Megan
Merchant is a resident of Prescott, Arizona, and holds a Master of Fine
Arts degree from UNLV. Her second full-length collection, The Dark’s Humming, was the winner of the 2015 Lyrebird Prize (Glass Lyre
Press, 2017). She is also the author of
four chapbooks: Translucent, sealed. (Dancing Girl Press, 2015), In
the Rooms of a Tiny House (ELJ
Publications, 2016), Unspeakable
Light (Throwback Books, 2016), and A Thousand Paper Cranes (Finishing Line Press, forthcoming). Gravel Ghosts is her debut full-length poetry
collection through Glass Lyre Press. She
also has a children’s book forthcoming through Philomel Books.
DS: Why do you write poetry?
MM: For so many reasons. For one, I write because I love
language. I experience it as a pulsing, tangible element: the tools for trying
like hell to make sense of what it means to be awake in this world. I write
poetry specifically because I have had a long love affair with images and
music. I write to give my brain something to do other than limp around and
worry without taking action. I write as a form of meditation. I write so that I can see my breath in a
season other than winter. I write to reclaim my agency and to connect with
others. I write with the hope of creating something beautiful and worthwhile. I
write to connect with people in an intentional way. I write to give my own
prayers ink and a spine.
DS: What do you hope to find in poems written by other people?
MM: I read hoping to
fall in love, in every way: with the order and disorder of words, the images
that open my own mind and eyes to fragments of this world in which I am both
familiar and estranged, with honesty, music, and perspective. I am always
hoping to find a part that makes me do that little sucked-in breath of awe and
inspiration. But mostly I am hoping to fall in love.
DS: Describe your works in progress.
MM: I have three
manuscripts that I wrote over the last eight months. They are nearly complete
and radically different. The third manuscript begins with the quote from E.M.
Forster: “I am sure that if the mothers of various nations could meet, there
would be no more wars.” It brings into focus the violence and terror of this
world from a mother’s perspective—one who grows to become “all mothers” by
taking on their sorrow. It’s about interconnectedness and started with a
spiritual quest to truly understand the differences between empathy and
compassion.
MM: I hope that more poems will “go viral” and extend their
reach. Also, that the publishing world will continue to grow in an inclusive
way, bringing unrecognized voices into the light.
caroline@mail.postmanllc.net
ReplyDeleteThank for providing good information for site,Thanks for your sharing.
ReplyDeleteดูหนัง
Great Post, I really like your post. If any YouTube users need help regarding YouTube Activate then they can contact us.
ReplyDeleteI am always hoping to find a part that makes me do that little sucked-in breath of awe and inspiration. But mostly I am hoping to fall in love.
ReplyDeletepakistani salwar kameez stitching designs
semi stitched pakistani suits online