How did you first come to prose poems? What is it about the form that resonates?
I think it was Richard Brautigan. I always enjoyed reading novels and short stories, but it wasn't until I began working at the University of Chicago's main library that I started to really discover flash fiction and microfiction, a wormhole that brought me to Brautigan. Through his body of work, I saw how genre can blur, and really began tiptoeing into poetry, resonating early on with Zachary Schomburg and Sabrina Orah Mark and Mathias Svalina. A friend and poet Mikko Harvey is one of the first poets I spoke with who provided a trove of resources, putting me on to writers like CAConrad and Daniel Borzutzky and Dara Wier.
How does a poem begin?
On a whim. During a lunch break. While watching a movie. After having dinner and a beer. In the middle of the night. After hearing a song. On a faded Post-It note. On a napkin. On the back of a brunch receipt. Rattling around in my brain after hearing a line or phrase in public. In my journal. As an email to myself. As a way to begin a promise to myself to always tell stories.
Now that you’ve published a chapbook, is there a difference in how you approach a poem? What have the challenges been?
Not really a difference. I still write when I can and/or when a line comes to me. If anything, this chapbook gave me less stage fright? For some time, releasing a physical book of my own writing felt like this daunting, impossible task. Who would agree to such a thing? With above/ground press, rob really made everything run smoothly. Now I have a tiny bit more confidence in this universe.
Have you a daily schedule by which you work, or are you working to fit this in between other activities?
Not a daily writing schedule, exactly, but certainly a daily practice. I try to read early in the morning, before I begin my work day. My wife thinks I'm insane for waking up an hour early each day in order to read. But I love it. I love the silence. I can really focus on the story or poem(s). Then, during my lunch break, or late at night, I'll either edit some older poems or freewrite for 10 minutes or tune into a Zoom reading or watch a movie that inspires me to pause and jot down a few lines. Poetry arrives from many angles, and if it goes away for a couple of days, I get jittery.
What are your favourite print or online literary journals?
What an impossible question. I love so many of them. Some that have been generous enough to publish my work: FENCE, FairyTale Review, Wigleaf, Sporklet. I think those platforms are fantastic for finding odd and off-kilter creative writing. Other ones that come to mind: Jubilat (RIP, their archive is a goldmine), Neutral Spaces, Sixth Finch, elsewhere. I am also assisting with a Twitter-only prose poetry journal called Obliterat. Once it reaches 1,000 followers, it will self-destruct. Until then, they're publishing some of the freshest and strangest prose poets out right now.
Who are some of the writers you are reading lately that most excite you?
Joanna Ruocco. Marlon James. Rikki Ducornet. Fiston
Mwanza Mujila. Brandon Hobson. I'm finding my interests really gravitating
toward writers who frequent the world of the surreal and grotesque while also
being very focused on the music and rhythm of the line. Prathna Lor comes to
mind. Brian Evenson is another who does this so well.
A selection of his poems appeared in the eighth issue.