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Loren Kleinman Interview 6/8/2013 5:18:46 PM
Award winning poet Loren Kleinman discusses the art of writing poetry and more! LTS: On my All Kinds of Writing blog I’ve feature authors of everything from epic fantasy to sci-fi, erotica to historical romance, as well as YA and children’s picture books. Rarely do I get a chance to feature a poet, but today, I’d like to introduce you to Pushcart Prize nominee and 2003 winner of the Spire Poetry Competition, Loren Kleinman! I’d like to begin by having you share a little information about yourself with our readers, Loren. What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?
LK: Cooking. There’s something relaxing and comforting about preparing meals for friends or family. I love watching my hands cut and chop fresh garlic or cilantro: smelling the smells, the aromas and then filling the belly full. Pouring the olive oil, sprinkling the salt, a dash a pepper here and there. I’m grateful to be able to cook and share. It’s an extension of writing, of creating. (And I get some help from Doris the cat…well she just sits and stares from the table.)
LTS: It takes a very special talent to write beautiful, compelling poems. When did you start creating poems and was becoming a published author a lifelong dream?
LK: I never remember wanting to write. I just do it. Some poems are easier to arrive at than others, and other poems just find me. Sometimes, I think, like Pablo Neruda, poetry (writing) found me. It’s natural to me like eating or breathing.
I never said, “I’m going to publish.” I just did the writing, put in the work, did the revising, worked with my poetry mentor Claudia Serea, and then just started submitting. Then, in the middle of all the persistence, and tons (I mean tons) of rejections, something sticks, someone, a publisher takes a chance on you. The best things happen when you’re not obsessing, when you’re just putting in the time. Someone once told me, it’s a marathon. You have to be up for the marathon. You have to train, everyday. If you stick with it, keep running, you’ll see a finish line in sight. You’re in for the long haul. (The same person told me that too.)
LTS: Where did you find the inspiration for some of your favorite poems?
LK: Everything is inspiration: from the trees, to reading, to cooking, to exploring the un-seen parts of me. Look at everything as a possibility and then keep it in your well. I always liked how Marianne Moore put it: “poetry is the art of creating imaginary gardens with real toads.” Get some toads, and then grow your imaginary garden.
LTS: Can you reveal what’s in store for the readers when they crack open Flamenco Sketches?
LK: Flamenco Sketches was inspired by my love and appreciation for jazz and jazz poets like Langston Hughes and Sonia Sanchez. It explores the relationships between love and jazz. Love, like jazz, comes with improvisation, with melodies that often surprise. I tried to capture this in the poems. I wrote the collection in my early twenties not thinking it would be published. Then I took a chance and submitted to the Spire Press poetry contest and won. I think it’s a romantic, colorful book, like the dance, Flamenco.
LTS: Can you share that moment when you sold your collection of poems to Spire Press?
LK: I had to read the email a few times. It was so long ago too. I was in my early twenties, and just took a shot with the submission. I rarely submit to contests because they’re expensive and the odds of winning or low. You could go broke submitting to contests sometimes and not get any feedback from a publisher. But I took a chance, a risk. The book started out as an undergraduate thesis, and then my mentor told me to try and submit it. It was exciting to be young and sign a contract. It had moderate success, but I was more concerned, at the time, with just getting my work out there, reaching readers, sharing my words.
LTS: What is the most important lesson you’ve learned on the road to publication?
LK: There’s lots of rejection, but that just made me want to keep going even more. Don’t take it personally. Sometimes publishers have different reasons for not accepting a manuscript, and it’s not always a result or a reflection of the quality of your writing. And publishers typically publish a limited amount of poetry each year, some also like particular topics more than others. One publisher might like war poetry, another might like post-modern, and another might like love poetry.
Also, let’s say you wrote a book about cats eating flies, and you found a publisher that likes that particular topic, you submit and get rejected. They might have already published 10 books on that cats that eat flies. So don’t take it personally.
Which leads me to this: do your research. Read the submission guidelines and the mission/vision of the publisher carefully and see if your work would be a good fit. Don’t get discouraged. It’s rough out there. If you can’t handle a little rejection, then you might as well hang up your towel. Remember the marathon?
LTS: I dare not tackle the artistic process of creating a poem. Do you feel writing poems, aside from the length or word count is a very different, or similar, process as writing a short story or novel? If so, how is it different or the same?
LK: I write poetry and fiction, and the process is similar. I believe in revision (lots of it). I write a draft (just to write the damn thing) and then I revise the hell out of it with an editor.
I also think the main difference between poetry and prose is the line. In poetry you have a shorter amount of time to make an impact, to get to the point, and have to earn your ending. In fiction you have more time to develop your story, your confession.
In poetry, grammar is king. During revision, work with an editor that has experience with editing poetry. It’s a different beast. Sometimes a misplaced comma can make or break your poem, and an awkward line break can change meaning or just slow down the rhythm.
My poetry mentor once said, “You’re not making a poem that looks like a poem,” and then Jim Klein, workshop leader for the Red Wheelbarrow Poets in Rutherford, NJ added to that, and said, “You’re making a machine out of words.” I advocate listening to this advice.
LTS: Some authors meditate, others need to fuel up on coffee or listen to music. Do you have any rituals, ones that can be shared with the readers, that you must do before you hunker down for a writing session?
LK: I feel resistance sometimes, especially when I’m tired. Writing is hard. It’s work. It’s not romantic all the time. Most of the time, I sit down at the table, put on my headphones and listen to music, I tune out the world, surround myself with books that give me some inspiration. “I’m a writer,” I say to myself. “So write.” I don’t torture myself if I write one word, or praise myself if I write 1,000. I just do it. Trust the process.
LTS: At one time or another, most writers hit the wall and their work stalls because of the dreaded writer’s block. What do you do to get around or over this mental wall to resume writing?
LK: When I hit that wall, I use the time to read and re-read books that inspire me on themes that I’m exploring in my own writing. I also read the War of Art. But, seriously, if you’ve hit that wall, it could mean you’re burnt out. Take a break. Breaks are good. Walk the dog, read a new book, go out for coffee. Recharge. It’s ok. You’re still a writer, even if you take a break.
LTS: Who is your favorite poet and how has he/she inspired you to write or influenced your writing style?
LK: Franz Wright. His poems are poignant, and even got me through a dark time in my life. I consider myself to be a Romantic poet. I don’t want to classify him in that same area, but, I think, it’s the hope, the questioning of our humanity that interests me so much about his work. He also just writes such a lovely line, and shows so much control. It’s a testament to the value in practicing, studying our art, becoming the best at it, and then using it how we need to use it.
LTS: What do you foresee in your future over the next five years and do you hope to branch out from poetry to short stories or full-length novels?
LK: I’m writing a contemporary romance novel now, This Way to Forever, which I’m working on with Christoph Paul and Annetta Ribken. It’s so different. (In a good way.) I’m also outlining another novel. I’m not sure if I’m going the traditional or self-published route, yet. I’m just focusing on revising first, publishing later. I’m also outlining another fiction novel, not romance.
Finally (maybe) working on a book with IndieReader.com, which will feature essays and interviews celebrating the indie community. Release date coming soon.
LTS: You’ve recently finished a second collection of poems. What is it called and when can your fans expect its release?
LK: I just signed with Winter Goose Publishing. The collection is called The Noble Loss set to release by 2014. I’m very excited to share the book with readers. They’re what keep me going.
LTS: Congratulations with this publishing deal, Loren! And thank you for sharing in your writing experience. Catch you on Twitter!
For more information about Loren and her works of poetry, check out:
Website: www.lorenkleinman.com
Follow Loren on Twitter: .LorenKleinman
Visit Loren on Facebook
Where to buy the book: Flamenco Sketches & keep checking my site and Winter Goose Publishing for details.
