Jalina Mhyana's second chapbook The Wishing Bones was published by Pudding House Collections. Her manuscript placed third in the Pudding House Collections 2007 Poetry Contest judged by Jennifer Bosvald. Mhyana's first chapbook Spikeseed was released by Bad Moon Books in 2004. A two-time Pushcart Prize nominee, Jalina was also a finalist in Perigee’s 2005 poetry contest, judged by National Book Critics’ Circle Award winner Judy Jordan.
In 2003, Mhyana's anti-war poetry was chosen to represent Nova Scotia’s "Shadow Day", an event made possible by peace activists commemorating the Japanese civilian casualties on August 6, 1945. Her poems have appeared in dozens of literary journals such as A Room of Her Own, Japanophile, Snow Monkey, Mobius, InkPot, and Slipstream. Mhyana has been a featured poet on Poetry Super Highway and From East to West: Bicoastal Verse.
In 2002 Jalina created the online literary journal Rock Salt Plum Review, for which she interviewed many established and up-and-coming poets such as Laurie Kuntz, Kim Addonizio, Li-Young Lee, Denise Duhamel, Lola Haskins, Rebecca Cook, and others. Rock Salt Plum Review is registered with the Library of Congress and has been required reading for "Women in English literature" classes at the University of Maryland, Asian Division. Rock Salt Plum Review's last issue was published in 2007, and a print anthology is pending.
Jalina is an MFA candidate in the Creative Writing Program at Bennington College. She travels from Germany twice a year to participate in 10-day residencies at the Bennington campus. Prior to living in Germany, Jalina lived in the northern Honshu region of Japan for six years, in a small fishing town blanketed with rice fields.
Jalina lives with her husband, a G.I. who writes record reviews of death metal and stoner rock bands throughout Europe, and two incredibly hip and loving daughters whom she homeschools.
While I was rummaging through some old boxes I came upon this drawing of me by my old friend Sue D. ~ it's me reading an "inappropriate" poem at my high school poetry festival. As you can see in my speech bubble above, the poem was all about sex, whips, blood, trances, etc. Our principal nearly fainted. Thankfully we had a liberal-minded poetry teacher (poet Bob Arnold) who gave my poem top honors! (see below)
Ironically, I didn't pursue poetry for over a decade after this little victory. It's humbling to think that somewhere out there Stoneleigh-Burnham alumni still have chapbooks with this poem printed in them.
