Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

As a child I loved to read and as I grew older I developed a love for writing. At times, I would just write anything on paper. Growing older I sensed that writing would be a great deal in my life. Sometime in my teenage years, I started to write poems. First it would be simple and probably a few sentence here and there that rhymed. In my thirties I started to write poems that expressed my feelings to certain aspect of life. Later, in my forties I was experimenting on narrative poems. I enjoyed it and to this day I still write narrative poems. I do love narrative poems as it tells a story, much like reading a short novel but in a compact version. Throughout the years with several relocation I lost some of my writings. I do have almost 300 poems now with me. It’s certainly a pleasure to go back and read them every so often. Close friends would encourage me to publish some of my poems and one day I did take them up on it. It’s certainly an adventure to see my writings published. I am taking it slow and have self-published Poetry Untamed with Amazon. I also have a children’s book titled The Stubborn Witch. It’s a wonderful new arena for me. I will continue to uphold my passion for writing as long as I can.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
My writing process is that of narrative as well as rhythmic. Although I do write free verse once in a while. But mostly I do love the rhyming aspect. At times it could be difficult to find the words that fit and I would have to restructure the sentence. I try not to distant the story when seeking words that rhymes.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
I have two books that are published through Amazon. One is Poetry Untamed which is a collection of narrative poems. The second one is a children’s book titled The Stubborn Witch.
The Stubborn Witch is from my poem collections which is in the book Poetry Untamed. I transformed the poem into a children’s book. It was a wonderful experience.
I am in the process of transforming more of my poems into short stories. I do have one project going and it’s a collection of four short stories derived from my poems.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
I really don’t have any favorite authors. But I do like to read poetry from various authors.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
I like to read books on spirituality. But I also like to read on occasions fantasy and science fiction books. One of my favorite readings were from Anne McCaffrey. I loved her off world stories of dragons and dragon riders.

What are you reading now?
I am not reading any books at the moment. I like to go into Youtube and listen to audio-books every now and then.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
When I’m not writing, I am working full-time. With that I put in many long hours. The weekends are my free time. And when the weekend comes, I have so many things that I would like to do. Sometimes I don’t know where to start. But surely, writing is one of them.

Are you working on a current project?At the moment I am still working on my current book which contains short stories derived from my poem collection.

Poet Website and Profiles
Katherine E Acosta’s Amazon Profile

Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I have always been an admirer and lover of the arts from a very young age. I started sketching during my early youth. Years later, I began to incorporate short stories around my sketches. As I learned more about the various areas of the arts, I became drawn to photography.
As time went on, I wanted to write more and more. Whenever, I would go for long periods without writing, I would experience a sense of emptiness.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
I wouldn’t say that I have a unique process. However, I find myself being most productive during late nights. I always keep two pens, two highlighters, and two note books with me at all times. Whenever I’m exercising I switch to a recording device.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My first publication is entitled “Inspire Me: An Artist Unleashed”. This book is a work of inspirational readings presented through poetry, photography and sketches. This book takes the reader on a journey of emotions and it challenges the reader to think about relevant life issues, other people, and the world around them.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
I have a long list of authors that I have admiration for, many who have written beautiful poetry and would take me a while to list. I have enjoyed reading novels by Alex Barclay and Thomas Harris.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
I am a fan of Psychological Thrillers.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading Into the Water by Paula Hawkins.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
I am a Researcher by profession. Also, I took on a different adventure a few years ago in the area of Sustainable Tourism Destination Management. Whenever I have a moment to myself, I enjoy swimming and free diving.

Are you working on a current project?I am in the process of working on a few projects. I am currently working on my first novel and my second poetry book is coming together. Writing and photography has continued to enrich my life in so many ways and I look forward to sharing new projects in the future.

Poet Website and Profiles
Tammye’ M. Lee’s Amazon Profile

Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I know most writers say this, but I’ve wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. I was constantly writing short stories as a child, but I only really started getting serious about being published a couple years ago. I don’t know what inspired me to start writing poetry, but one day I decided to start a blog and write a poem a day for an entire year. Since successfully completing that year, I fell in love with writing and reading poetry more than ever.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
I draw inspiration from typical things–memories and past journal entries, for example. I also find inspiration in watching people, which I promise is a lot less creepy than it sounds. I like being able to look at a stranger and guess what their life is like, based on who they’re with, what they’re doing, how they interact with people and things. In the year I wrote a poem a day, I also received messages from readers of my blog who asked me to write about a specific topic, so a portion of my poems are about requested topics.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My first poetry anthology, It Starts Like This, is a collection of my (and my reader’s) favorite poems from my year of poetry writing every day. The book contains 61 poems that I narrowed down from 365. It begins with love and then travels through a variety of emotion: heartbreak, loss, grieving, closure, and hope. The majority of these poems come from personal experience or the experience of others, so it is my hope that many people can relate to these poems in their own way.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Absolutely. My favorite novelist is Khaled Hosseini. Rupi Kaur and Amanda Lovelace are two of my favorite poets at the moment.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
I’ll read fiction and poetry books of all kinds–I’m not picky. My favorite book of all time is A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently reading Life After Life by Kate Atkinson.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
Currently, I’m a college student studying communications and professional writing. My time is usually divided between class/studying, reading books, and writing. However, over the next few months, I’ll be traveling abroad which I’m really looking forward to!

Are you working on a current project?Yes! I would love to publish another poetry collection, but I also have some fiction novel ideas running around my head that I would love to explore. So we’ll see what I decide to do next!

Poet Website and Profiles
Shelby Leigh’s Website
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I have been writing since I was a small child at 9 years old. Ever since I was exposed to story starters(one sentence story prompts) as a 4th grader, the writing bug hit me. I changed to poetry at 11 years old and haven’t really turned back since. Life itself is what inspires me – both the light and dark side of it. Every experience in life is worth writing about – and sharing it with others in hope to inspire – no matter what type of poetry you are writing.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
I can listen to a certain type of song and be inspired… I have created different types of song playlists to inspire my writing- for instance – I have a horror writing playlist with songs by Voltaire, Abney Park and Johnny Hollow. It is a combination of Gothic Rock and Steam Punk. There is something about the musical sounds and the somewhat mysterious lyrics that help me create the types of horrific tales and scenes that I want to create.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My early books contain more inspirational poems, while I have gradually moved to horror. My most recent two collections are of the horror genre. “Twisted Paths Poetry” is a collection of both horror poems and epic poetic tales. “Only-If” is an epic poetic tale about a man named Billy who literally goes crazy sitting in a prison cell because he was framed for the murder of his wife. His thoughts are truly maddening and it takes the reader and quite the psychological journey. I have come to believe, that sometimes, one has to walk through darkness before you can escape to the light.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Stephen King, Edgar Allen Poe, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Shel Silverstein, Laurell K. Hamilton and Nicholas Sparks.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
I like to read a mixture of horror and fantasy books that contain stories about vampires, and the quest of life and death. I also enjoy a good romantic novel from time to time.

What are you reading now?
The Twilight Series (yes, I know I am behind – I already saw the movies).

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
I am a reporter for a small local newspaper, The News Progress and I am an Administrative Aide at a United Methodist Church. On the side I like to draw, do digital oil painting on my tablet, graphic art, take nature photos and create jewelry. I also have a few kitties that I love dearly that are all rescues.

Are you working on a current project?I am working on the second book of my series, “Only If.” It is titled, “Only If- Clara’s Story.”

Poet Website and Profiles
Ariana R. Cherry’s Website
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Ariana R. Cherry’s Author Profile Other Book Seller

Ariana R. Cherry’s Social Media Links
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I was born and raised in Seattle WA. I grew up in an atmosphere where the arts were supported and cherished. The love of books, and reading were instilled deeply in me by my late mother. This love often times now leads me to read 4-6 book simultaneously.

I’ve journaled the majority of my life in poetic forms. I started a blog several years ago sharing some of my work, and received overwhelming support. It dawned on me then, that maybe this was my niche. I then started on Twitter, where I showcased some of my work, and grew a readership. After awhile an editor took interest in me and connect me with my first publisher. She helped me jump through hoops, and opened doors that would otherwise have been closed to a new author, and I was off and running.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
Like most writers, I have notebook and pen with me at all times. I’ve learned not to rely on my memory to write an idea or line down later, because it just won’t be there.

I set aside time every morning to write. I tend to write about life and relationships, and how they mesh. But to counteract that statement, I write about anything and everything. My mind is a whirlwind most of the time. Poems come to me by a feeling I have, a story someone’s told me, a scene I’m privy to, a glance of natures beauty, situations others are involved in, and sometimes completely made up scenarios. I’m very tender hearted, and I feel others emotions deeply within myself. I feel their souls, their hearts, and that inspires me a lot. I like to shoot photos, and actually quite a few of my poems were inspired by photos I’ve taken.”

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My first collection of poems is entitled “Lest We Forget Life’s Passion” A collection of poetry which speaks directly from the heart and moves you. It probes the intuitive language of the heart – the universal human experiences of love, nature, struggle and faith, through a combination of free verse poetry, rhyme and haiku.

My second collection is entitled “Cut Both Ways” – Peaks & Valleys Of A Passionate Relationship Expressed Through Poetry – In a relationship more often than not, both parties are not passionate people. Passionate, not necessarily in a romantic sense, but about life in general; feeling strongly about goals, interests, ideas and yes, dreams and love. Usually one is a taker, one a giver. The old adage “opposites attract”, or do they? This collection of works will delve into the life of a relationship where both individuals are extremely artistic, intense, passionate about life, and fierce about love.

“Cut Both Ways” is a living, breathing body of work that exposes true human nature. From beginning to the end, this is much more than poetry, it’s an entire lifetime of the good, the bad, the sensual, and the destructive. But above all else, this collection is certainly life.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
The list of poets is too long to list, but many of the classics of course. I have a very large and old collection of poetry books.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
Mysteries are actually my go to genre for easy reading and relaxation. Both Faye and Jonathan Kellerman rank right up at the top. Janet Evanovich, in addition to Sue Grafton.

What are you reading now?
Currently I’m reading a book by Rebecca Forster entitled Eyewitness. Its a series and I love the characters.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
I dabble in photography, enjoy many outside activities, such as boating, skiing, and we have a Harley Davidson, which takes up much of our summer play time. I love wine which has taken me across the United States, Canada, and New Zealand for tastings. I loves music, dancing, and singing. I have 5 grandchildren, and I’m a very hands on grandma, so I’m quite busy.

Are you working on a current project?I’m currently working on my third book which will be dedicated to various forms of Japanese poetry.

Poet Website and Profiles
P.S. Rowland’s Website
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P.S. Rowland’s Social Media Links
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I fell in love with stories as a child who spent hours in the kids corner of our local library. It never occurred to me to write until my English teacher asked me to promise her I’d never stop writing, after handing in a four line poem about a sunrise.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
It’s hard to describe my process; the work finds me, rather than me sitting down at a desk choosing what to write, especially poetry. Novels start organically of their own accord and seem to prefer to announce themselves, by way of an idea that holds me hostage until I give in and start working on it, or a character turns up with a story to tell. I’m not the one who determines any of it really. More often than not, I feel like a pen pusher: A little more complicated than that but it pretty much sums up the sensation I have most of the time, when I write. None of it very helpful to your question though. I do keep notebooks. An avalanche can hit any time anywhere. I am still very old school; pencil and notepad, even so I have resorted to leaving bits and pieces in Notes on my phone when I can’t stop ling enough to haul out my pencil.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
So far my books have been poetry collections, both in print and ebooks. I have one orphaned novel and several unpublished manuscripts and short story colkections.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Rilke, Hesse, Kundera, Pessoa, Parker, Jong, Miller, Murakami, Brink, Breytenbach, de Beauvoir, Vargas Llorsa, Auster, Pirsig, … list is long.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
The Book of Disquiet,

What are you reading now?
The Lambs of London by Peter Ackroyd

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
Writing is my life, work and play. I treasure hunt talent. I love discovering new minds as much as I love discovering new places and people. I love art, theatre, dance, opera. Music is very much my family’s heartbeat.

Are you working on a current project?I have several projects in mind. Topping the list is a brand new Literati Magazine, which has taken its first new steps on Medium
View at Medium.com

I will be picking up on my collaboration with American artist Jerry Shawback with The Shawback Redemptions. It is an improv project between his his drawings and my poetry. If you’d like a look at what there is so far,
http://theshawbackredemptions.wordpress.com
I would like to finish my first collection of German poetry to artworks from a private collection donated to a Swiss museum. Should I get funding, there are several gorgeous poetry collections by wonderful poets I’d like Rare Swan Press to publish. Watch this space for even more plans 😉 …

Poet Website and Profiles
Renée Sigel’s Website

Renée Sigel’s Social Media Links
Twitter Profile

Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I started writing seriously in 2013 at the encouragement of a very close friend of mine, Damone Johnson. I wrote a bit before that, but with no real effort or focus towards the craft. Since I started writing, I have been incredibly fascinated with the art of storytelling. Yes, I am indeed a poet and not a novelist, but I believe that as a poet, the stories i have to tell do not have to be limited to the forms and shapes that a short story or a novel require.

I continue to write (and by extension, seek to encourage other writers) because I believe that each one of us on earth has a unique story to tell, with unique perspectives. The only way we can know these different perspectives, is to actively share those stories and experiences.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
As a native New Yorker, I suffer from ‘I take the subway everywhere’ syndrome. Its symptoms include not having a driver’s license with no desire to receive one.

With that being said, a lot of my writing happens during my commute. If the inspiration hits, I may write two or three short poems, or one long poem depending on the day. I am constantly writing, and although every poem may not be the pinnacle of my abilities, I still seek to write down my experiences day in and day out.

Often, I will write a poem and leave it for a few weeks before coming back to edit it. Whatever I write, I let it all hit the page when the idea strikes, and let time itself help me distil those thoughts into something more concentrated and beautiful.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
‘je suis noir [i am black]’ began taking shape soon after a terror attack in Paris, France on the Charlie Hebdo magazine headquarters. At the time, I was attending conservatory, and after the attacks, most of my friends had words of encouragement, solidarity and hope for the people of France, nearly half a world away. I will never contend that those responses weren’t needed. A tragedy is a tragedy, and I do not seek to diminish the horror that took place. However, I didn’t see that same reaction when black men and women unjustly died in the streets of America at the hands of police. THis book rose as an outcry of that sentiment. It is an examination of what it means to be a Christian Black male living in America.

‘The Quiet Way’ (October 22) was an ongoing work that I had been labouring over for over a year, though I didn’t know it. What I mean by that is I have spent a good portion of the last two years trying to bring light to two things. The first was blackness and black value (je suis noir). The second, within this collection, was shedding light on the topic of mental health, depression, and suicide. Because that is such a deep intrinsic part of my story, I endeavoured to write poems that spoke to those times in my life when I was darkest, while also looking at where I am now and the aftermath of my recovery. The Quiet Way is meant to represent my journey from Innocence, Depression and Suicide, Recover, and ultimately, redemption.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Many of my favourites are modern poets. Sarah Kay, Joshua Bennett, Sierra DeMulder, Danez Smith, Major Jackson, Rupi Kaur, Nikki Giovanni, and Audre Lorde are all favourites. I am also partial to Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, James Baldwin, and Claude McKay.

An author whose work I’m looking the most forward to seeing is Chicago poet, Matthew Strange.

I also love the Bible in many of its translations.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
My favourite books are Today Means Amen (Sierra DeMulder), Love Poems (Nikki Giovanni), No Matter the Wreckage, milk and honey (Rupi Kaur), and The Sobbing School (Joshua Bennett), to name a few.

Besides poetry, my favourite genres are crime drama and mystery. A favourite series of mine is the Jack Daniels series by J.A. Konrath, another successful self-published writer.

What are you reading now?
Right now, I am reading The Sobbing School (Joshua Bennett), Notes of a Native Son (James Baldwin), and Hoops (Major Jackson).

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
When I am not writing, I am a voice teacher and opera singer. I have sung in various venues throughout New York and New Jersey.

I also perform spoken word. I am a part of True Voices, a Christian poetry collective based in New York.

Are you working on a current project?I’m now looking at doing a short collection of poems on the theme of love called ‘Luh Pomes’.

Poet Website and Profiles
Chris Lilley’s Website
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

My name is Jordan Thomas, a 19 year old musician, poet, writer, and author. The ultimate source of my writing is God, as well as events happening in the world as well as moments of my life.,

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
Mostly I write when I’m either in my room or when I’m around nature when there’s nothing but absolute silence. Some poems come to me instantly while others take a while to build and perfect

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My published books thus far are Joys & Pains: Words From The Soul as well as Ascension: The Journey Continues which I write what is healing to me and what I hope to be inspiring to other people. I want those who read to get to know who I am, as well as themselves and the world around us. Most poetry is considered fiction, however, mine isn’t.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
My favorite poet authors include Langston Hughes, Amiri Baraka, and Pablo Neruda. Favorite non-poetry authors include Nelson Mandela, Sam Chand, Grant Cardone, Brian Tracy, Les Brown, John Maxwell, Jim Beach, Van Moody, etc.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
My favorite books include The Bible and several books by the authors I mentioned above.

What are you reading now?
Currently, I’m reading The People Factor by Van Moody, an excellent read so far.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
When I’m not writing, I’m usually reading, singing, playing piano, and at work part time.

Are you working on a current project?I’m currently working on my third book, titled Goals High Doubts Low which won’t be poetry but instead full on content on different aspects of leaders to apply to one.

Poet Website and Profiles
Jordan Thomas’s Amazon Profile

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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I’m a a big sports fan, I watch basketball, football and baseball. In my spare time I love to hangout with my friends whenever I’m not writing or creating ideas. What inspired me to start writing was the fact that the world has so many issues that we don’t discuss enough or regularly. We may talk amongst our family and friends but not in an open forum. I felt it was time for me to write stories about people who deal with daily struggles and to make us more empathetic and to think about others instead of ourselves.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
I brainstorm a lot of my ideas and I get ideas at the most random times. I can be eating and an idea comes to me or I can be in bed at 2am and an idea comes to me and I’m forced to get up, turn on my light and write down that idea so I remember it. I carry a blue book with all of my ideas with colored pens everywhere I go. I mostly write in the evenings or at night, that’s when I’m the most productive and I listen to electronic or ambient music. Listening to beats, sounds and melody allows my words to flow more and I always have Bose headphones to block out any extra noise. Once I get into a zone, I can work for hours at a time.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My books are about societal issues, my first book is about a man who is growing and dealing with the daily struggles of life. He learns that it’s okay to need help in life and that being weak doesn’t make him any less of a man, it shows growth and maturity. My recent book is about a plethora of societal issues such as rape, drug addiction, alcohol addiction, personal issues, domestic violence, depression, family death, and many others. My future books will continue to deal with different issues and storylines that will hopefully open people’s eyes to the issues that are going on in the world.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Elie Wiesel and Truman Capote are my two favorites, I read a good amount of their books when I was younger.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
I like to read but I spent a lot of my time writing and creating new content. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote is my favorite book from way back in high school. I had to do a 10 page book report on it and it was fulfilling to do well with my book report and the book was amazing.

What are you reading now?
I just finished reading a poetry book by Gina McKnight named, “To The Heart” it’s a poetry book where she shares a variety of thoughts and feelings about love and life. It was a great read and a lot of the poems resonated with my life.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
I play basketball for workouts, I try to do it once a week whenever I have time. I also watch a lot of sports such as college football, NFL, NBA, MLB and I have my share of TV shows I love to watch. I also like to go bowling, play pool, swimming, anything to stay active and maintain my health.

Are you working on a current project?My next book is part 2 to my first book The World We Live In and that’ll be available on October 17th of this year on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Kobo, Apple Store and Createspace. I have another book coming in February called, “Love Poems In The Morning,” that’ll be about love poems for women. I have a lot of projects coming up, but I don’t want to tell all. I will say there will be 3 books being released next year for sure so stay tuned!

Poet Website and Profiles
Jamell Crouthers’s Website
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

Since school I have been told I had a way with words, but I had not thought of myself as ‘a writer’. One day, on a train, I felt sad about the recent loss of a very good friend and bored with the tedious journey I was enduring. This spawned a sudden sense of unfulfilment – not with life in general but with the words that were, as always, stumbling round in my head. I started to scribble, as I had often done, but for the first time I actually finished a poem. I have gone on to write and perform hundreds more, trying to improve them or diversify them or respond to different things, but that emotional hour on a train started the ball rolling.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
I think everybody’s writing process is unique in one sense because it is about their view of the world and, even if we share a perspective with others, we can only ever vouch for ourselves. My writing process is changing actually. I used to leap too quickly into word selection (the part I tell myself I’m quite good at) and not spend enough time ruminating about the underlying idea. I sometimes found that costly; some poems sounded like elegant houses built on unsteady ground. Nowadays I prefer to jot down just a few words – the statement, the twist, the punchline, or whatever – and let these take root in my mind for a while before I start writing the poem. When I come to build some sort of structure and character, it feels easier to do. A solid base is important.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
My first book, ‘Love, misery and fruit crumble’ is, as the title suggests, a mixture of light and shade. It contains some quite frivolous work but also my very darkest work. The follow-up, ‘Binge thinking’, was a bit more experimental in that I used looser structures, less rhyme, more varied meter than I had in the first book. Again, the title gives clues. This one really was written in binges. It is more experimental than the debut but focuses largely on the same themes of the little things that bring joy and the areas of life that do harmful things to human hearts.

My latest book is called ‘Lowering Awareness’ and it is the one of which I am by some distance the most proud. It is more of a departure both in its content and its style. I like to think the poetry has become a bit more varied; it is certainly not quite so preoccupied with sadness and doubt. There is more work about landscapes and characters and the space around us. There’s always room to improve but I am allowing myself to be quite pleased with this book!

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
My favourite poets are those I like to watch perform rather than read on the page. The one I’ve hero-worshipped the most and the longest is Louise Fazackerley. She combines humour with hard edged messages; she does characters and voices beautifully but she also squeezes out the gentlest line just when you don’t expect it. She’s a star poet. Look her up.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
If I am to read poetry – and in an all honesty I haven’t done so very much in recent months – I go for older names like Larkin (for his aggression) and Betjeman (for his gentleness). I’m not sure it’s very ‘cool’ to like them, but we won’t worry too much about that.

What are you reading now?
I’ve been dipping in and out of “The runner of little races” by Ray Diamond. It’s a very spiky and at times quite harsh collection but it’s suiting my mood. It also makes me raise a smile because my first ever poetry performance, a nervous affair in London’s Poetry Cafe, was lit up by Ray. He was streets ahead of me but it was nice to tell myself I had ‘shared his stage’ and that I could aspire to be as good as him – one day!

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
My hobby is to avoid talking about such things. Sorry to be unpleasant – I’m quite nice really.

Are you working on a current project?At the moment I am performing work from the latest book and planning to make a couple of short films (see Matt Chamberlain Poet on YouTube) and I’m looking forward to being one half of an anonymous-lit-art-collaboration as part of a project called An Assemblance of Judicious Heretics (see www.wordsmithery.info). Then I want to reassess which direction the writing is going in next.

Poet Website and Profiles
Matt Chamberlain’s Website
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Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to start writing.

I began writing as a very young girl. I learned to read by reading and rereading a little Hallmark book my mother had called “Little Bits of Wisdom” which contained short poetry. I was completely captivated by the words, the language, the rhythms . I actually began writing lyrics when I was about 7 and started putting them to piano and began writing stories and poetry at about age 10. And I have never stopped.

Describe your writing process? Is there anything unique about it?
Sometimes I feel I have something to write but I’m not sure what it is. I close my eyes and contemplate sights and sounds and senses to try to discover what is lurking beneath. I ask myself “What color is this? what does it feel like? Like fire? Like a cold floor? Like a stray hair across my face? What does it sound like? Is it scratchy? raspy? soft? sweet? I get in tune with as many sensations as possible then I think of the metaphors that can go with them. That’s when I come up with something like “woke up from the flannel of my dreams” . Other times I have a rythym and beat in my head- often iambic pentameter – and it just tumbles out! That’s why I call my poetry “Tumble Down” poetry.

Have you published any books or do you have a desire to do so?
Who Will Love the Crow is my first solo collection so is quite a mix of eclectic themes and styles from haiku to longer free verse. They span several years. It also features the stunning black and white photography of my daughter, Olivia Ellen MacDonald. I was so pleased that I was able to colloaborate with her for the images. My next collection will be mostly new writing, but I suspect it will be just as diverse. I am including a collection of traditional sonnets as well as haiku and perhaps some protest poetry, as well. Typically I like to elevate the language, and use beautiful, original language, which is not the style of protest poetry that remarks on current social conditions and concerns but there may be room to include that other voice, as well.

Do you have any favorite poets or authors?
Anne Marie MacDonald is an incredible story-teller who I enjoy very much. I also have great admiration for Amy Tan and have a deep appreciation for her work. Donna Morrissey is also a writer whose stories I enjoy. I also enjoy Tom Robbins, Douglas Adams and after those four, my list gets pretty long.

Do you have a favorite book of poetry or poems?
My favorite book is “Fall on Your Knees” by Anne Marie MacDonald although it is tied with “The Joy Luck Club”.. Generally I enjoy sweeping stories, and period pieces as well as fantasy and science fiction.

What are you reading now?
I am finishing Donna Morrissey’s “What They Wanted” and have 7 other books on my night table. I haven’t decided what to read next.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Full-time job, pets, hobbies?
I am a substitute teacher who attends all grades and subjects and recently also a part-time bartender. I design and make faux-fur animal hoods as well as crocheted hats; I sing and play piano. Once in a while I get out my art supplies and paint. Or make cold porcelain and sculpt little flowers. Or sew something. I have grown children, a teen, and grand children as well as a husband, dog and cat. I stay pretty busy.

Are you working on a current project?I have begun a book of children’s poetry and hope to find a Canadian publisher for it when it is complete. I also have an historical fiction novel in progress but I have hit a block and don’t know when I will go back to that.

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