"Pollen," a collection of poems

Published in 2011 by Finishing Line Press, POLLEN grapples with grief at the unimaginable nature of death and loss, finding solace in sensual connection and the beauty of the everyday. 

"Winter Fruit," a poem from POLLEN, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. 

"These are poems cherishing impermanent beauty; delicate, seductive, they braid hope and youthful sex with heartfelt mourning, Thanatos and Eros brilliantly intertwined. Seldom can one rightly speak of greatness in a poet's first book; rare to know that these shatteringly lovely recognitions will be read and re-read far into the future."
 

-- Barry Spacks, award winning Poet Laureate 

"I am happy to be celebrating this first collection of poems by Tai Woodville. The poems in POLLEN are thoughtful, meditative, and exciting. Woodville knows how to employ a lyric moment and how to tell a story, even when the story is a difficult one. She is a poet that reminds us of the human adventure we are on and that we should be filling the night with our voices for as long as we can. A brave act this book accomplishes!" 

-- Matthew Dickman, award winning poet

"Tai Woodville has found a way of entering the personal story at unexpected angles, her language rich and wholly particular. This is a strange and startling work, an astonishing voice. These poems make the reader hungry to read her again, and again."

--Samantha Dunn, award winning author

From 2010 - 2021, Tai authored monthly articles exploring the mysteries of existence and the role of the dreamer in the modern age via the top-ranking philosophy blog, PARALLAX: Exploring The Architecture of Reality.

 Her Animal Inheritance investigates intimacy, emotional memory, and how we hold the pain we carry. Published in 2017 (Sealskin Press), co-authored with Alissa Hattman & Sara Jackson-Holman, Her Animal Inheritance finds meaning and solidarity in the healing of shared stories.

“These poems take turns as they speak, question, honor, and validate  each other. These poems listen. In this way, the poets are aware of  their judgements, and they are aware of their losses. It is not easy to  be this vulnerable. Expressions of desire and dreams live and thrive across the deep ravines of grief and regret. And like an altar on the  hearth of a wise woman’s home, these poems hold space for spirit.” 

--Julia Laxar, writer

Visitant Lit featured Tai as a monthly guest poet from 2016-2019.

 Fireplay (Eat Poems Press, 2002), an exuberant debut from Tai Woodville, was crafted during her university years under the mentorship of Santa Barbara Poet Laureate Barry Spacks, sold at the university bookstore. The poems in Fireplay are bold and triumphant. The collection explores the wild feminine, breaking social conformity, and celebrating radical authenticity. A personal odyssey of emerging queerness, Fireplay revels in the eros and jubilance of youthful self-discovery.