On (Pantry) Stock & (Kitchen) Timers

An experimental, hybrid collection of poetic essays, On (Pantry) Stock & (Kitchen) Timers uses lists to simultaneously subvert and make sense of day to day mundanity.

It's there, somewhere. Somewhere in the kitchen cabinet. A few degrees north of the pantry and south of This or That. Or, perhaps, the drawer to the right of the silverware. That moment-the one that never happened. Or did it? Neither gold nor silver but tarnished-of memories and crossword puzzles. Of stews, skillets, and underdeveloped skills. In the dusty corners where dog-eared crosswords (and cross words) blend with sweet and savory minutes, a recipe, of sorts, is baked then born. Dressed in saucy fabrics, smooth turns of the clock, and surprise pinches of This. Or That.

This experimental, genre-defying collection takes readers on a trip through America's kitchens. From Then to Now and back again. Where life (whatever that means, anyway) is sprung. From soup to nuts and eggs (scrambled and fried) to dessert (cherry cheesecake, blueberry crumble, and marmalade pie), days in a life are sliced, diced, then served in poetic form. The kitchen timer-always on. Here and There. The collection is built of good stock, both hearty and nourishing. Of sour lemons and sweet lemonade. It's as much a walk down memory lane as it is an open lane on the freeway of the future. Save room in your journal and on your plate-this collection will satisfy as much as it will inspire readers to write. Don't procrastinate (in America's kitchen the roast is always over-cooked and the oven timer's always watching).

Ready. Set. Read. Then, Make Lists and Write.

Jen Schneider is an award-winning author, essayist, and educator who lives, writes, and works in small spaces throughout Pennsylvania (though she mostly spends her days on West Coast time). She writes poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction, with an emphasis on hybrid forms. She especially enjoys focusing on lesser-known voices in history and spotlighting the work of women in her writing. She has authored several chapbooks and full-length poetry collections, with stories, poems, and essays published through traditional and independent presses and in a variety of literary and scholarly journals. Previous works include Invisible Ink, On Habits & Habitats, On Daily Puzzles: (Un)locking Invisibility, A Collection of Recollections, When Links / Blanks / Puzzles Linger, On Always Being an Outsider, Blindfolds, Bruises, and Breakups, 14 (Plus) Reasons Why, and To Wish to Walk.