I’m honored to be part of The Lumiere Review’s interview series, The Light Bulb. Thanks to Jessica Kim for inviting me to participate and for her thoughtful questions about my new chapbook, my writing life, and the publishing process.
Category Archives: Interview
Writer’s Symposium by the Sea
Last Wednesday, I had the absolute joy of co-leading Writing the Unspeakable: A Generative Poetry Workshop (which you can now view at that link) with my colleague Margarita Pintado Burgos at the 26th annual Writer’s Symposium by the Sea. I loved getting to share this creative space with Margarita and about 70 others, and I was amazed by how intimate this workshop felt given the number of people and the virtual format.
That evening, this interview was also released to the public. A few weeks before, Margarita and I met virtually with Dean Nelson, the founder of the Writer’s Symposium by the Sea and an incredible journalist and interviewer. After watching Dean interview some of my favorite writers over the years, I was thrilled to experience his preparation and thoughtful questions from the writer’s seat.
You can find all of this year’s events at this link, where you can also find more info about next year’s symposium, which will include Cornel West and Nadia Bolz-Weber!
Poets in the Pandemic Blog Series
I had such a great time talking to Lisa Mary Armstrong for her Poets in the Pandemic blog series! I’m grateful that she’s taking the time to interview poets, and I love that poetry and technology can close the distance between Scotland and San Diego.
Fight Evil, Wilde Boy
I’ve had a chaotic semester (which might just be normal, unfortunately), so I’m behind on posting poetry news. Here are a couple of publications that I’m excited to share:
My poem “Banana Peel,” which is a humorous take on a traumatic experience, was published in October in the anthology Fight Evil with Poetry, vol. 1, alongside some powerful writing. I look forward to future volumes from editors Micah Bournes and Chris Cambell.
I’m also thrilled that Wilde Boy, a brand new literary magazine, included my poem “The God’s Truth” and interviewed me about my connection with Victorian literature for Issue 1. It’s a special honor to part of this journal’s very first issue, and I’m excited to see editor C. Bougie’s next issue on The Beat Generation.
My book Tasty Other turned 2 in November, and I’m glad to have this weird and wonderful book in the world. I’m still grateful to Main Street Rag for the book award and thankful for all who have read it, reviewed it, taught it, sent messages of affirmation, hosted my readings, given copies as gifts, and otherwise supported my work. Thank you!
Limited Engagement Podcast
If you like podcasts, interviews, and/or poetry, check this out!
I had a great time chatting with Jared Duran in Phoenix a couple of weeks ago for this Limited Engagement podcast. I loved that his interview style took us to places I didn’t expect to go. Thanks, Jared!
Nevermore, Review, & Interviews
Life has been full of the very bad and the very good. I’ll share some of the good…
On Oct. 29, I was a featured reader at the Nevermore Free Poetry Festival in Van Nuys, and it was an amazing experience. Thanks, Nicelle Davis, for making magical things happen. I definitely need more full-day poetry festivals and Poe-inspired costumes in my life. I probably need to wear black lipstick more frequently too…
Photo by Edwin Vasquez
In the last few weeks, I’ve been the featured poet in WTH Weekly (thanks, Cassie Paton!) and A Door with a Voice has received a review in Mom Egg Review. Speaking of Marvels also just published an interview with me about A Door with a Voice with some deeply thoughtful questions from R Vinoshini Naidoo.
I’ve had a few poems accepted for publication in the last few weeks too, which feels great, of course. Thanks, Yellow Chair Review, San Diego Poetry Annual, and Candlesticks & Daggers!
Next up: Tasty Other, my first full-length poetry book, will be released next week! I’ve been setting up readings and will soon create an Events page with all of my “book tour” information (and I will let myself feel like a rock star for at least a minute).
Interview at Carpe Noctem
This was such a fun interview that I did about my forthcoming book Tasty Other (and other poetry-related things). Thanks, Nicole Ross Rollender! Here’s one of my favorite parts…
Do you think poets have a responsibility as artists to respond to what’s happening in the world, and put that message out there? Does your work address social issues?
I don’t think poets have to respond directly to current events, but then I don’t think poems have to have a clear message. Some poems show us an image like a painting. Some play with sound. I do think that creating poems—and any act of artistic creation—is a way of responding to what’s happening in the world regardless of the content of those poems. To say that beauty and art matter in the face of violence and fear is radical.
A Door with a Voice: Poems, Review, & Interview
The past two weeks have been some of the worst of my life. My mother-in-law was killed in a car crash that put my father-in-law in the ICU, and now it looks like he won’t make it either. We are so heartbroken.
I’m thankful right now for any happy news that I can get, and I have three pieces of good poetry news today.
- Five poems from A Door with a Voice were published in Eunoia Review.
- Erika Dreifus posted a review of A Door with a Voice.
- Nancy Chen Long posted an interview with me about A Door with a Voice.
And if you’re interested, you can read the poetry collection itself: A Door with a Voice.
To Oz? To Oz!
My poem “No Place Like” from The Emerald Issue of the Fairy Tale Review is now available to read online alongside the strangest interview I’ve ever done, which includes my take on a Cyclone Greek Chorus. Take a look!
Interview with Nicelle Davis
Here’s an interview up at Poets’ Quarterly with the wonderful Nicelle Davis about The Living Poetry Project. I’m honored to be mentioned in her “currently reading” answer.
