ANYWAY.  On to your actual question.  I think there have always been phenomenal writers on dA, I just didn't pay attention. I used to be everything the lit community hates, ignoring anything written because I didn't want to take time to actually read.

I think one of the most interesting things about your tenure here on dA is the growth in your gallery as far as poetry is concerned. Over these past few weeks I’ve gone back and read some of the pieces you have highlighted to me in the past and the technical growth so to speak, is extremely evident. Have you, yourself, noticed or felt any changes technically when it comes to your writings over the years or does it still feel the same?

If I had to pick something that I feel I’ve grown in, it’d be in my adaptability. I never even considered working with another poet until I saw chromeantennae's collaboration with Ghostjay55 and I asked Ricky if we could work together. (That piece can be found here: The Perfect DayThe Perfect Day
What a perfect day...
The wind Gently brushing my face
The sounds of serenity all around me
My skin feels the sun's warm embrace
I walk along the water's edge
Admiring it's captive beauty
The clear blue waves crashing down at my feet
Brings a feeling of Acceptance to me
I feel so at peace,
With clear blue skies overhead,
And with this sense of pure tranquility,
My mind is truly at ease and I feel more than blessed
I watch the children play gleefully
Their minds so pure and innocent
All the troubles of yesterday
Seem so easy to forget.
And at least for today, I'm not in any pain
Because this day has the makings of a perfect one
I can relax and enjoy the comforting scenes of this amazing day,
Simply laying back and enjoying this moment; the sand and the sun
As the sun meets the horizon
In such a beautiful correlation
It was such a perfect day
But the night was no exception.
It's now after dark and this perfect day is coming to a close
And as I lay in my cozy bed, a)

A month or so later, we ended up with Driven NeedRough dirt and soft grass under fingers
Cocooned in warmth soaked through a jacket
Light breeze drifting, whistling through leaves, against skin
Mind recounting the most careful touches,
And rejoicefully passionate swims.
The cheeky grin of a small child,
Eyes of the broken hearted,
Weary feet of a man that’s walked 40 miles,
The uncertainty of trying to get a relationship started,
A young girl’s soul that has been tainted and defiled
Strength arising from breakups
Betrayal screaming through paper
Sobs arouse hands to clench
Grasping for pencil, paper, anything
Emotions, thoughts, scenes need out.
A jaded man’s battle with alcoholism,
To a young woman who’s full of suspicions,
To parents who have lost their children to endless torment,
All the way to suicide, robbery, murder, and bouts of depression
This is what we need to get out,
The tools of our production seem like pencil, paper
But the true tools of our trade
Are these things we cannot touch
Things t. Since, we’ve also written SnapshotI just--I don’t understand how this keeps happenin’--
Breathe, bro.
It’ll be alright.
Everything will work out.
...Damn I sound cliched.
(Sigh) I know, but it isn’t supposed to be like this,                                  I will never do that to him,
This feeling of people walking out on me.......                                     I won’t put him through that.
Words of support get harder to believe in
Yet, somehow, this is different,
Right?
These feelings of stress,
Of despair and confusion,
One, it creates great poetry,
And two, it is completely acceptable.
Whether it’s acceptable doesn’t seem to be--
It isn’t the issue, it’s just--I feel weak,
And people walking out on me isn’t helpin and I’ve got another one in the works with him, as well as Aerode. I also think I’ve improved as to my content, I’ve written with more figurative language and developed a more complex style in the past two years.

Another wonderful attribute your writing carries is your unique “voice.” I believe you are one of the best writers when it comes to really conveying your message in an impactful, striking, and unique way; saying things in a way that no one else really can. And with this, you really employ a great use of colloquial language as well as the exhibition of space. Do you intentionally attempt to use space and informal language as another method of showing emotion or does it just come to you without thinking in your writing?

And by “colloquial” you mean the insane amount of cuss words I employ. I just write the way I think and the way I talk, so yeah, I guess it’s a unique voice. Thank you.   

To explain how space comes about in my poetry, I think I should just explain my writing process. I have a specific notebook that I write all of my poetry in. I do not normally title my poems when I’m inspired to write them so instead I number and date them. I always write in pencil and the spacing is just where the pencil lands on the paper, I’m almost always not thinking about it. My spacing is basically unconscious. I have used intentional spacing in LaundryScrubbing every stubborn stain,
Tossing pel-mel into the basket,
Heaving the sack onto my hip,
Lugging it down two flights.
Sorting
  whites        lights       darks     heavys
Checking
     again   for    any   stains
Shoving
       into   a   jumbled mess
Dumping
    detergent by the blue half-scoopful
Scrubbing, Tossing, Heaving, Lugging.
                        then....
Sorting,
    Checking,
        Shoving,
           Dumping,
          and ProtestsIt's not like I don't feel it.
I care about you.
I love being in your arms.
I love the way you slowly kiss me.
Just... you're not the one I'd thrive with.
It'd be.... fun (at times)
And yet, it'd be exhasparating, hurtful.
When faced with an alternative.....
Invited into one, actually.
I'm starting to realize....
The potential of failure, of hurt.
Is so much better than "us"
Living that fake, made-up, fantasy
Where you and I...
We live happily ever after.
It ain't happenin'.
The sooner it's accepted,
The easier it'll be to......  l    e     t         g              o               . and have been known to use opposing justifications to symbolize different voices.

 

Speaking of uniqueness, you’re one of the few writers who really (And I mean, REALLY) put themselves “out there,” when it comes to the topics of your writing. Your fearlessness with tacking certain subjects is admirable as most writers aren’t comfortable post some of the things you do, so I ask: What allows you to have the confidence to post some of the intimate pieces that you do? 

I post what I do because I have a sense of anonymity on dA. I don’t have my name posted anywhere, I also have no link to my Facebook and only an email address listed. All of these things have combined to make me more comfortable posting just about anything. Interestingly, the only piece I was… nervous to put up was Resolution for Today
Today,
I wrote love on my arm
For a girl I never knew.
Today,
I went low-tech
To listen to CDs my boyfriend made.
Today,
I finished a fluffy teen novel
That ended changing my perspective.
Today,
I face true embarrassment
Of an undeserved comeback.
Today,
I rediscover the healing properties of water,
That haven't existed since July.
Today,
I am the comforting confidant
For my support system.
Today,
I wear what keeps me warm
And not care how people perceive me.
Today,
I focus on my homework
Practice using my time wisely.
Today,
I forgave them
For their schedules and emotions.
Today,
I make my own decisions
On people's effect on my emotions.
Today,
I start deciding.
For me.  Alone..

 

Anything else you would like our readers to know about you or your gallery? From your own perspective, how would you describe your own gallery to people who don’t know much about you or haven’t had the chance to read your works now, yet?

Oh dear lord….  Um, let’s see… How would I describe my gallery?  Varied.  Emotional.  If I don’t make you cry, laugh, grin, and shake your head within a few poems, I’m not doing something right.  My goal with my poetry is to take people to the place I was in, emotionally, when I wrote what I did, and hopefully get them to think of a time when they felt similarly.  Also, don’t get frustrated if they seem kinda vague, that’s the idea, because it’s easier to apply to other people’s lives than just my own.

 

We’re also curious to know; how long have you’ve been writing for? And is there anything different to writing now, than what it was back then? Also, was there one moment in particular that first sparked your love for writing or was it a different type of experience?

I started writing as an outlet (that’s basically what my poetry began as, and still is sometimes) in 2007.  I’d say that I write pretty much the same way, I just have created a system in which I write my poems, in order to keep them in one place.  If there was a moment where poetry became one of my “things” I really don’t remember it.  You of all people know I’ve got a crappy memory (Yes, I do know.).  

*pokes chromeantennae in the sides* (Keep poking me like that and I'll have to poke you with something other than my finger.) Aw, do you promise?  (Not now, we're in the middle of an interview. Gotta stay professional.) *pouts*

Now that we've made sure we've kept the poking out of this interview; with all of the little quirks of your gallery, we’re all very curious to know what inspires you. Both on dA and outside of it, who really inspires you? Who and what is your muse when it comes to your very interesting style of writing?

Mostly just life in general.  I get inspired by frustrations, anger, love, affection and longing, just to name a few.  My muse depends on what I’m writing.  I’ve been inspired by friends and family, both in real life and here on dA. 

So, with all of this being said, what are some of your personal favorites from your own gallery? Are there any pieces you would like to edit or touch up in the future (For whatever reason that may be.)?

I kinda can’t believe you asked me the second question.  You of all people know I don’t change or edit my pieces after I’ve written them. (Of course, I know but some don't.)  That being said, my favorites are 

,

The NecklaceCliché Hallmark cards
Always start the waterworks.
Even at crowded restaurants.
To know.... it's a piece,
Of my Mommy Jean
Shaking, beaming, crying
As that slim white gold clasp
click... for the first time.
A feather's weight
Instantly at home on my collarbone.
***Fast-forward***

Hiccup-sobbing
Slit-eyes red and swollen
That pendant-spot between my breasts
Scratched and red
From shaking hands,
Grasping for anything to ground me.
Tremblingly closing that slim white gold clasp
click echoing with tears
***Fast-forward***
Heaving my duffel up my steps
And down the hallway,
To my last door on the right
Dropping it and a gasp
Hands immediately undoing
the circular clasp at my neck
Frantically grabbing the chain on my dresser
Breathing slowing as the heavier chain,
But lighter pendant comes to a rest
click and my breathing becomes regular
Sighing as I flop into bed.    Home.
***Fast-forward***
Sighing nervously,
Self-co,  My Newfound HomeWow.
Ummm.... what?
I'm sitting here,
On a little stone-and-mortar wall
Next to a wooden bridge
Over a bubble belching stream,
It's a little hot in the sun,
But I'm cool in the shade.
I was mieandering through the arborietum
Cruzing to some country music
When I spotted a picture,
One I'd love to take.
I could see convincing a friend to model,
To do a photoshoot, just for fun.
I theorized -plotted- my route
between my only back-to-back classes
And made sure I had gaps enough to eat
I'm sitting here,
In a little nook I want to call my own
Thinking,
                           This is what it'll be like.  Cool.
And
                                      HOLYFUCKIN,  Is It a Runaway?He wants his first,
To be his last.
A one and done kinda thing.
No hearbreak, tears or anger.
This, that, an' the third.
He sleeps to one side
As if he's keeping her spot
Because she's running late
He wants those words
Three.  Simple.  Words
To set his heart racing,
Make it swell and flutter
And bring the most handsome smile
To his face.
So what I'm wondering...
Is if he's pulled a pick six on my heart,
And he's about to win the game...
Is it still possible he could lose?,  HThat's what you called me,
When you wanted me.
OK, you may still want me.
That's what you called me,
When you still wanted to teach me.
But you got cold feet.
Instead of seeing my fear
Figuring out why
Then putting it to rest.
(Which you know,
Is what you should've done,
Had you really wanted me.)
That girl is throw away-able.
That thing is just a letter.
That is something hot,
  Poisonous, unwanted.
And all that hurts.
I'm trying to forgive,
Be respectful.
                                But that's not my name., and 

Mature Content

. 

 

Do you have any favorite pieces that you have (recently or otherwise) read by other deviants that you would like to highlight? Has there been anything that has stood out to you and just made you say, “Wow” or “That’s fantastic” or something along those lines? If so, we’d love to have a peek at a few of your favorites!

<da:thumb id="412662251"/> <da:thumb id="414587626"/> <da:thumb id="412629799"/>  The First Time I Saw Him                                                                        'You got my heart in a headlock'
                                                                                                 - The Feeling.
I first saw him on a crisp, chilly morning in late October. I was late for work and therefore forced to break into a run in order to catch the 7:32 train. This is going to be one of those days, I thought to myself. Running as fast as I could in my uncomfortable work shoes, I rushed toward the train station, heart in mouth as I desperat <da:thumb id="397699889"/>  elevenyou don't seem broken
until after you've splintered
and someone else
meticulously pieces you 
back together  .i'm masochistic without realizing it. 
my mad girl's love song isn't enough
to hold your precious two-second attention.   

 

As you know, this interview series is meant to bring attention to the writers who are both well-known and lesser-known. And with that, we would love to see the writers you would recommend that we read and check out. Anybody you think just deserves far more attention than what they’re receiving, now?

LeotheLion25, 999inthedark, br0kenbutterflies, ColorfulSpikes, zakyman, Sydnut, kareeanne, and carletto47 (if you’re big enough to read his stuff)

 

And finally, in only ways we can do it, when am I gonna have you on “Adjusting The Antennae” as a co-host? Haha, I’m sure you could come up with even more interesting questions than I can. 

 Uuuuuhhhh…. Whenever you want me to co-host?  Just let me know, kid and I’d be happy to help you. (We're gonna have to make that happen soon. Although, I think I feel bad for whomever's going to be our interviewee when THAT happens! Ha!)

 

And to everyone that took time out of their days to tune into another episode of “Adjusting The Antennae,” I give you my humblest thanks. Also, for those of you that are new here, “Adjusting The Antennae,” is the show where we try to shift the focus of dA to the greatness of poetry and prose. As always, it is my greatest pleasure to have gotten this far with you all and I hope you all know how much I love and appreciate everyone’s support of me, my works, and this series. I also hope that you all enjoyed the fourth installment of “Adjusting The Antennae.”

I also want to give a huge thanks to the amazing WeirdAndLovely for taking time out of her busy schedule to tell the rest of dA a bit more about herself and her beautiful artwork. This interview was fun, babe. I hope you enjoyed answering these questions as much I loved coming up with ‘em. I hope you have the greatest of birthdays today and I love you so much, sweetheart.

Finally, on one last point, if you know of a writer who deserves more attention or a writer you believe would make for a good interviewee, please comment below or note me with your suggestion(s)! You're also more than welcomed to add questions along with your suggestions, too. Also, if you enjoyed this interview, please show WeirdAndLovely some love, spread the word on this series, or just let your thoughts be known on this with a comment!