Niki HerdAssistant Professor of English
Education
B.A., University of Arizona
M.F.A., Antioch University Los Angeles
Ph.D., University of Houston
Biography
My work is in the field of documentary poetics. I believe what we write exists in the context of our historical moment and can be shaped into a cultural record that profoundly connects us to readers, future writers, and that part of ourselves we have yet to mine. I am particularly drawn to works by writers or color, feminist texts, and those that force us to reconsider traditional notions of genre. There is much division and discontent in the world and my classroom aims to be different; to be an engaging and safe space that fosters listening and support. If we believe a piece of art鈥攁 movie, a poem, or a short story鈥攕hould bring its viewer or reader into a new world emotionally or intellectually, then my classroom is always asking the question: how does the writing get closer to making this connection happen?
The Stuff of Hollywood (Copper Canyon Press, 2024) _________ , don鈥檛 you weep (Sting & Honey Press, 2022) Laura Hershey: On the Life & Work of an American Master (Pleiades Press, 2018) The Language of Shedding Skin (Main Street Rag, 2011) 鈥淓ach year she sits costumed,鈥 American Poets, 2024 鈥淵esterday, the ABC Affiliate,鈥 Pleiades 44.1, 2024 鈥淔谤辞尘 The Stuff of Hollywood,鈥 Academy of American Poets Poem-a-Day, 2024 鈥淟yric Sung in Third Person,鈥 Poetry Daily, 2023 鈥淎ubade for the Late, Great Show,鈥 New England Review, 2022Publications
Books
Journals