I met Jose Hernandez Diaz on Twitter. We followed each other years ago and I bought his book The Fire Eater, published by Texas Review Press, in 2020. I devoured the chapbook of prose poems in one sitting.
There is a certain magical realism in his writing that reminds me of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I also think that Diaz is one of the kindest and respected poets on Twitter. His poems have been published in Litro Magazine, Poetry Magazine, to name a few and he is editor at Frontier Poetry and Palette Poetry, as well as a Teacher at Litro Magazine. I adore his openness and sweet nature.

Check out his poetry work:www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/jose-diaz#:~:text=Jose%20Hernandez%20Diaz%20is%20the,he%20lives%20in%20southern%20California.

You can also follow him on Twitter here: twitter.com/JoseHernandezDz

When I asked him to write my poetry book and write me a blurb he accepted wholeheartedly. He said my book was beautiful and he wrote these words:

“In a stripped‐down yet profound verse, the speaker in
Love & Metaxa shows us the lust and magic of her Greek‐
Canadian life, but there is also lingering, painful familial
memory. Similarly, the poet highlights the fast‐paced
world of poetry and its relationship to internet culture, and
does not overlook how art currently serves as a commodity
and a privilege. In this always urgent, sometimes subtle
collection, Strigas wants us to see and feel the heart and
soul of things, and, at the end of the day, chase it down
with a crisp glass of Metaxa, smooth and refined.”
—Jose Hernandez Diaz, author of The Fire Eater

I am so grateful to all the poet friends I have on Twitter who have supported my book.

My book’s birthday was June 8th, 2021, and she is a true Gemini!

Love & Metaxa is available at all online bookstores.