Poetry
Noir Poetry Collections
When I'm not writing a thriller or mystery, I dabble in poetry. The art of poetry keeps my mind fresh, engaged, challenged, and intrigued in how to get across a theme in a short amount of time. My poems don't always rhyme. In fact, I prefer a style called narrative poetry, and darker themes of noir.
By the Time I Make Wichita
by Z.J. Czupor · September 3, 2020
By the time I make Wichita,
The sun will rise in glory behind me,
Unfurling golden ribbons along the Arkansas River,
And Judy will have called the cops.
After a long night of stripping at the Red Slipper,
She would've trudged home, heated a pot for tea, and screamed,
Finding Bad Sal Lucchesi rancid and dead in their bed.
His thick neck slit ear-to-ear like a double grin, smiling at the devil.
His eyes dull as a flashlight with rusty batteries. His hands missing.
The cops will sit her in the kitchen, offer her coffee,
But she'll decline and rest her head in her hands.
By the time I make Oklahoma,
Judy's house will be fenced in with yellow crime tape,
Grim cops and joking detectives will gawk at the blood-soaked sheets,
While breathless reporters with flashing white teeth go live at noon.
Bad Sal was a button man for the K.C. mob—and a brute.
He cackled like a hyena when he abused Judy,
Leaving her with blue bruises the size of a size-10 shoe.
His final sin was stupidity. I knifed him in the front.
By the time I make Dallas,
The mob will have contracted with a hit man,
Seeking me out with method, malice, and maybe a machine gun,
Hunting for me, like a deer, before I disappear.
But I don't care. I got Sal's offshore accounts,
And his Black Book with names and numbers,
I fear no evil, for I own the shadows and the valley, dammit,
With one call, the Boys in Blue will hand out their own set of bruises.
When I make Acapulco,
I'll text Judy, "We made the onion cry." She knows where to meet.
It is personal, dammit. I'd do anything for my identical twin sister.
Anything.
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Poetry in motion
I've had the honor to team up with award-winning artist Phil Dynan, who has produced two music videos based on my poetry.