Think of a bird
now think
of its shadow.
Imagine a field
now picture a lake.
Had the shadow
not drifted
across the field
you might have missed
a fire-bird rising out
of the lake.
Todd Turner is an Australian poet. Born in 1971, he has lived in Western Sydney since childhood. His parents were from farming families in Koorawatha, a town on the Western Plains of NSW. They moved to Sydney in 1959. Turner currently resides in Parramatta where he lives and works. Turner’s poems have been widely published and recognised, appearing in publications such as Meanjin, The Australian, Quadrant, Cordite and Southerly. Woodsmoke has been reviewed in Australian Poetry Journal, Australian Book Review, The Weekend Australian, Cordite and Australian Poetry Review. Turner has been shortlisted in the Newcastle Poetry Prize, the Blake Poetry Prize, the Henry Kendall Poetry Prize, and he was joint winner of the 2013 Jean Cecily Drake-Brockman Prize.