It’s said that poems know more than their poets. “Outside” is a good example. I set out to portray a young child angered by her father’s role in her parents’ divorce and what he let his life become. Instead, what coalesced was a tender account of a father who couldn’t get out of his own way, couldn’t achieve what he most longed for. I trust my poems’ instincts over my own. They’re smarter (and kinder).

Liz Kingsley’s poems appear in New Ohio Review, The Round, The McNeese Review, Cagibi, Euphony Journal, and Sweet: A Literary Confection. She was a finalist for the 2025 May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize. Liz lives in New Jersey with her wife, some of their grown children, and many animals. 

W: lizkingsleywriter.com I: @lizzieb_kings F: Lizabeth Paley Kingsley