The Hungry Artist

I’m feeling excited about my latest project – putting together a chapbook entitled: Beauty Other Than of the Face/The Sensuous Poems. I’ve been writing poetry consistently and doggedly for the past month or so, posting many of these poems here on WordPress. The process has been interesting in that as I’ve written, I have had in mind a general idea of the theme for the chapbook, and the resulting connections and undercurrents continue to manifest themselves. I’ve never been one to impose artificial connections, nor do I want the theme to be merely arbitrary, and I think this is becoming more evident as I piece together this project. It’s sort of an ‘imitation of life’ (excuse the cliche) in the sense that lived experiences often leave a clumsy or messy trail, which when you try to retrace your steps, you’re left more with impressions rather than a clear-cut path. Further, I feel like I am discovering form for the first time. I’ve certainly written poetry in the past, but now having to focus on what form the poem should take on the page is not as easy a task as I had previously thought. It feels almost painstaking to mold each poem into the best shape for its story and its sound. Nevertheless, the process is exhilarating and helps me keep up my writer’s stride.