Author: Doug Hoekstra

Doug Hoekstra is a Chicago-bred, Nashville-based writer and musician, educated at DePaul University in the Windy City (B.A.) and Belmont University in the Music City (M.Ed.), whose prose, poetry, and non-fiction have appeared in numerous print and online literary journals. His first set of stories, Bothering the Coffee Drinkers earned an Independent Publisher Award (IPPY) for Best Short Fiction (Bronze Medal). Ten Seconds In-Between, his latest collection of short stories, earned a Royal Dragonfly Award for Best Short Story Collection of 2021 and Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist 2022. Hoekstra has also worked extensively as a singer-songwriter with eight albums of original material on labels released on both sides of the pond, musical highlights including included Nashville Music Award and Independent Music Award nominations, as well as many groovy happenings. “A lot of people write songs, Hoekstra writes five-minute worlds” (Wired Magazine). His most recent CD, “The Day Deserved,” was released in the U.S. and Europe in 2021. www.doughoekstra.net

Jazz

October 21, 2021October 21, 2021 Doug Hoekstra

When I got divorced I realized early on that I had to look at What I was gaining as opposed to What I was losing When I did, I found much to consider With all due respect Because this is the nature of the universe A place beyond words Invented Read more

Open D

March 13, 2020March 13, 2020 Doug Hoekstra

Long auburn hair Fingers picking, backhand Bottleneck thrashing Closer to the microphone Swaying to and fro Like a cat Or a snake Or a dream I could forsake But never forget As the blues played on In the way they never had The blues played on And of course, they Read more

Prairie Sky

October 4, 2019October 4, 2019 Doug Hoekstra

In the morning She yawns and stretches With dancing eyes Repossesses Sunlight spilling Through a battered blind Diamond set And still in time Her legs unfold Intertwine The horizon lying Distant in the past As far as the soul can see She turns And burns And covers me Like a Read more

The Open Window

September 4, 2018September 4, 2018 Doug Hoekstra

She had a propensity for talking about her exes. At first, I was eager to listen, not because I cared who they were, but because she was confiding in me and I was glad to be trusted, as a lover in arms, the sensitive and understanding 21st Century man. But, Read more

The Teeterboard

May 28, 2018June 11, 2018 Doug Hoekstra

Walking by the playground Where my son used to play On endless afternoons. Sliding. Bucket on his head. Pretending He was the Artful Dodger Running a hand across the dragon I noticed Two children on a seesaw Or teeter totter; a long Narrow board with a pivot point or Sweet Read more

Blade Runner Love

May 14, 2018May 14, 2018 Doug Hoekstra

It all started with a kiss that was something like a dirty bomb going off unexpectedly in a populated city in a movie that I’d seen before where the survivors walk the streets but the reaction takes years to dissipate among the residue, ticking off seconds on a Geiger counter Read more

Texting With My Ex

January 25, 2018May 7, 2019 Doug Hoekstra

Break 1 The first time we broke up, we met at an old-fashioned ice cream stand. I ordered a strawberry shake, and we sat at the edge of the patio, off by ourselves. It was late spring, and it was my doing. She was electric and attractive, but ultimately, too Read more