Inner Journey
By Dr. Juanita Kirton
Arseya Publishing | Poetry
Sisters-in-Scripts Inaugural Grant Recipient
When I first met Juanita at a writing workshop, I was astonished by the power of her poetry. When we spoke further, she shared that she had a manuscript up in her attic collecting dust. Others in the group encouraged her to dust it off and I suggested that she apply for the Sisters-in-Script grant which she did. We awarded a grant to her and suggested a local NJ publisher and the rest is history. What a joy to see how far she has come in her writing career.
My blurb on the back cover of her book says “Juanita Kirton’s poems are not polite, they are provocative, restless and brimming with emotion – not for the faint of heart or thin-skinned.
Dr. Kirton’s insistent words force us to face our fears, acknowledge our prejudices, confront our shortcomings and most of all, praise our blessings.
About the Author
Dr. Juanita Kirton earned MFA from Goddard College (2015) in Creative Writing & Poetry and was the recipient of the Goddard College Spirit Scholarship. Juanita is published in several anthologies including, AVOW (American Veteran Association for Women Magazine), A Journal of Hope and Healing, Caribbean Writer, Chester H. Jones Literary Journal, Clevergirl, Exit 13 Magazine, Dream Quest, Goldfinch Literary Magazine, Mom Egg Review, Narrative, Other Voices, Persimmon Tree, Pink Panther Magazine, Rat’s Ass Online Journal, Sinister Wisdom, Southeast Missouri State Un. Press, Stillwater Review, Stone Canoe, Terra Preta Review, Veterans Voices & WORDPEACE.
Juanita’s poetry manuscript titled Letters to My Father, published by Finishing Line Press, 2020. In 2023 she was scholarship recipient from Peter Murphy Writing to attend Atlantic Arts Center, New Smyrna Beach, FL. She was the featured reader at both The Writers Roundtable and the White Space Art Gallery in NJ. She was selected to attend two-week writing residency at Hambidge Center for Creative Arts (2022). Juanita was the recipient of the Baker Veterans Writing Scholarship to attend the Longleaf Writers Conference in Seaside Florida (2018) and won the Sisters-in-Script self-publishing grant (2009). Her poem Fall Skates won second prize in the Dream Quest One Writing Contest, (2020) and her Peace Haiku was selected for Peace Mural in Philadelphia.
Juanita is a member of International Women’s Writing Guild and Women Reading Aloud workshop series. She served on Board of Directors for IWWG and was on the editorial staff for Clockhouse Literary Journal. She is a Trauma Teaching Artist with Crossing Point Arts (Arts for survivors of human trafficking) & a Trauma Informed Facilitator for Warrior Writers and provides seasonal writing workshops for Kirkridge Retreat & Study Center, where she serves on the Board of Directors. Dr. Kirton served fourteen years in US Army. She lives in North East PA with her spouse and touring the US on her motorcycle keeps her sane.