Story
Our Story
Welcome to the heart of Charles Fell’s poetic journey. It’s a journey shaped by profound reflections, deep love for nature, and a life that is both simple and complex. The words on this page are more than just the introduction to an author; they represent a lifelong connection to the soul, the natural world, and the deepest aspects of the human condition.
The Roots of a Poet’s Soul: A Humble Beginning
Charles was born in Toledo, Ohio, on July 4th, 1946. The 5th child in a family of six, he grew up in a house filled with love, but also shaped by hardship. His first memories are from a cold, snowy night when he and his mother fled to his grandmother’s house in Holyoke, Massachusetts. It was here that Charles first experienced the bittersweet tension between love and loss, a theme that would deeply influence his work. Despite this early hardship, the love between him and his mother and the bond with his beloved dog, Pixie, instilled in him a deep sense of family and belonging that would stay with him throughout his life.
Life in the Northeast was hard on his mother, who suffered from arthritis, and eventually, the family moved south to Florida, leaving behind their beloved dog, Pixie. This moment of separation stayed with Charles, and when told that Pixie died “of a broken heart,” a part of him died too. This event would become one of the defining moments of his life, shaping his understanding of loss, loyalty, and family.
A Soul Awakened: The Birth of a Poet
At the age of 25, Charles discovered the world of poetry. It all began one quiet evening in a boarding house in Columbus, Ohio, when he wrote his first poem, For Carl Sandburg. Inspired by the work of Carl Sandburg, a gift from his dear friend Mary Kelley, Charles fell deeply in love with poetry. What started as a passion soon blossomed into a lifetime commitment to writing.
For Charles, poetry is more than just words on paper. It is the expression of his soul. His poems, born from the depths of his inner being, speak of themes that are timeless and universal—love, loss, brotherhood, and the beauty of nature. The poem The Sea and the Wind is not truly about the sea or the wind, but about brotherhood; similarly, Death of Women, Death of Men explores the contrast between the quiet grief of death and the innocence of children’s play.
Writing From the Soul: A True Expression of Self
To Charles, writing is not a conscious act of crafting words. It is an act of listening to the soul and letting it speak. He believes that when he writes, it’s not just his mind working, it is his soul, guiding him, telling him what must be said. In his words, “My soul somehow expresses the poem’s first few lines, inspires them, and then I must speak the remainder in furtherance of that expression.” Charles has always strived for authenticity, letting his soul’s voice guide his work. Any deviation from this inner truth is quickly corrected, as the soul insists on its pure expression.
His poems have been written over many years, each one reflecting his evolving maturity and deeper understanding of life. As he has grown older, the frequency of his writing has slowed, but the depth of his poetry continues to touch the hearts of readers.
Inspiration Born from Love and Loss
Much of Charles’s inspiration comes from the human experience of love, loss, and the relationships that shape us. His poems often use nature as a backdrop, drawing on images like the squirrel’s nut to symbolize love: “Or can we hide it, like a squirrel, and return to it another day; or must we tend to it, like a deep wound, without delay?” His love for nature is also reflected in memories of youth, as expressed in his poem, “Once we felt like leaves/blown free and easy/on the very tops of trees.”
Charles’s work is a testament to the power of poetry as a means of understanding and expressing the deepest parts of ourselves. Through the years, his words have become a mirror for others, a way to understand love and loss, and a path to healing.
A Lifelong Passion: Continuing the Journey
At the core of Charles’s journey is the love he feels for others and for natural elements that continue to inspire him. His poems, born from the soul, speak to the human experience in a way that only poetry can. Charles is deeply committed to continuing to write, to express the beauty of life through words, and to offer his readers a space to reflect, connect, and heal.
We invite you to explore Charles’s poetry, to immerse yourself in his world, and to join him on this lifelong journey of self-expression and soulful connection.
