Joy Leftow

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Joy Leftow, born in Washington Heights in New York City, is an American poet and short story writer who often appears on local radio shows and at local poetry events in her hometown^[1].

After dropping out of high school and living for a time on welfare, Leftow restarted her education under the auspices of the New York State Higher Education Opportunity Program and obtained a B.A. from Columbia University. She continued her studies and obtained a (postgraduate) masters of science in social work degree from Columbia University in New York City and a M.A. in creative writing from City College of New York^[1].

Leftow has been active in the New York City poetry scene since 1993, frequently reading at poetry evenings (at CBGB's, the Wetlands, Cornelia Street Cafe, Bowery Poetry Club, the Back Fence, Palmer Vineyards and the Paris Cafe) and making appearances on local public radio shows, such as Poetry Central, Teachers & Writers Collaborative, Everything Goes, The Sounds of Poetry on Adelphi Radio on WBAU-FM, Jazz Poetry Café with Phillip Gregory on WFLO and Cool on the Groove on Rockland World Radio Program^[2]) and television The New Yorkers. She also organized and hosted a "spoken word" session at the 4th Annual Uptown Arts Stroll event in 2006. She has over 2 dozen publishing credits and is listed at Poets & Writers website. [[[1]]]

As well as working as a clinical social worker, Leftow teaches youth literacy classes through the Beacon Program [[2]] and is an production editor for Augustus Publishing.

1 Writings
- 1.1 Poetry
- 1.2 Prose
2 References

[edit] Writings

Leftow's first book, A Spot of Bleach & Other Poems and Prose (Big Foot Press, 2005), was praised by the Aquarian East Coast Rocker ^[3] as "bringing a bold energetic humor to the matters of everyday life. Growing up in a not so “Leave It To Beaver” household, she reflects on her relationships with family members and friends with more sarcasm than you could find in a whole season of “Seinfeld.” Her prose is like a catchy tune, keeping the reader engaged within every line and pause, allowing her words and loud voice to linger around in your head. Her observations and analysis of human nature represent the cynicism with which we think but never have the guts to say out loud."