When I conceived of devoting an entire issue of this monthly WestVirginiaVille web magazine to poets or poems with some connection to West Virginia I didn't realize that when all was writ and done it would end up being quite so ambitious. And ... um, large ...

In the midst of all the normal chaos of American and West Virginian political life, some good news breaks out. Plus, some worthy tales from worthy lives around the state. An overview of WestVirginiaVille's August 2022 edition.

to devote so many pages and pixels to writers, poets, and memoirists, who issue dispatches from the front lines of their lives or the imagined lives of characters, is not to take a step away from Important Things and Essential Matters. At their best, poetry and prose are no less a form of truth-telling ...

Our modest effort at Joe-collation and sprawling, sometimes grouchy commentary is not just too belittle the man, alhough there are roundhouse punches and cranky cartoons, but to appeal in dire days to what's left of the better angels of Joe Manchin’s nature. Unless they’ve been laid off due to inflation. His — into the Prime Minister of America.

I used to think once you got the words right they could change the world. I don't believe that nearly as much as I used to. Yet, still, we persist in the face of oligarchs, wannabe autocrats and media lapdogs who wish to tan men's testicles.

A few words — indirectly via Bob Dylan — about the reason why life in West Virginia can be sweet. Plus, what's up in the jam-packed May 2022 issue of WestVirginiaVille.com

The new issue of WestVirginiaVille.com is jam full of good writing, significant subjects, and photos and images worth a second glance. Free subscribe to hear of our ongoing work.

Here's what's up in the December 2021 issue, last one for awhile as we go on hiatus with this edition until March 1, 2022.

If this November 2021 issue were a bag of Tootsie Pops, we’d have all the different flavors, including that rare blue-raspberry-flavored purple one. Dive deep into this month’s magazine and you’ll find lots of flavors.

Charly Jupiter Hamilton speaks for himself in a three-part farewell to the beloved West Virginia artist that involves hippos and painted coffins. Plus, Michael and Carrie Nobel Kline on the tricky art of listening. And two famous character studies, imprisoned separately by booze and prison bars.

Here is looking at you, Thomas, West Virginia. Plus, how a COVID test saved Jeff Seager's heart and maybe his life; a Crystal Good essay on Black miners and Blair Mountain; new poetry and prose by James Cochran from "I Am Appalachian," and how to get kids talking climate change before it's too late.

A look at the lineup for the August 2021 issue of WestVirginiaVille, ranging from global bodhisattvas from the West Virginia hills, to painters, artists, actresses, and memoirists delving into their lived experiences in the Mountain State.

Welcome to the June 2021 issue of WestVirginiaVille. This edition covers lots of ground. It helps to have good people as guides, leading the way.