Frank Rogaczewski has been an adjunct faculty member of Roosevelt University since 1994 and has taught a range of classes in creative writing, literature, composition and film. His first full-length book of prose poetry, “The Fate of Humanity in Verse,” has been published by American Letters & Commentary, Inc.
Q: How long have lived in Chicago?
A: Technically, I live in Berwyn, Ill. and have for the past 12 years. I was born in Chicago and grew up near Wrigley Field (where I got married in a skybox). So, I was one of those kids you’d see out on Waveland Avenue waiting for baseballs.
For a couple of years in my twenties I lived in New York. Otherwise, I’ve lived in Chicago, Oak Park and Berwyn.
Q: Why did you choose Roosevelt?
A: What really impressed me about Roosevelt was the student body. I like the mix of traditional college-aged students and returning students.
With the development of the creative writing program, I’ve been very attracted to our students’ histories, personal and aesthetic development and dedication to craft. It has been a pleasure to teach here, and an honor to be able to work with young poets as they prepare their poetry for publication.
Q: When did you decide that you wanted to be a poet?
A: I wrote anti-war and civil rights poetry when I was in high school in the 1960s. I also wrote comic sketches and horror stories.
After high school I became more involved in left-wing politics and journalism. Then in the late 1970s, I decided that I wanted to be a poet.
At first I studied the work of modern and romantic poets, and I learned some basics from Babette Deutsch’s “Poetry Handbook,” John Ciardi’s “How Does A Poem Mean?” and other introductions to poetry. Finally, I decided on University of Illinois at Chicago for a BA in English (minors in History and Philosophy), an MA and Ph.D. in creative writing, poetry.
Q: What influences your writing?
A: I’d say my graduate school experience was crucial to my development. It was during those years that I was able to develop ideas of form, tone, voice and rhetorical structure that enabled me to write a poetry that could include social criticism, popular culture, poetics, history, philosophy and personal observations.
Also, graduate school widened my reading in poetry and poetics. I read more contemporary poetry and lesser known modern poets.
Finally, my reading outside of poetry and poetics has long been a big influence on my poetry. Historians Eric Foner and Robin D. G. Kelley, cultural critics Naomi Klein and David Harvey, literary critics Terry Eagleton and Barbara Foley—these writers and many others have had an important influence on my work.
Q: Do you do any other kinds of writing or strictly poetry?
A: I have written a horror novel, but it is not published. I do a bit of journaling.
But poetry is where I turn first of all and most of all. Probably because I began writing poetry as I was becoming educated by the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s, I believe that poetry can express a vision of equality, peace and liberation, and be entertaining and enjoyable too.
And because I don’t know where the poem is going to go when I begin it, it’s a form of introspection and reflection.
Q: Do you have any favorite specialty classes that you’ve taught?
A: In creative writing, I enjoy teaching the Poetic Forms class. I think the class has been helpful to a number of our students—introducing them to poetic forms that have better enabled them to express themselves.
In literature, I’ve done a variety of modern poetry or 20th century poetry courses—featuring women or African American poets, or emphasizing the long poem.
Q: What do you like to do for fun?
A: My wife Beverly and I like to spend time together, like to plan days together—even if the days combine work and leisure. We like riding around doing errands, spending time in the yard, walking our dogs, watching TV (Netflix and DVDs of old TV series), going out to dinner or out to movies, visiting with friends and family. We started jogging together last summer. Hopefully, we’ll do a lot more of that this spring and summer.
Q: Do you have any favorite places to visit here in the city?
A: I enjoy the lake front. A number of restaurants. The Music Box. Also, Graceland Cemetery where my father and grandparents are buried.
Q: What kind of advice would you give to those students who have never tried writing poetry but would like to?
A: I do believe you have to be open minded enough to understand that we don’t just automatically know how to write poetry. So you want to read a lot of poetry, especially Modern and contemporary poetry.
Also, you should read a few introduction to poetry books, so that you can get an idea of what different poets think are important elements of poetic craft. And take poetry workshops.
There’s a lot to be said for being exposed to what your peers are writing, critiquing their work and having your own work critiqued. Workshops are a great aid to poetic development, and can be very rewarding personal experiences as well.
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