1. How would you describe Still Lives?
Still Lives is an exploration of space and language. It is a study in space and in nonlinear relations via words. It is meant to engage and challenge readers spatially while engaging their imaginations.
2. What drew you to write this poetry?
Poetry is something that happens to me. Poems come, often unexpectedly, and I capture them. That said, many of these poems were written from the experience and perspective of departing a place and then living in a new country and exploring that country and forging a relationship with it. I find so much inspiration here: the incredible birds, the wide open spaces, the green mountains, the national museums and library in Canberra, and the different way that English is used amongst the people who dwell here.
3. Tell us a bit about the experience of writing this book…
In some ways, the book really is an account of life as I experienced it from about a year before I left the United States through the first three years I lived in Canberra. So part of its impulse is departure from the familiar and then arrival and discovery. Much of it was composed outdoors – on walks, on weekend trips in the time before the first COVID lockdown, sitting on the lawns of the different national institutions. In some ways, it is the celebration of a new place and a fresh start, but with that newness comes disorientation, misunderstanding and abrupt changes.
4. Who is this book for?
This book is for my sisters, whom I dedicated it to. It is also for Simon, a firefighter from Queensland who inspired many of the love poems.
5. When (or where) would be the perfect time (or place) to read this book?
Many of the poems were written outside during the first few years that I lived in Australia. I would recommend reading the book outside on a pretty day.
6. What do you hope readers will take from this book?
I hope that they will appreciate the playfulness of poetry – how, unlike almost any other genre, poetry plays with language in compact, surprising and spatial ways. I hope they will experience this book like a child exploring a new playground.
7. What prompted you to start writing poetry and when did you start?
I wrote my first book of poems in year three. It was called Rainy Days and Other Poems, and I was eight years old at the time. The final draft was composed on a manual typewriter. My father used to read poetry to my sisters and me when he tucked us into bed at night. I learned to love poetry listening to him read it.
8. One thing you’ve learned the hard way when it comes to writing?
It took me a long time to realise the joy and discovery that comes with revising. Revision itself is a kind of play. I wish I had realised that much sooner. That realisation allowed the turn that my writing had to take in order to become published.
9. Best investment you’ve ever made in your writing?
Moving to Australia was absolutely the best investment. Not only have I almost completed a PhD here through reading and writing poetry, but I have been able to work with some of the world’s finest poets and publishers here, and my writing has really flourished.
10. Favourite bookshop anywhere in the world?
There is a lovely bookshop in Durango, Colorado called Maria’s. I lived in that part of the world for twelve years and was able to visit frequently. It’s the kind of place you tuck yourself into and just get lost.
Still Lives will be available in bookstores across Australia and New Zealand from October 2022 or purchase now via our online store.
