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Four poems by Ward Kelley

Truth Fades

Another Clever Manual

Hands Go Up, the Back Arches

Pumping, Pumping

Ward Kelley says he is "a 52 year old business executive with 3,600 people in the division reporting to me. I only mention this because in a sense the daimon that propels my occupation also propels my poetry. For instance, Gertrude Stein once said, 'If Mr. Robert Frost is at all good as a poet, it is because he is a farmer -- really in his mind a farmer, I mean.' So in my mind am I a businessman who writes poetry, or a very minor poet successful at business? Who knows? Yet I tread carefully with this balance for fear my daimon will leave me, or my greed will taunt me for decades.'

Ward is also a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee whose publication credits include such journals as: Plainsongs, Another Chicago Magazine, Rattle, Midstream, Zuzu’s Petals, Ginger Hill, Sunstone, Pif, Whetstone, Melic Review, Ariga, Thunder Sandwich, Potpourri and Skylark. He was the recipient of the Nassau Review Poetry Award for 2001. Kelley is the author of two paperbacks: 'histories of souls,' a poetry collection, and 'Divine Murder,' a novel; he also has an epic poem, 'comedy incarnate' on CD and CD ROM. Visit his web site for more information about him and his writing.