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10 Questions for Claire Denson

January 12, 2023 - By Edward Clifford

I like to play with animals, to see
what their bodies do when twisted
and probed. I like the sounds they make.
I grab a toad by the throat and move it
into an O as in Open wide, love.
—from "The Chimp Speaks of Cruelty," Volume 62, Issue 2 (Summer 2021)

Tell us about one of the first pieces you wrote. 
When I first started writing poems in college, the process overtook me. It was like I had denied myself a serious go at this form of expression, and when I finally allowed it, I filled notebooks, was kept up at night, distracted, needed to write like it was a tic. Some of that early work is in University of Michigan lit journal online archives.

One early influence in particular was poet Scott...

10 Questions for Michelle Hoppe

January 10, 2023 - By Edward Clifford

Determinant meaning within the English language exists through the electric glue of our conjunctions. Sticky tiny words like "but" and "also" define the psyche’s trajectory in a story, and stories determine our relationships and behaviors. "And" and "also" are some of the least glamorous of the transitions and are often overlooked for the more forceful usages of the contrast conjunctions and consequence arguments.
—from “Also Reality,” Volume 64, Issue 4 (Winter 2022)

Tell us about one of the first pieces you wrote.
The first piece where I felt like I found my style and message was “I Can Make You Immortal.” I published it with South 85 Journal, and they were...

10 Questions for Ally Zlatar

January 6, 2023 - By Edward Clifford

when the tigers break free
there is an unrestricted view of salvation

but i fear this feeling of fullness
—from “We Want Your Art but We Will Not Pay,” Volume 64, Issue 4 (Winter 2022)

Tell us about one of the first pieces you wrote:
One of the first pieces I ever worked on was The Starving Artist, that explores our understanding of eating disorders and body image within contemporary art, and features the works of 25+ international artists who each shared their own and very diverse experiences of living in an unwell body.

What writer(s) or works have influenced the way you write now?
Alain de Botton for sure. I love the casual but intimate approach to understanding our daily...

10 Questions for Torsa Ghosal

January 4, 2023 - By Edward Clifford

Ma speaks with her eyes focused on some faint mark on the table's oilcloth. Hasnahena or Pāẏarā listens to the history of her naming again, after a long time. She has known it since her childhood. But, somehow, it is as though a festival celebrating her inconsequential human birth is still going on in this house.
—from "an Artist's Ego," by Shagufta Sharmeen Tania, translated by Torsa Ghosal, Volum 63, Issue 3 (Fall 2022)

Tell us about one of the first pieces you translated.
Growing up in the multilingual culture of India, I feel like I have been translating bits and pieces of literature pretty much all my life. I remember translating lines of Bengali poetry for Hindi-speaking friends on my school bus when I was in the...

10 Questions for Kieran Mundy

December 13, 2022 - By Edward Clifford

In the country, I could be better. I could learn to weave baskets and identify edible plants. I could learn to sew, to sing, to wear my hair in loose braids that tickle my bare shoulders.

Believe me, I know how it sounds. I know my reasons for wanting this life seem foolsih, too close to fantasy from the very beginning. Would it help if you imagined me as your wife? Your daughter? Your sister? By all means, go ahead. Imagine me what you will.
—from "It's More Afraid of You Than You Are of It," Volume 63, Issue 3 (Fall 2022)

Tell us about one of the first pieces you wrote.
My earliest work was actually in “songwriting." I went through a big Garage Band phase when I was 8 or 9, maybe? Lots of slant rhymes....