Mae Stier self-publishes poetry and essay collection inspired by Lake Michigan

From staff reports

Empire resident Mae Stier has released a collection of writing and photography highlighting the region in her self-published book Lake Letters. The publication is a 152-page softcover book featuring 36 poems, four essays, and photography. Lake Letters is available locally at Stier’s shop, the Blue Heron Mercantile in Empire, or through her website LettersToLakeMichigan.com, and retails for $35.

Stier, 31, began writing daily poems inspired by Lake Michigan in the spring of 2018 for a project she called “Letters to Lake Michigan”. The project began by mailing a poem a day to individuals who subscribed to the project online and poem subscriptions are still available through her website. This concept of “micro-publishing” was inspired by a writing course she took through Interlochen Academy of Arts’ Lifelong Learning program with poet Holly Wren Spaulding. Lake Letters is a compilation of poems from the first year of the poetry project and spans all four seasons on the Great Lake.

Stier has a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from Grand Valley State University and her writing and photography have been published locally in Traverse Magazine, The Boardman Review and the Glen Arbor Sun. Along with writing, Stier runs a wedding photography business and in 2019 she opened the Blue Heron Mercantile in Empire, which sells both local art and specialty groceries. She lives in Empire with her partner, Tim Egeler, and their newborn son.