Cynthia Anderson

Poet

Yucca Valley, CA
California US
Email: 
[email protected]
Website: 
www.cynthiaandersonpoet.com

Author's Bio

Cynthia Anderson lives in the Mojave Desert near Joshua Tree National Park. She is the author of fourteen poetry collections, mostly recently Heartwood (Cholla Needles, 2026), The Far Mountain (Wise Owl Publications, 2024), and Arrival (Sheila-Na-Gig Editions, 2023). Her short-form poems (haiku, senryu, tanka, and haibun) have appeared in journals such as MacQueen's Quinterly, Blithe Spirit, Presence, Prune Juice, LEAF, Femku, Frogpond, and Contemporary Haibun Online. Her long-form poems have appeared in journals such as Spillway, Crab Creek Review, Apercus, Askew, San Pedro River Review, Mojave River Review, The Coil, and Split Rock Review. Her work has been nominated for the Touchstone Awards, Best of the Net, and the Pushcart Prize. Cynthia is co-editor of the anthology A Bird Black As the Sun: California Poets on Crows & Ravens. www.cynthiaandersonpoet.com

Publications & Prizes

Anthologies:
Fire and Rain: Ecopoetry of California (Scarlet Tanager Books, 2018)
,
Waters Deep: A Great Lakes Poetry Anthology (Split Rock Review, 2018)
,
Weaving the Terrain (Dos Gatos Press, 2017)
,
Bearing the Mask: Southwestern Persona Poems (Dos Gatos Press, 2016)
,
Self-Portrait Poetry Collection (Silver Birch Press, 2014)
,
A Bird Black as the Sun: California Poets on Crows & Ravens (Green Poet Press, 2011)
Books:
Now Voyager (Cholla Needles Press, 2019)
,
Route (Cholla Needles Press, 2019)
,
Waking Life (Cholla Needles Press, 2017)
Journals:
Apercus
,
Crab Creek Review
,
Dark Matter: Women Witnessing
,
Inlandia: A Literary Journey
,
Mojave River Review
,
Origami Poems Project
,
San Pedro River Review
,
Spillway
,
Split Rock Review
,
The Coil
,
Whale Road Review
Prizes won: 

“Desert Survival: On Distance,” Deep Wild Volume 1, 2019, Nominated for a Pushcart Prize; "The Shallows," Postcard Poems and Prose, May 2018, Nominated for Best of the Net; “Bird Woman of Wonder Valley,” Finalist, 2017 Luminaire Award for Best Poetry, The Coil, Alternating Current Press; “Angel of Kindness,” First Place Winner Kindness Competition, The Best of Kindness (anthology), Origami Poems Project, 2016; “Queen of the Mist,” Finalist, Charter Oak Award for Best Historical 2016, The Coil, Alternating Current Press

More Information

Gives readings: 
No
Travels for readings: 
No
Identifies as: 
White
Prefers to work with: 
Adults
Fluent in: 
English
Born in: 
Darby, PA
Pennsylvania
Raised in: 
Simsbury, CT
Connecticut
Please note: All information in the Directory is provided by the listed writers or their representatives.
Last update: Jun 22, 2026