The Curious Case of the Poet's Missing Heart

or: Thomas Hardy, eat your heart out

Jun 19, 2025

“What happened to his heart?” is not the first question most people ask about a writer.

But Thomas Hardy, beloved Victorian English writer, is the exception.

Hardy lived over 100 years ago and wrote books you've actually heard of, like The Return of the Native, Far From the Madding Crowd, (not “Maddening.” Madding.) The Mayor of Casterbridge, and Tess of the d'Urbervilles. You may have even read some of them.

He was also a poet, writing over 1,000 poems that were published during his lifetime, in addition to “The Dynasts,” a massive, epic, nineteen-act play in verse featuring speculative fiction elements set against the Napoleonic Wars. The piece was so sweeping in its scope that it was never performed. Hardy himself called it “the longest English drama in existence.” (I was going to make some pithy Harry / Meghan or Brexit comment here, but frankly it’s late, it’s hot, the A/C is broken, and the snark machine is just not operating at full capacity at the moment.)

Anyway… Thomas Hardy…

Because of his highbrow literary standing, when Hardy passed away in January, 1928, it only made sense that England’s elite would wish to honor him by burying his remains in Poet’s Corner of Westminster Abbey.

His wife, however, balked at the idea. He had so loved the area around Dorset that she wanted him to be buried at home. (Hardy’s own will backed this up, specifying St. Michael’s Church in Stinsford, near Dorchester, as his desired resting place. He wished to be buried with his parents and his first wife.)

But the Nation wanted a celebrity burial.

A compromise was soon reached.

Hardy’s heart would be removed and buried in Dorset. (!! I KNOW !!) The rest of him would be cremated and his ashes placed in Westminster Abbey.

Dr Nash-Wortham, a local surgeon, removed the heart and wrapped in a tea towel. The towel-wrapped ticker was then placed in a biscuit tin (cookie box) for safekeeping and the rest of the body was taken to Westminster.

The next day, however, before the heart was interred, Hardy's beloved cat, Cobby, discovered the tin and ate the heart.

So...

When Cobby died, he was buried in Dorset, in a grave marked “Here Lies the Heart of Thomas Hardy.” (Here history gets a tiny bit foggy -- because there is nothing to suggest that fluffy Cobby died of natural causes. I strongly suspect that Hardy's heart was kitteh’s last meal.)

Recent Reads

While I usually list the cool books I’ve enjoyed in the past two weeks, I can’t do that this time because all the books I’ve read are still unpublished and in development. So, at the risk of being über cryptic, here’s a short list of some of the projects on my to-do list:

Editing a project by a beloved reality show star (think The Bachelorette and others) slated for release later this year…
A memoir by a one-time refugee who became an actress, traveled the world, and ended up on America’s Got Talent.
A spec-fic sequel about the dystopian future that arises from giving AI control of our lives (right up my alley, I have to say).
A cutting edge best-practices pricing how-to for SaaS businesses.
A cutting edge best practices guide to product packaging by an industry bad-boy renegade.
A memoir of an industry disruptor who forever changed how we do laundry.

Many of these are truly fun reads. More on that when they’re released!

WriteAway With Me this Summer!

This July and August, I’m hosting the inaugural WriteAway Virtual Summer Retreat.

Here’s your chance to discover what works best for you and your writing while you work to make your personal Big Writing Project happen!

Imagine:

Guided writing exercises for structure, clarity, character building, emotional resonance and more.
Writer-friendly techniques for creating more writing time and motivation.
Being part of a supportive, encouraging community of a rejection-free group of people like you.
Sustainable suggestions for finding joy in the process, loving what you write, and writing to “The End.”
Finishing your Big Writing Project and being able to say “I wrote my book” when someone asks “What did you do this summer?”

Here’s your official invitation to join us! Drop me a line, tell me about your book project, and let’s chat!

Menagerie News

Nothing new to report on the Corgi front. The boys and Miss Phoebe are all doing well, thanks for asking.

Since I lost my previous flock of chicks to a nefarious fox, I doubled down and invested in eight more — and will also be investing in a fence.

These are currently being housed in the chicken hutch where foxes are not at all welcome, but Ms. Fox has developed a hankering for chicken meat and keeps trolling for more.