOT BE DESTROYED is a chapter excerpted from my memoir, SOUL CAT. I am currently seeking agent representation for this manuscript, which can be summed up in four words: Healing #MeToo with cats....