Interview with Young Author E.K. Baer

Today I am thrilled to introduce you to my dear friend and fabulous poet E.K. Baer, who has recently released her first collection of poetry! It was one of my favorite books of 2017 and one that I think will delight and inspire all readers, young and old. E.K. was kind enough to stop by the blog today to answer a few questions about her writing process, how she finds inspiration, and the steps she took to get published. Enjoy!

What would you like readers to know about you as an introduction? 

My name is E.K, I am 10-years old and I am from Atlanta, Georgia. My best friend is my cuddly dog Coco who inspires me to do silly stuff. I has been writing poems ever since I can remember. Besides writing, I love to sing, play the violin and the piano. Music gives me the tempo and inspiration for my poems and helps transport me to the places that I write about.

Take us through your writing process when you were creating A Collection of Poems. 

A Collection of Poems started as just a bunch of random poems that came to mind. Writing has always helped me with whatever problems I encountered in my life. When I was writing these poems, it was not with the intent to publish a book. The idea of making it a book formed over the course of several months. It wasn’t until I met Ms. Dallas Woodburn that the possibility of making my poems into a book became a reality. Ms. Woodburn has been such a wonderful mentor! She assisted me in editing all my poems and formatting the book. This collection took me a couple of years to write, edit and publish. I am now thrilled to share it and I hope you enjoy my poems.

What do you like most about writing? 

What I like most about writing is how it is a way to organize your thoughts, to put your life and dreams into a legible form, to spread your creations with the world. Writing is a freeing experience – the satisfaction after your mind races around with inspiration is tranquilizing.

What surprised you the most about the publishing process? 

What I found quite surprising was the amount of work and time that went into publishing just when I thought I was done. ☺ I learned a lot through the whole process. It takes a lot of thought and consideration to figure out the right order of poems, an interesting cover and – hopefully – a good title!

Do you have any advice for other writers, or for other young people going after their dreams? 

Wow, this is difficult because I myself could use some good advice! I feel like some of my best work comes from the times when I do not worry about what other people think or do and when I simply focus on what I am currently writing. I find that it helps me when I can let go of the outside world. I would like to hope that I write some of my best poems when I am ready to describe all my feelings and experiences with pure honesty. I hope that it makes my poems into stories that other people can relate to. I once received a helpful advice about entering my work into contests. The suggestion was to try and put it out of my mind as soon as I click “submit” and try to forget about it. That way I can go on and focus on new work. It is not easy, though, because we are putting ourselves out there every time we share our work. I am still working on it myself.

Can you share a few of your favorite books or authors? 

Some of my favorite authors and books by them are:
• 3 a.m., There’s a Huge Pimple on my Nose – Dallas Woodburn
• Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
• Jane Eyre – Charlotte Brontë
• A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court – Mark Twain
• The Giver – Lois Lowry
• The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers – Alexander Dumas
• Blue Horses, A Thousand Mornings – Mary Oliver
• To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee

What inspires you? 

I am inspired by my favorite authors, as listed above, by the sounds and movement of nature, by my Mom, things people say in the booth next to us at dinner, my dog, Coco, the song of the birds, the whistle of the wind, and a cloud of thoughts. Inspiration never stops rushing to mind. Sometimes it seems as if inspiration is everywhere, floating around in little bubbles, ready to be used for stories or poems, but first you must catch it. ☺

What are you working on now? What’s next for you? 

Currently, I am working on poems for my next book, which I hope to publish very soon! I also continue to submit my poems and short stories to various competitions.

Anything else you’d like to add? 

Thank you for your interest in my new book. I wish everyone the best of luck. Always follow your dreams and never give up!

Links:

• Order your own copy of A Collection of Poems on Amazon.
• Visit E.K.'s website!

Interview with "Dancing With The Pen II" Contributor Arielle DeVito

Today we continue our Dancing With The Pen II blog tour with an interview with young writer Arielle DeVito, whose poem "senescence" is featured in the book. Order a personalized copy of Dancing With The Pen II: a collection of today's youth writing here or on Amazon here.

What would you like readers to know about you as an introduction? 

My name is Arielle DeVito, I’m 17 and I’m a rising senior. I’m from Cleveland, Ohio, and when I’m not writing or reading, I play the flute, figure skate, paint, sew costumes for myself and others, and bake a lot of cupcakes.

Describe your piece that was published in Dancing With The Pen II. How did you get your idea for the piece? 

My poem “senescence” was published in Dancing with the Pen II. The idea from the piece actually came from my wanting to write a four-part poem based off the four elements -- senescence was originally intended to be for the “earth” part. But when I finished it, I realized that I preferred it as a standalone piece, and that it didn’t follow the element theme as much as I’d intended.

Have you been writing for a long time? What do you like about writing? 

To be honest, I can’t remember a time that I haven’t been writing! I’m fairly new to poetry, but I’ve always been writing stories. I like writing for a lot of reasons, including because I get to share my stories with other people and because it can help me figure out what I’m thinking and feeling.

What does it mean to you to have your piece included in this book? What was it like to get the news? 

It was really exciting! Being published has helped me realize that there’s a possibility that I can actually follow this dream and make writing into a career for me. When I found out, I immediately called up all my friends and my English teacher to tell them, and we just all freaked out a little bit.

Do you have any advice for other writers, or for other young people going after their dreams? 

My advice would be to get started following your dreams now. Things might sometimes seem far-off, but there’s always something you can do to work towards them. In my case, this was starting to submit my writing for publication and making time to free-write for at least ten minutes a day. Little things you can do are just as important as big ones!

Can you share a few of your favorite books or authors? 

This question always gets me, because I love so many different books and authors! As a child, I think I was most influenced by Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and of course the Chronicles of Narnia. Recently, I’ve really loved reading books by Neil Gaiman, Malinda Lo, and Marissa Meyer, as well as reading poetry by Billy Collins, Sarah Kay, and Jamaal May.

What inspires you? 

I think I’m inspired by the world in general, but especially by the amazing people who surround me and the stories I read or hear from others.

What are you working on now? What’s next for you?

Right now I’m working on editing the novel I wrote for NaNoWriMo a few years back and just continuing to write poetry. I think next I’d like to work on more short stories and maybe a sequel to the book I’m editing!

Anything else you’d like to add? 

Just a huge thank you for being included in this book, as well as good wishes for any other young writers trying to get themselves out there – I believe in you!

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Arielle DeVito, native to the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, is an incoming twelfth-grader who can often be found lurking in libraries and comic book stores. A passionate writer since the age of six, she also enjoys reading anything and everything available, sewing historical costumes, and baking (usually cupcakes).

Links: 

Order Dancing With The Pen I & Dancing With The Pen II directly (personalized copies available!) or via Amazon.

If you have a few minutes and could write a review on Amazon, that would be fantastic!

You can also follow Dancing With The Pen on Facebook. We're featured on Goodreads, too!

Interview with Poet Mary McCall

When I was a graduate student at Purdue University, I was fortunate to meet many amazing people who shared a passion for words. I remember the first time I met Mary McCall, I immediately wanted to be her friend. (And not just because she bakes legendary cupcakes!) She is a beautifully insightful person, which shines through in her poetry. (You can read three exquisite examples here.) I was thrilled to learn her debut poetry chapbook, SINGING FOR SIRENS, was recently published by Maverick Duck Press -- you can order it directly from the press here for about the cost of a fancy Starbucks drink. These poems will boost your spirit much more than coffee ever could!

Mary is pursuing her PhD in composition/rhetoric at Purdue University where she also teaches first-year composition. Her work has been nominated twice for Best of the Net and appeared in Decompression, Chantarelle’s Notebook, The Storyteller, Thick with Conviction, and elsewhere. I am absolutely delighted to have her visiting the blog today to share more about her new book, writing habits, inspirations, and more!

Tell us about your book and how it came to be. 

My chapbook has been a work-in progress since college where I started taking poetry and fiction classes as an English major/creative writing minor. Even after graduation and during graduate school, I made it a point to take online poetry classes during the summer to keep up with the craft. Being a professional writer has always been a dream of mine, but I wanted to follow this dream step-by-step. I first focused on getting some of my work published in print and online journals and then I turned my sights to putting together a chapbook. However, I wasn't alone in this endeavor and appreciate all of the support I received along the way from fellow writing friends, classmates, professors, and editors who helped me produce and shape the work that ultimately went into this chapbook. I couldn't have done it without them.

What inspires you? 

I’m a Jersey girl at heart, so I've always found the ocean to be a great source of inspiration. Many of the lines and ideas for the poems in my chapbook came to me while I was swimming at the beach near my grandparents’ shore house that I've visited every summer since I was 2. There’s just something about the salt air and crest of a wave that sparks my muse. My love for books is another source of inspiration as I’m a fan of wordplay à la Lewis Carroll. I enjoy weaving literary references into my work at times, which hopefully you can get a hint of in my chapbook!

How do you find time to write in the midst of a busy schedule/life? 

Good question. There are times where I’m better at juggling graduate school and poetry than others, but overall, I try to set easy goals for writing during the school year so that I don’t become too overwhelmed. For instance, I may intersperse reading a new collection of poetry with grading or reading for classes. Or I might try to finish a draft of a poem in a week. During the summer, I try to sign up for a 6-8 week online poetry course to join a workshop setting again and get feedback on my work. The Gotham Writers Workshop has been a wonderful place to sign up for classes, and I would recommend Gotham’s classes to anyone interested in creative writing. In addition to poetry classes, they also offer classes in fiction, nonfiction, scriptwriting, and many others. They offer classes for teen writers, as well.

Who are some of your favorite poets? 

I’ve really enjoyed reading the work of Jeannine Hall Gailey. If you’re interested in modern takes on characters within fairy tales, I would recommend reading her book, Unexplained Fevers. She also writes from the perspective of superheros and spy girls in Becoming the Villainess. Another favorite poet is a former poetry professor of mine, Kim Bridgford. Her teaching and her work showed me how a writer can be creative with structured poetry. A good example of this is her book, In the Extreme: Sonnets about World Records. This is a fun and clever read and I especially enjoyed her sonnet about the woman with the longest fingernails in the world.

Do you have a favorite poetry prompt to share? 

This prompt was the inspiration for my poem, “After-Prom at the Diner,” and comes from poet Matthew Lippman, who taught one of my Gotham poetry classes and offers his own one-to-one poetry workshops: I would like you to locate something iconic about your country/state/city and write about that place by using the image of that “thing” to convey the geographical, political, cultural, social landscape of that place.

What is your biggest advice for other writers and artists? 

As writers, we all have big dreams about where we want to take our writing—and this is great! We need these dreams to motivate us to write that next paragraph, sentence, few words when we’re tired and feel blocked. However, it’s easy (at least, for me) to become so fixated on these dreams that we focus less on how we’re actually going to work towards them. So, I’ve found it useful to break down any writing aspirations I have into smaller goals. For instance, when I realized that I wanted to publish a chapbook, I decided to work on writing and editing individual poems for this collection. I researched presses and bought chapbooks from them to both support the press and its poets and to learn more about the type and style of work that they preferred. Overall, I hope that my experience with publishing a chapbook will be a stepping stone towards my first full-length book of poetry. For me, it’s easy to compare myself to others and to feel like I’m not doing enough when it comes to writing. However, there is no set timeline for writing and I use the smaller goals I set for myself to remind me that every writer has his/her own pace—it’s not a race!

Is there anything else you would like to add?

First off, thank you for showcasing me on your blog! I’m honored to be featured here and hope that my responses help other writers as all of my writing friends and teachers have helped me. I would encourage anyone reading this to continue to write and read what you love and to find a fellow writing buddy to share drafts with and bounce ideas off of. You could even schedule a time to meet with him/her once a month or every other week to read other’s work either in-person or online if (like me) you need deadlines to keep you focused. I find this to be a great means of support when classes or workshops aren’t easily available. And, finally, pay this support forward. Read a chapbook or collection of poetry (or fiction) from a new author and/or press. Presses always need more readers and you may find a new source of inspiration in the process! A win-win for all.

Order Mary's Chapbook SINGING WITH SIRENS here: 

• http://www.maverickduckpress.com/index.html
• http://www.maverickduckpress.com/singingwithsirens.html

Poem by Sidney Hirschman

I am thrilled to present to you today a new poem by Sidney Hirschman, a young author featured in the Write On! Books anthology Dancing With The Pen: a collection of today's best youth writing.  

 
Sidney Hirschman is 12 years old and is going into 7th grade this fall at the Nueva School in California. She enjoys writing, singing, playing guitar, and Minecraft. This is a poem she wrote for her poetry unit at school. You can read more of her work and thoughts at her blog, The Bird’s Word, at https://www.littlebirdsword.blogspot.com.

I’ve Got a Horse 

by Sidney Hirschman

Rhythm 

Of the beat

Of the trail so slow,

Clippin’

And a-cloppin’

Lis’tnin’ to the world grow.

Singin’

And a-songin’

To the heartbeat of the earth,

Thinkin’

And a-pond’rin’

Wondering what my life is worth.

Creakin’

And a-crackin’

From the bones in my back,

Weepin’

And a-warpin’

Is the sky so black.

Clearin’

And a-cloudin’

Is the attic of my mind,

I’ll ride

And keep on riding,

And I’ll see what I can find.