Virtual Blog Tour

I was asked by my friend and fellow creative, Kathryn Dyche  Dechairo, to participate in a virtual blog tour. Its goal is to introduce talented bloggers and have them share insight into their writing and creative process. You can visit her tour post at The Edge of Silence - See more at: http://confessionsofalaundrygoddess.blogspot.com/#sthash.fZmpB1Dk.dpuf

I was asked by my friend and fellow creative, Kathryn Dyche  Dechairo, to participate in a virtual blog tour. Its goal is to introduce talented bloggers and have them share insight into their writing and creative process. You can visit her tour post at The Edge of Silence - See more at: http://confessionsofalaundrygoddess.blogspot.com/#sthash.fZmpB1Dk.dpuf

 I was asked by my friend and fellow creative, Susie Clevenger, to participate in a virtual blog tour. Its goal is to introduce talented bloggers as they share insight into their creative process and current projects. You can visit her tour post at Confessions of a Laundry Goddess. 

Susie Clevenger

BIO:

Susie Clevenger is a Poet, Author, Blogger and Photographer.  Her debut book of poetry 'Dirt Road Dreams' is available on Amazon and Susie is currently working on her second poetry collection, Insomnia's Ink. 

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1. What am I working on? 
My first complete collection of poetry, Upon the Blue Couch (Winter Goose Publishing) was just released in April, so I'm working on spreading the word and trying to promote it. Here is the title poem from my book.

Upon the Blue Couch

by Laurie Kolp (Winter Goose Publishing)

Maybe I didn’t write a thing today.

Maybe I sat on this twenty-year-old

muted blue couch and did nothing

but think about the wear and tear

from move after move we’ve been through,

with washed over mars, the scars

of cigarettes and vomit,

having been passed out upon and puked upon,

a shoulder when I needed one

to cry my eyes out upon.

Maybe I remembered all the lovers

who have lied

sprawled upon its pillows

with hungry lips I’ve kissed,

hands upon thighs, breasts upon chest,

all to feel something better than

what was missing in my heart.

Maybe I dreamed about my husband

and all the times we’ve rued upon

blue obsequious fabric,

worrying about the economy we’ve fallen upon--

with curse words or whispers

sometimes at opposite ends,

sometimes hand in hand,

but always with a love

never to be crashed upon.

Maybe I recalled my babies

sleeping upon their daddy

sleeping upon the cushions

as they sought solace in colicky times

and I was too tired to stay awake,

my nipples having been sucked upon

and sipped upon one too many times,

their cracks a small sacrifice

for a lifetime of nourishment.

Maybe I didn’t write a thing today,

but this twenty-year-old blue couch did.

My blue couch

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre? 
This is a question I'd like for my readers to answer (feel free to in comments)! Of course everyone's work is different and unique, but I think mine is unpredictable... hopefully keeping readers guessing what's next.

Haiga by Laurie Kolp

 3. Why do I write/create what I do? 
It's a basic need, really. This muse inside of me (sometimes naughty, sometimes nice) demands to be set free. When I entered college, I didn't really know what I wanted to do. Becoming a writer seemed so unreachable. I did know that I was on this beautiful earth for a reason; but what it was, I had no clue. I tried nursing, business and then decided on education since the women in my family were teachers. I enjoyed teaching, but never felt completely fulfilled. I returned to writing after birthing three kids in four years. I knew at once that was my purpose.

4. How does my writing/creating process work?
I work really well in the morning; but with three kids, I take what I can get. Sometimes my muse nudges me, sometimes she downright pushes me to write something that popped into my head. Other times, I can't get her to do a thing. It's during those times that I try to spark my creativity through other avenues, such as photography and art. The picture below won an award from NWCU. The art sparked the poem.

 I also go back to older poems and work on editing them. I'll start with a rhyming poem and then change it to a different form/style. Another thing that helps get me going is found poetry. I participated in The Found Poetry Review's Pulitzer Remix in April 2013. I had to create 30 found poems from John Updike's Rabbit at Rest. Here is one of those poems.

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Below are the three poets I selected for this virtual tour. Next week, they will guide you through the same questions. Please check them out!

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Linda Hofke

 Linda Hofke, a native Pennsylvanian, lives in Germany where she writes, takes photographs and puts her lead foot to use on the Autobahn. Her work has been featured in Curio Poetry, MiCrow, Bolts of Silk, The Fib Review, The Poetic Pinup Revue and other literary journals as well as several anthologies. She blogs sporatically at Lind-guistics (http://lind-guistics.blogspot.de/) and Linda's Life on the Other Side (http://lindas-life-otos.blogspot.de/).

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Walt Wojtanik

 Walt Wojtanik is an accomplished poet, playwright and composer who has taken 45 years to become an overnight success. His work has been presented in various anthologies and publications, or has been staged in his native Buffalo, NY. He’s currently working on his next big thing, whatever that might be. https://wojisme.wordpress.com/.

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Imelda Santore

I am Imelda Santore. I came from the Philippines. Eleven years ago, I left family, friends, and a legal career to marry the wonderful man I met online. We are now the parents of four boys. I keep myself busy homeschooling the elder children, gardening, and doing things necessary to keep our home in a livable state. I take refuge in writing poems to sort out my thoughts and to keep my sanity. http://mywordwall.wordpress.com/