Victor D. López, Author

A reading of my original poem Mi Canto in Spanish followed by my English Translation.

Poem

Although poetry represents a minuscule amount of my published writing which is mostly non-fiction, it has been and remains close to the core of who I am as an author. In this podcast I will read samples of my sonnets from my two books of poems, Echoes of Dawn at Dusk (C) 2021 and Of Pain and Ecstasy (C) 2011. I hope you may find at least some of these to your liking. As always, thank you for listening.

This is a sample sonnet reading from my second book of poems, Echoes of Dawn at Dusk: Collected Poems, Volume Two (C) 2021.

A teaser poem for my short story, Amor Vincit Omnia.

I am posting some English and Spanish version readings from my novel Hire Lernin’: An Idealist’s Quest Through the Realm of for-Profit Education here and elsewhere and wanted to provide some general background for the novel. I hope you will sample and enjoy my cold readings from the novel.

La entrevista continua . . .

Chapter 5: Meeting the Faculty

his novel involves the bittersweet journey of a young, idealistic, naïve attorney who takes on the role of academic dean at a for-profit business school in New York City in the late 1980s knowing very little about the industry. Unable to accept the way things are, he immediately launches into a personal quest to change lives for the better in an environment where only the bottom-line matters. Hard work and an entrepreneurial spirit quickly propel him to professional success, but at a deep personal cost in the process as he learns critical life-altering lessons about himself, about leadership, about for-profit and not-for-profit higher education, and about love.

This is a cold reading from my novel, Hire Lernin’: An Idealist’s Quest Through the Realm of for-Profit Education (C) 2021, 2024.

This is a reading from the first two chapters of my novel about an idealistic young lawyer hired as the dean of a for-profit business school knowing next to nothing about the industry. Unwilling to accept things as they are, he launches on a personal quest to implement meaningful changes, achieving in the process unprecedented professional success, devastating personal loss, and some profound lessons about leadership, about love, and about his own weaknesses and strengths.

A Thanksgiving Message

(C) 2011, 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

Although I love the British romantic poets best, Lord Byron is not among my favorites. But if he can write an ode to his dog, by golly I can write a sonnet to my favorite part of the food pyramid. No, I am not insane, and suffer no kinky bread fetish. The poem was written with a doughy tongue somewhat less than firmly planted in cheek.

This is a simple poem about those who embrace the the mostly lonely and unappreciated task of writing poetry knowing it will largely go unread--voices crying in the wilderness hoping to strike a chord that resonates in receptive ears.

(C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez

My first novel is a fictionalized version of my experience in my first academic posting as academic dean of a proprietary, for-profit business school as an idealistic, newly minted lawyer who knew next to nothing about the industry. The book is fiction, though largely based on actual events and situations with names and locations altered and minor dramatic license taken for the sake of the narrative. In this podcast, I read the first two chapters about the beginning of a Quixotic quest that will take the protagonist on a journey to unimagined highs and life-altering lows not unlike those experienced by the author on the way to learning vital truths about himself, about for-profit education, about leadership and for the protagonist at least, about love.

Hire Lernin': An Idealist's Quest through the Realm of for-Profit Education is available in hard and soft cover editions as well as eBook editions from all major booksellers.

(C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez

(C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez

(C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez

Three linked haikus on Easter Sunday

This is a poem comprised of 11 linked haikus about the plague that is violent crime. (C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez.

Poem -- three linked haikus. (C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez.

Poem -- (C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez

(C) 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

This poem was written in the days after my mom's passing and first published in print in my second book of poems, Echoes of Dawn at Dusk. (C) 2018, 2020, 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

This poem first appeared in print in my second book of poems, Echoes of Dawn at Dusk. (C) 2018, 2020, 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

First published in my first book of poems, Of Pain and Ecstasy: Collected Poems, in 2011. (C) 2011, 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

(C) 2011, 2023 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

(C) Victor D. Lopez 2023

This is a reading of my holiday message in sonnet form. (c) 2022 Victor D. Lopez.

Sonnet

Poetry. (C) 2022 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

(C) 2022 Victor D. Lopez. All rights reserved.

This is one of my early poems from my first book of poetry, Of Pain and Ecstasy: Collected Poems (c) 2011. Performance Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.