Georgia Masters Earp
“My poetry is a slow walk along the river, where the water may not be as shallow as it seems.”
Georgia Masters Earp, who writes under the pen name Lucy Sage, could have penned those lines from any number of places she has called home, but the Susquehanna River feels especially fitting. The sentiment also serves as a guide to her work. What may appear simple at first glance reveals greater emotional depth upon a closer read.
Earp, of Harrisburg, recently published her first book of poetry titled, “I Am from the 20th Century.” Like many who write, Earp began composing poetry at a young age, finding the act both expressive and cathartic—a theme that surfaces in the poem that inspired her book’s title. In it, she writes:
“I’m from mental illness and criticism
From a wounded mother and hardworking father”
In her collection of poetry, Earp isn’t shy about exposing her soft underbelly, not unlike that of the dogs she loves so deeply.
Global Path
Born in Philadelphia, Earp’s early years were marked by movement.
Her family relocated to Shiremanstown before heading overseas to the Philippines and Nigeria, where her father worked for the United Nations. Her education followed a similar global path, including two years at a boarding school in England, before returning stateside and attending Hershey High School.
In the mid-1960s, Earp dropped out of high school, drawn instead to the cultural energy of San Francisco. That decision set off a series of moves—to Vermont and Florida—after which she eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in arts education.
Later, she returned to Pennsylvania and completed a master’s degree in public administration at Penn State.
“I soon learned that public administration was not my strong suit, but public policy was,” Earp said. “So, that’s what I did for 30 years.”
She also started to paint again in the mid-1990s.
“I painted many watercolor portraits and have done a few oils,” she said, noting that her art is slated to be shown at Market Square Presbyterian Church in October.
Imagination & Memory
When asked where her artistic voice truly flourished, Earp points to St. Petersburg, Fla.—known as the “Sunshine City” for its average of 361 days of sunny weather per year.
She lived there from 2015 through 2023, immersing herself in visual and literary arts, attending poetry readings every Sunday in a courtyard, and creating watercolor portraits and abstract works in her home studio. Equally influential was the sense of community in the area.
“In St. Pete, I made lots of friends, workshopping my poems,” Earp said, referring to sessions organized by the “Keep St. Pete Lit” initiative.
Through the literary community there, Earp met the “Poetry Midwives,” a collective that focuses on helping poets refine and submit their work. Not long after, Earp achieved a milestone that many aspiring writers seek—securing a publisher. Kelsay Books in Utah selected her manuscript as part of a recent expansion of new authors.
Earp ultimately returned to Harrisburg, where she had built a long career as a research analyst for the state government. Still, the pull of imagination and memory often took her back to distant lands. In her poem, “Burlington Parade,” she writes:
“I could leave the ridiculous race,
Overseeing policy briefs
for state senators,
And go for a ride to a land
that does not exist in time
beyond my overcrowded mind.
I could dance the Tinikling
between bamboo sticks clapping in and out
and shout out hymns of joy.”
Heart & Soul
Now retired, Earp devotes more time to her writing and setting up readings at locations like the Market Square Presbyterian Church, Historic Harrisburg Association and the Art Association of Harrisburg.
Earp also maintains a Facebook page listed under Lucy Sage where upcoming readings are announced. She also maintains a Facebook group—Midtown Harrisburg Community Poetry—hoping to re-create what uplifted her poetry in St. Petersburg.
In the works is a memoir and another book of poetry she is working on with her nephew and that includes poems that her father wrote—works that will span three generations.
No matter where Earp has been, something always called her back to the Pennsylvania area. She explains that the job she did for so many years isn’t so far removed from what she is doing now.
“I have always been an analyst,” she said. “As a policy and research analyst, my job was cerebral. Writing is more from my heart and soul, but there is an analytical aspect to it as well. I love to slow down, observe what is around me, and describe what I am seeing and feeling, what is familiar and what is not.”
For more information on “I Am from the 20th Century,” visit www.kelsaybooks.com. Copies also can be found at brick-and-mortar and online booksellers. For more information on the author, visit the Facebook page, “Lucy Sage.” For more information on the Midtown Harrisburg Community Poetry group, visit their Facebook page.
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