Tag: National Poetry Month

Poetic Perspective with Antonio Eramo

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Today we have the privilege and honor of sitting down for virtual coffee with best-selling poet Antonio Eramo.

His book is in the Top 100 in all 3 Kindle Categories, and even in the Top 20 in 2 categories with more than 168 reviews.

My review of his book is available on Instagram here.

  1. What was your purpose behind writing Cicadas Serenade

Cicadas Serenade was written to be my own version of “song of myself” (Thoreau). My song, like the song of the Cicada, is loud and can be perceived as annoying…but it is nonetheless natural and beautiful in its own right. As far as purpose goes…well, it serves the same purpose as any song within nature, it means everything and nothing at the same time.

2. What’s your favorite thing about nature?

My favorite thing about nature is that it almost mocks man in its perfection. Every lesson I have ever learned I can see expressed in nature…and there is a great irony that we can only see the wisdom of nature after our own failures.

3. What do you hope people gain from Cicadas Serenade?

I hope to gain several things from this book. The number 1 thing would be understanding. Although the manner I express myself isn’t straightforward, I hope that those close to me can read between the lines and understand the overarching meanings. The number 2 thing I hope to gain is a bit of traction within the poetry community. The poetry community is oversaturated and it is very difficult to stand out or be heard. I am hoping that this book can help usher in a return to form for poetry. Most modern poetry is full of bromides and bad line breaks, and I think the reader deserves a bit more than surface level thoughts masquerading as a poem (insta-poetry).

4. As a poet and a writer, where do you see your career going next?

As a poet, I see myself slowly climbing the ranks on amazon and establishing my work as an indie publisher. I am adamantly against big name publishers, so I do not see myself submitting to any of them anytime soon. I do not foresee myself ever being able to live off my work as a poet, which is definitely a blessing in disguise…I feel that if you treat art like a job/career then the work suffers 

5. Any new books currently in the works?

I have a new book out called “The Day Prior” which features AI artwork. Most people have been using AI to create art…but I was more curious as to how ai interprets art. I plugged each poem in as the input and had an ai generator interpret the poetry and create a corresponding image. The point of the collection is to analyze the process of interpreting art. In general we have a major issue with something I like to call the “coerced consensus”…in school we interpret things as we are told to interpret them…likewise, ai can only interpret things based on its algorithm (how it is told to interpret). I am curious to see if the images impact the readers ability to interpret the poetry and if it influences their perceptions before they even read.

6. Who are some of your favorite poets?

T.S. Eliot and Robert Frost

7. Who inspired you to become a poet or was there a pivotal moment that made you become a poet?

I don’t really remember what kicked off my fascination with words, but I do recall that it was a sudden snap. One day I just started writing poems.

8. Anything else you want to share with my readers about poetry or your writing career?

A bit of advice for anyone new to poetry…learn the forms and learn poetic devices before embarking on the journey. After you learn the rules you can break them…but for the love of god, learn them first. 

Poetic Perspective with Matthew Gutierrez

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Today, we have the honor and privilege of sitting down for virtual coffee with Matthew Gutierrez, author of Notes I Wrote Along The Way. A review of it can be found here.

  1. What was the exact moment you decided to begin writing Notes I Wrote Along The Way?
    I had been writing for years before 2019, so I had quite the collection, but in 2019 it dawned upon me that
    I should release them into the world so others may enjoy them and not keep them locked in my computer.
  1. One of my favorites from the collection is Universal Control? Can you tell us more about the backstory
    behind the piece?

This poem speaks about the complete control that the universe has over all living things; the universe
maintains complete control, and we are subject to the twist and turns that are thrown our way. I believe
that our existence is part of the universe’s plan and we must all play a part and complete a purpose to that
plan.

  1. Besides poetry, what else have you written?
    I have written screenplays, short stories and currently I am working on more poetry and a longer fiction
    piece that will become a novel.
  1. Do you plan to write another poetry collection? If so, do you know what the themes may be?
    I am currently working on writing more poetry and editing and rewriting pieces that I already have picked
    out for my next collection. I want the next book to be more personal, more direct about pieces of my life
    and things that have happened in my life. The themes will remain the same as the first collection, I like to
    focus on the universe, a higher power, love, life and death.
  1. Who inspires you most in your life?
    I inspire myself… my life inspires me and the people that come In and out of my life inspire me in some
    manner. Life is full or inspiration and sparks ideas to write.
  1. Who are some of your favorite poets?
    I would say that I am a fan of Pablo Neruda, John Keats, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath, Phillip B.
    Williams, Roger Reeves.

7.What’s your favorite thing about poetry?
I love poetry because you can find the right words for a poem that you cannot seem to discover when
speaking to another human being. I started writing poetry due to the lack of courage I had to say a few
things on my mind. I found it easier to write them as poems instead.

  1. What is most misunderstood about poetry in your opinion?

The state of being abstract. I hear often, in my MFA program, that I can be a bit too abstract, and I need to
be more grounded and concrete when writing a poem. While I am working on being more focused on
describing a scene, I do believe that I am that poet and have to stay true to what I do.

#NationalPoetryMonth: In The Library by James W. A. Review

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Venturing to check on my own poetry collection at the local library, I happened upon another local poet’s collection. Checking it out, I was immersed in a short narrative poetry experience that reminded me of one of my favorite childhood books that became a movie The NeverEnding Story. 

James W. A. writes of the freedom from rules and counted meter with the poet’s choice of free verse and also shares how that freedom then trickles down to the reader who can then interpret the poem as they see fit even if it differs from the way the poet intended it.

In The Library is a dark poetry narrative that utilizes a main character who’s dialog throughout the book is expressed through poetic stanza and verse, all while utilizing the image of a library to be similar to a graveyard where the main character is asked to read or “remember” 11 different traumatic events.

The library then becomes like the post-traumatic brain and the poetry is the inner workings of coming to terms with said trauma.

It is a different take on poetry but it is unique in it’s own light, and worth a read.

I found it to be hopeful to me as a free verse poet, and I am grateful that on a trip to the library I happened upon In The Library.

#NationalPoetryMonth: Diary of A Romantica by Celia Martinez Review

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If you are anything like me, you read poetry to feel something. To feel sad, to feel angry, to resonate with the feeling of heartbreak expressed in a piece. Rarely ever, do I find romantic poetry a genre that I vibe with these days. That is until I happened upon a poet climbing the social media ranks named Celia Martinez.

What struck me most was the absolute effortless delivery with which Martinez delivers her poems, almost like she’s just saying what first comes to mind, and in terms of poetry and the complexity of language barriers, that is a rare find.

Her poetry reads like diary entries but follows a rhyme scheme with themes ranging from future love, past love, love as a concept, romance, fictional men, heartbreak, and themes of anxiety and depression as well.

The absolute best thing about Martinez’s collection is her imagery. You can literally picture two people meeting in the street, the young woman carrying bread. How she blushes when the man speaks to her, wondering if he’s actually addressing her or someone else entirely. It’s like paintings of romantic storylines come to life, and it fills the readers soul with such wonder, curiosity, and even dare I say, fulfillment similar to that of a romance novel you can’t stop reading.

I finished Martinez’s collection in two days simply because I had trouble putting it down like an insatiable romance novel, and that to me is poetry done absolutely right in a time of social media and short attention spans.

Thank you Celia for reminding us all that love is possible even if it hasn’t been returned to us yet.

#NationalPoetryMonth: Notes I Wrote Along The Way by Matthew Gutierrez Review

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Have you ever been completely swept off your feet by a book of poetry? I have many many times. The first time it ever happened I was in college and found a poet on Tumblr and I covered my dorm walls with their words.

Yet, recently sitting down to delve into Notes I Wrote Along The Way by Matthew Guttierrez I found myself in that same place, absolutely glued between the covers of his poetry collection, slowly digesting each and every poem as it spoke to my soul as nothing else has. 

As a poet myself, I find that to be an inspiring moment and a revelation of the true talents that poet has as if I feel inspired to write a piece after reading one of theirs then I truly know I was taken on a journey with the poet, and got to metaphorically walk in their shoes.

And sometimes those shoes are quite big, stuck in quicksand, lost and alone, feeling like a failure, heartbroken, grieving or just pondering a unique perspective of the human experience.

Matthew Gutierrez writes of memory, environment, love, sexual desire, dreams, madness, and death but they all speak to something profound and poignant.

Gutierrez’s word choice and imagery are what struck such a chord with me while reading this collection, and it makes me hungry for more work from this poet as I am certain this poet has many more notes that will need be written along the way.

Coming this Wednesday…stay tuned for an interview with Matthew himself.

For more from Matthew Gutierrez, follow him on Instagram @notes2poetry and @matthewjames_g

Follow The Smart Cookie Philes on Instagram to hear Chelsea DeVries read these poems, and to hear Matthew read one as well.

This FREE BOOK REVIEW was done in support of poetry and the arts. The Smart Cookie Philes is a independently owned and woman run company to help all people feel free to espresso themselves. It is a book and music publicity firm offering various marketing services and packages including the new Indie Book Tour Package as seen below.

Consider tipping Chelsea for her work on this piece at the following link: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/CDeVries26

#PoetryMonth: I Found My Heart Will Show You the Strength and Heart of a Woman

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Opening Stacie Ann Green Taylor’s collection, I found salve for my wounds, solace for my soul, and my heart felt baptized in holy water’s dew.

After reading this collection, I am encouraged, inspired, her lyrical words and heart-stopping word choice gave me a new source of power.

I am woman.
I am broken.
I once was bruised.

Yet, thanks to this collection,
my heart has arisen anew.

Enjoyed this review? If you are an author or musician, you can order one of your own for $40.

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#NationalPoetryMonth: Grow, Heal, and Thrive With The Evolution of a Girl by Lauren Bowman

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The Evolution of A Girl will have you bent, broken, rooting for the flower in all of us to water one another and rise above toxic masculinity, sexual assault, and the difference between love and lust.

These poems empower you and help you see that being born a girl in a man’s world isn’t heartbreaking but a chance for you to grow, heal, and thrive.

Enjoyed this review? Book one for your own book for only $40.

#PoetryMonth: To Walk On Moonbeams by ZombearWrites is a Sweet Taste of Moonlit Poetry

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ZombearWrites is a clever soul full of vibrancy and wonder but still her words pinpoint a pain only few know: the pain of a heartbreak.

To Walk on Moonbeams is a petite collection discussing the painful and powerful things that make life worth living.

Enjoyed this review? This review was done in observance of National Poetry Month and to bring awareness to rising talent within the poetry community. The Smart Cookie Philes is an American based small business. To order one for your book, do so here.

#NationalPoetryMonth: Toxicity and Resilience Following Heartbreak Result in a Sunflower With Thorns

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Kleio Mousa is a beautiful sunflower with thorns.

Her poetry is simple yet elegant but her thorns will slice you wide open, sever the vein of your heart, until you find yourself and you fall in love with that person again.

Enjoy this review? Book one for your new or older book today. Only $40.

#NationalPoetryMonth: Beekeeper by Blake Auden Book Review

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ever have I ever thought to compare the noisiness of love and heartbreak to a colony of bees but Auden does so effortlessly.

His poetry is raw, emotive, and timely, neither sloppy or slimy. It’s free verse instead of rhymed meter.

The Beekeeper will resonate with anyone who has felt the sting of love’s heartbreak, and the memories and processing of letting someone go long after they left.

The Smart Cookie Philes provided this review FREE of charge in honor of National Poetry Month and a low number of content creators who don’t feature poets or poetry books.

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