Chapbooks
“In poems both wistful and realistic, Patch Job reveals a poet comfortable with science as well as soul. Chuck Salmons invites us to walk with him and embrace the wisdom of the natural world, the joy and pathos of memory, and a series of brisk metaphors that discover the infinite in the mundane. You'll enjoy this stroll that takes in family patriarchs, flirting teenagers, Indiana Jones, and the multiple worlds in a grain of sand.”
— Steve Abbott, author of Why Not Be Here Now?, Kicking Mileposts in the Video Age, and A Green Line Between Green Fields
“Chuck Salmons’ poems are a homage to the men who shaped him, the machinists, mechanics and carpenters, who taught him how to use spackle, to toss horseshoes, and to do a day's work, even when he knew that his ‘job was not to be like my father.’ These poems trace a young man's growth from GI Joe and baseball cards, to social conscience and the dignity of manhood. Salmons is casual in the telling, and often humorous, which makes these poems memorable beyond their words.”
— Cathy Essinger, author of A Desk in the Elephant House, My Dog Does Not Read Plato, and What I Know about Innocence
— Steve Abbott, author of Why Not Be Here Now?, Kicking Mileposts in the Video Age, and A Green Line Between Green Fields
“Chuck Salmons’ poems are a homage to the men who shaped him, the machinists, mechanics and carpenters, who taught him how to use spackle, to toss horseshoes, and to do a day's work, even when he knew that his ‘job was not to be like my father.’ These poems trace a young man's growth from GI Joe and baseball cards, to social conscience and the dignity of manhood. Salmons is casual in the telling, and often humorous, which makes these poems memorable beyond their words.”
— Cathy Essinger, author of A Desk in the Elephant House, My Dog Does Not Read Plato, and What I Know about Innocence
Stargazer Suite
11thour Press, 2016
24 p.
OUT OF PRINT
11thour Press, 2016
24 p.
OUT OF PRINT
“Stargazer Suite is a guided tour through the cosmos. Our guide knows the craft of poetry, and with it he takes us on a wild and exciting ride. From the inchworm to the outer galaxies, Chuck Salmons observes and offers insights, puns, and images that surprise and delight. They come from various realms, among them science, nature, movies, family experiences, and love. Together they suggest a life lived deeply and honestly, an inspiring story of a human being gradually becoming aware of his place in the universe.”
— David Lee Garrison, author of Playing Bach in the DC Metro
— David Lee Garrison, author of Playing Bach in the DC Metro
Posters & Broadsides
Poems & Readings Online
- Five Poems: Chuck Salmons, on Alice Carpenter – The Ekphrastic Review
- “Genesis: A Fib” – The Fib Review
- “Sanibel Stoop” – Illinois State Poetry Society
- Shot Glass Journal - Issue #36, three poems
- "Merlot" and "Absolution" - #SpeakUp Against Gender Violence Reading, February 6, 2019 (YouTube)
Anthologies
- Appleseeds Or, How We Got Here – Sacred Fools Press, 2010
- Eclipsing the Dark – OPA Press, 2020
- Everything Stops and Listens – OPA Press, 2013
- Paradigm Anthology – Paradigm Press, 2008
- Poets to Come: Walt Whitman's Bicentennial – Local Gems Press, 2019
- Red Thread Gold Thread – Ravensun, 2009
- A Rustling and Waking Within – OPA Press, 2017
- Sun & Shadow, Wood & Stone –Tecumseh Land Trust, 2022
Prose & Editorial
- Ohio Rocks! Activity Book, Ohio Geological Survey, 2016 (co-author)
- Your House Rocks, Ohio Geological Survey Educational Leaflet 21, 2016 (author)
- Numerous articles and editorial projects for the Ohio Geological Survey, including Minerals of Ohio and the award-winning Ohio's Geology in Core and Outcrop
- Writer and editor of numerous blog articles and newsletters for Ohio Poetry Association
Exhibitions
Chuck's poems have been exhibited in visual format in the following shows and/or spaces:
- After Hours: Artwork by State of Ohio Employees 2021, Riffe Gallery, Columbus
- Art in the Lobby Program - Three solo exhibitions (2017, 2019, 2022) at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Columbus