1 - How did your first book change your life? How does your most recent work compare to your previous? How does it feel different?
This Sweet Rupture is my first book, and I am excited for it to be published and out in the world. I've spent several years working towards this collection, and it has changed my life in the way that I approach writing and think about the practice/craft itself. It also alleviated a lot of self doubt regarding my capabilities and intuitions regarding writing and the work that I am doing. People want to read this kind of work, read these kinds of stories, read this kind of poetry, and I am happy to be putting myself out there, working through all the ups and downs of being a writer and artist, and also enjoying the process along the way.
2 - How did you come to poetry first, as opposed to, say, fiction or non-fiction?
I came to poetry during my undergrad at UBC Okanagan in 2016. I was in the creative writing program (minor), and focused a lot of my efforts on fiction in most workshop classes that I took. At the time, I didn't think that I could write poems, and looking back, I am not sure why I held this belief. Maybe it was self doubt or that I was invested in writing fiction that blocked my pursuit of writing poetry. But in that last year of my time there, I took a workshop class with Professors Matt Rader and Michael V. Smith, who are two writers I look up to and inspire my own writing, and they pushed me into a space that I falsely believed I'd be uncomfortable in. I haven't looked back since.
3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious notes?
I think it depends on how driven I am by an idea. Sometimes a project will come naturally and quickly, and I can push a draft in a short amount of time, or it takes time. So, a combination of both I think! I'd say for poetry, my first drafts often appear looking close to their final shape. I find that poetry comes naturally and easily, especially when I've been mulling an idea over in my head for a while.
4 - Where does a poem usually begin for you? Are you an author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you working on a "book" from the very beginning?
The poems in This Sweet Rupture started small. A piece here, a piece there. I was lucky enough to get enough pieces together to publish some of the poems that appear in the book as a chapbook titled "Sesame Love" with Moon Jelly House. But I did keep an overarching theme in mind when I was writing the poems, and thankfully I did, because it was much easier to compile them into a coherent book.
5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?
I love going to and participating in public readings. I haven't had the chance to do that much recently as I've been a bit of a hermit with the amount of work that I have on my plate, but I'm hopeful that I can get back out and do some readings/open mics. I find it important to my process to see and hear what other writers and artists are working on. It's inspirational!
6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns behind your writing? What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What do you even think the current questions are?
This is a tough question to answer. I don't usually frame my creative work through a theoretical lens. A lot of my work concerns father-son relationships, masculinities, migration. These are some of the aspects I think about when writing, but I like to leave interpretation up to the reader. I think it's more exciting to hear what others might theorize about my work rather than hear myself talking about it in that light.
7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger culture? Do they even have one? What do you think the role of the writer should be?
The writer will always have a role in society/culture. I think one of the roles of the writer/artist is to make uncomfortable art, art that gives pause, that makes one think about the world and how they move within it.
8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult or essential (or both)?
I was very lucky to get to work with author and editor Kimmy Beach for this collection. I think a good editor will either make or break your experience. You definitely want an editor who will uplift you while also providing constructive feedback and criticism of your work. I think there also has to be a willingness on your end as well to entrust your words and work to an editor who might disagree with you on certain aspects, and a big part of being a writer is taking that feedback and working with it.
9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given to you directly)?
Good enough is good enough.
10 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?
I don't really have a routine. I try to write at least one poem a day if I can; that usually comes out to a page or so a day as my poems are relatively shorter in length. My writing tends to happen at night as my days are usually filled with me procrastinating on writing.
11 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?
When my writing gets stalled, I tend to go look at some of the poetry books I have on my bookshelf and flip through them and that really helps rock me out of that stall.
12 - What fragrance reminds you of home?
Bakhoor.
13 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature, music, science or visual art?
Music definitely inspires my work. For This Sweet Rupture I listened to a lot of classical Arab singers like Fairuz, Umm Kulthum, and Abdul Halim. I was trying to capture that essence of home and nostalgia in this collection, so I listened to them when I was writing or when I was not.
14 - What other writers or writings are important for your work, or simply your life outside of your work?
Cristalle Smith, Marc Herman Lynch, Kaitlyn Purcell, Nisha Patel, Matthew James Weigel, Matt Rader, Michael V. Smith, Gary Soto, Jess Rizkallah, Etel Adnan, Mohammed El-Kurd, Mukoma Wa Ngugi, Safia Elhillo.
15 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?
Hike the Pacific Northwest Trail. Win a literary award.
16 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you not been a writer?
I do enjoy and love working with my hands. I love working on cars and made a hobby of that. There's something satisfying about swapping a brake rotor and putting everything back together and the car still running afterwards. It's a good time!
17 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?
I was just a natural at it. I was also not cut out for sciences.
18 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great film?
The last great book I read was Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five. The last great film I watched was West and Soda.
19 - What are you currently working on?
I am currently working on a new body of poetry, and working on editing down my detective fiction novel which is complete!
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