The Alchemy of Grace
Devotional Sonnets after Vittoria Colonna
by Ravenna Cole
The devotional poems in The Alchemy of Grace don’t preach or tell you how to live—instead they offer humble words that can be spoken with the poet, prayers that acknowledge the struggles of the journey of faith even as they celebrate the glory of the Christian promise. There are poems imploring help, asking forgiveness, admitting weakness and failure, and honestly facing the desire to give up, to stop trying, and to take the easy road. But shining through it all is the sun, the moon, the saints, and the sea, which each in their own way speak the majesty of God and the transformative power of life in Christ.
The book is inspired by the ground-breaking devotional poetry of Vittoria Colonna, the Renaissance poet who grew famous writing secular love sonnets before turning her back on worldly expectations and transforming the sonnet form into a vessel for devotional searching. These poems reimagine each of her 103 Sonnets for Michelangelo in fresh, contemporary language perfect for daily devotional reading, for prayer, for contemplation, and to turn to when you're struggling.
BOOK INFORMATION • ABOUT THE AUTHOR • ORDERING INFORMATION • PUBLICITY CONTACT
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About Ravenna Cole
Ravenna Cole grew up in a trailer in rural Pennsylvania and moved to the Arizona desert when she was in high school. Raised in non-denominational churches, she left her faith behind while studying philosophy in college. It was during her preparation for a PhD dissertation on Kierkegaard that she started to take Christianity seriously again, which ultimately led to her reception into the Catholic Church.
Cole is cast in the mold of ancient philosophers, for whom thinking is done while walking and talking and ideas are tried in the fires of life. After her conversion, she adopted a nomadic life in search of a more poetic way to dwell, living most of the last decade on a small sailboat with her husband and four children. She began writing poetry seriously after the birth of her first child and studied for a time in a creative writing MFA program but left it to pursue a poetic vision outside of the academy. Cole currently divides her time between Florida and Alaska.
Video & Music
Songs based on The Alchemy of Grace
More on YouTube @Ravenna_Cole
SONNET 87
In Rise and Fall
Written & performed by Ravenna Cole
Podcast
EPISODES FORTHCOMING
Ravenna Cole discusses her poems and musical compositions in the context of the larger spiritual and philosophical questions motivating her work and her life. She is a nomadic poet-philosopher and Christian who began setting her poetry to music in 2025. Her music combines hip-hop beats and rap with pop- and new music-influenced vocals, transforming serious contemporary poetry into dance-worthy prayers, philosophical meditations, and love songs.
In the episodes listed below, Ravenna reads and discusses poems from The Alchemy of Grace:
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Book Information
Paperback:
ISBN: 978-1-949497-15-1
Trim size: 6" x 9"
Print length: 132 pp.
$16.00
Hardcover:
ISBN: 978-1-949497-14-4
Trim size: 6" x 9"
Print length: 132 pp.
$25.00
Ebook:
ISBN: 978-1-949497-16-8
Kindle / Epub
Print length: 132 pp.
$9.99
General Information
Author: Ravenna Cole
Title: The Alchemy of Grace
Subtitle: Devotional Sonnets after Vittoria Colonna
Publisher: In the Wind Press
Language: English
Ordering Information
Books are available on our website and through online and brick-and-mortar booksellers. For booksellers, orders can be made through Ingram. Groups interested in bulk orders directly from us may contact us using the contact form below.
Publicity Contact
To schedule concerts, readings, interviews, or other media appearances, please use the contact form below. We'll be notified right away and will respond as soon as we can.
Marketing Plan
We publish uncommonly good books born of the spirit, and we're using an uncommon approach to bringing them to our spirited readers.
We're traveling from town to town and sharing books person to person. Advance copies are available for purchase so that you can get the books you need, when you need them. We'd like to keep you up to date about the book's official release and other news, no more than about once a month. There's no pressure, though: you can unsubscribe at any time with the click of a button.
If you love the book, please consider becoming part of our launch team. We'll include info about that in our emails. We are actively looking for help promoting the books through:
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Readings at: Homes, Churches, Bookstores, Coffeeshops, Outdoor spaces, and Other places where people gather
Podcasts
Social Media: Instagram, Substack, YouTube, etc.
User reviews of books
If you're interested in having Ravenna do a reading or be a guest on a podcast, live feed, or other program, contact us using the contact form and we'll respond as soon as we can. Thank you so much for your interest in Ravenna Cole's work!