Age: 37
Location: Glace Bay, Canada
Education: Bachelor of Arts (English Literature, History)
The Writer
How long have you been writing?
From the time I could print out the alphabet on paper, I was keeping journals. I didn’t write my first formal poem until 1997, at the age of twenty, which makes me a bit of a late bloomer in that regard. But once I started, the journals and most of what I wrote swiftly evolved into poetry, which I think is a natural progression.
Do you have a specific writing style?
Free verse seems to be my forte, but I dabble in fixed forms – namely sonnets and the odd sestina – from time to time to keep the pencil sharp, and just to convince myself that I can do something different. Many of my ‘classical’ influences stem from the Romantic era, and wrote in rhyme, so I suppose I try to infuse those old Romantic ideals into a modern framework.
Do you see writing as a career?
I dream of it as a career, but am not enough of a dreamer to see it with my eyes open. The pursual of poetry as a financially viable career strikes me as the most brazen of aspirations, but at the same time, there are more outlets than ever for poets of all ages and levels of experience to be seen and read and related to, which for me outweighs any dollar value I would hope to attain.
What is your ultimate goal as a writer?
Probably the same goal that many writers have, to simply offer a sympathetic voice to as many people as possible on as many levels of life as possible. To write things that readers feel were written about them.
The Work
Tell us about your work in Crack the Spine.
‘Vanilla Boy,’ a poem that my notebook tells me was completed in September 2014, but started in late Summer.
What inspired “Vanilla Boy”?
Vanilla Boy is perplexed by the rigors of being average in a world that demands eccentricity, then precedes to punish it after its‘ novelty has worn off. He is haunted by the question of whether it’s better to live an average life and be free of drama, or to strive for that fifteen minutes, then milk it for all it’s worth. Vanilla Boy has yet to settle on whether he wants to be a cult figure or a one-hit wonder. Mainstream longevity feels too much like a dream to be an option.
How long did it take you to complete this piece?
The first three lines had been in my subconscious for literally years, and began countless poems that never found endings. As irony would have it, they were among the last lines added to this piece, which came together in roughly three weeks, spread out over short spurts of inspiration.
Tell us about another project you have published or are currently working on.
I’m currently a member of the poetry editing staff for Miracle Arts Magazine. In November 2014, my first independent collection of poems, A Waltz Around The Swirls, was published.
Where/When can we find this work?
Miracle’s blog site, http://themiraclemagazine.blogspot.co.uk , is the best place to go to learn everything there is to know about the magazine. My own book can be ordered on Amazon as well as my publisher’s site: http://www.mciwritershouse.com/
The Methods
How often do you write?
I tend to write in bunches. I can start three or four poems in the span of a week, and if I’m on a roll, finish one or two. Such periods tend to be followed up by dry spells that threaten to run much longer than the week of sublime inspiration, though I try to write at least one line every day. If I don’t get that one line, I usually go to bed depressed, not feeling like a writer. That one line makes all the difference in the world when it comes to nursing my relentless inferiority complex.
What time of day or night makes you most productive as a writer?
The lion’s share of my writing comes after midnight, and during the Winter months. My poems are the children of celestial outside nature and chaotic inside insecurities.
How many drafts do you generally go through before you consider a piece to be complete?
I write one word at a time, one line at a time, even when a concept is crystal clear in my mind. I know no other way to do it, which may be a by-product of the exposure to my lyrical influences of the past.
What is your usual starting point for a piece?
‘Vanilla Boy’ was an exception in the sense that the opening was added in the latter stages of its’ writing. More often than not, my poems come from those aforementioned individual lines that sprinkle themselves through my everyday goings-on. They often give me my opening lines, which are always the hardest for me to produce. Dwelling on openings rarely works for me; they have to come out of the blue, and sometimes that means waiting for them to arrive, but once they do, I’m able to find my voice.
What is your best piece of advice on how to stay sane as a writer?
If you write on paper as I do, have paper and a pen close by at all times, including while you sleep. Leave some by your door to stuff in your pocket should you ever have to leave in a rush. A lost idea can be more torturous on a writer’s psyche than a rejection letter, and even if that idea is written off as not so good in hindsight, it may give birth to others. But try to avoid missing out on those sudden flashes of inspiration at all costs.
The Madness
What is your favorite book?
I suppose Lord Of The Rings for the sheer grandeur of, well, everything associated with it, but I’ve spent most of my recent time sampling any poetry anthologies and random history books I come across. I also make it a point to never go too long without reading one of Shakespeare’s plays.
If you could have dinner with one fictional character, who would it be and why?
Miranda from The Tempest, to find out how she feels about the ‘brave new world’ after it has sunk in for a while, and to find out if she’s as happy as I would be to get away from that ridiculously romanticized father of hers.
What is the greatest occupational hazard for a writer?
I often find myself wondering if it’s happiness.
What is your favorite word?
Frost.
What’s in that cup on your desk?
Coffee so cold that people wonder how I can drink it.
Rain or Sunshine?
Rain. Instant affirmation.
Chocolate or Vanilla?
Vanilla…or chocolate?
The Beatles or The Rolling Stones?
Beatles, most days.
Additional Reading on Steven
Candid, centered, & certainly interesting, with the lucidity of a writer with a realistic vision of his space, aspirations, & relevance. My compliments.
Steven’s poetry presents delightful puzzles that keep me wondering all day long at first reading. A day or two later, upon re-reading, I think to myself “oh yeah!” Half the fun is getting there. 🙂