Interview with the Poet - Part 2

Continuing my interview with T. Leah Fehr....Is there a message in your poetry that you want readers to grasp?

Absolutely not.  I would like anyone reading my poetry to take from it what they will, no matter what that may be.  You see, poetry is not only personal to the poet, but also to the reader.  The object is not to force my thoughts, ideas and feelings on someone else, but rather to invite them to see the world that I see in a new light; and to see it from their own eyes.  If I can evoke fresh perception to an otherwise unoriginal idea (for there are no original ideas left to man), then I can enjoy an element of success in what I’ve written.  To quote Bukowski, “The writer has no responsibility, except to jack off in bed alone and type a good page”.

T. Leah Fehr

What are your current projects?

I am in the process of compiling and proofing my second collection, titled Apatheology.  I anticipate that it will be in print by summer, 2011.  I’m also working on a short novel called ‘Invisibility’ – a project which has taken me very far out of my comfort zone, in terms on genre, and one which threatens to drive me stark raving mad before I ever complete it.  A preview of it will be offered in Apatheology.

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?

That is a very difficult question for me, and one that I know I’ll come up with a better answer for tomorrow, no matter what I say today.  I’ve been inspired by many artists over the years, both old and new – from Shakespeare to Cohen, Dante to de Sade.  Outside of poetry, I adore Franz Kafka, Milan Kundera, Hunter S. Thompson, and I have recently developed a deep respect for the troubled brilliance of Brian Warner (aka Marilyn Manson).  A contemporary poet named Dean Young opened my eyes and mind to a style that I’ve come to call ‘purge’ poetry, and Charles Bukowski taught me the beauty of profanity and speaking in the literal, as opposed to my tendency toward the metaphorical.

T. Leah Fehr

Can you share a little of your current work with us?

I’d love to!  For one of my recent journeys into metaphor here is a short poem titled Whisper...

Whisper

T. Leah Fehr, 2010

her name, but a whisper, to sugar my lip

upon fair lash and lobe, rosy flesh I kiss

and she purrs and writhes, as she quivers and sighs

until she is still, and her rapture I sip

as she quivers and sighs and scratches and cries

when our love turns to lies, deceit and regret

still she purrs and writhes, rosy flesh I kiss

her name, but a whisper, I’ll never forget

This concluded our interview.  I had a wonderful time taking pictures and listening.  I may be a little biased, but I hope you enjoyed this interview as much as I did.  If you would like to  find out more about T. Leah Fehr's poetry and other writings check out here website HERE.  Also if you would like to purchase the der Nackte Künstler, please visit: http://www.quillandpalette.com/dernackteknstler.htm

On parting I would like to present another of T. Leah Fehr's poems called "Flies in the Wine"

Flies in the Wine

the inherent hypocrisy

of this time and the

futile irony of it exhaust

me as I gaze out past

the bird shit on the

window at a world

giving birth to a

budding wretchedness

as the gentle breeze

carries with it a

sparrow’s song of

anguish and death while

the child buries her

mother and the father

murders his daughter

and the hushed poet and

seven flies seek solace

and silence in a cracked

wine glass as she carves

through words and flesh

just to hear the cries of

a bleeding book and I

know now that it

follows me and taunts

me and I know it must

be spring because

everyone is dying as the

white lilacs bloom

Interview with the Poet - Part 1

I always loved poetry.  When I was a kid, I used to write.  I even got published once.  Then I grew up and time shrunk.  Poetry, like many little dreams, got put in the attic to collect dust.  Sometimes I revisit that attic, blow the dust from the covers, sit in a comfortable chair, and turn the crackling pages of old memories.  I don't visit as often as I like.  Then two years ago, my best friend of almost a quarter century, published her book.   It is an amazing collection of poetry and prose by T. Leah Fehr, called "der Nackte Künstler".  This took me back, back to the attic again. During my last visit to Calgary, I finally had a chance to spend some time with my best friend. I was allowed to take a few photographs, and ask a few questions.  It's a rare moment, and I'm honoured and proud that I can share these here.  Enjoy.

When did you start writing poetry?

I started writing poetry as a child.  I clearly remember writing a poem (perhaps my first, but I can’t be sure) when I was about six years old – it was a poem about the true meaning of Christmas.  It was short and poignant and spiritual.  I wish I’d kept it.  I was quite prolific in my teens, and still have a bit of the work I produced back then (despite how expectedly and awfully full of teen angst most of it is).  I took an extended hiatus from writing throughout most of my 20’s (partying, drinking, sex, marriage, career, family, etc...) – I don’t think I produced anything worth reading for close to 10 years.  I actually remember when I finally came out of hiding, poetically speaking... the poem was title ‘Hindrance’, and spoke specifically about my inability to write, and how terribly I missed it.  That was about ten years ago, and since then, my writing has been steady, if not a bit sporadic at times.  I must be inspired, and while inspiration can come in most any form, it can also abandon me completely and without warning, if for only a while.  There are times when life just gets in the way of creativity.

What inspired you to write and publish your first poetry book?

Catharsis.  Nothing more, really.  I needed to rid myself of something that had been poisoning me for years.  Don’t get me wrong – I LOVE this collection, and I’m very proud of it.  It offers some of my best work, to date.  But it’s very close, it’s very raw and I really just needed it out of me.

Do you have a specific writing style?

No, I don’t think so.  I often find comfort in the challenge of the structure of strict poetic form and lyric, but other times my pen is led by the purity and profanity of freeverse.  I like playing and experimenting with my writing style... I’ve read poets who never stray from one particular form, and I really feel that they’re denying themselves the opportunity to explore and enhance their craft and their creativity... and perhaps missing the chance to discover something new about themselves, which saddens me - why write, especially poetry, if not to learn a little bit more about our Self?

Do your life experiences have any influence in what you write?

Oh, of course... everything I write is spawned by what I experience, what I see, what I feel, what I believe, what I’ve done, what I want, what I love, what I hate, what I’m ashamed of, who I am, who I was, who I want to be, what I want to do, what I’d kill for, who I’d fuck, it goes on and on.  I don’t think a poem can be written that is not somehow influenced by the experience of the poet... at least certainly not one that I’d want to read.

How did you come up with the title?

The English translation of the title der Nackte Künstler is ‘The Naked Artist’.  A recurring theme throughout the book is that of art and artists, and the relationship between art and poetry; between the artist and the poet.  Who discloses more of themselves through their art?  Who is more genuine?  Who is destined for immortality?  Are they equal in their art?  Artists and Poets expose themselves in everything they create, be it a painting, a portrait, a sculpture, a poem, and novel, a play, a film, an essay... it doesn’t matter.  We are all naked in our art, if we are true to it... that is what makes it art.

But setting all the bullshit aside, I actually came up with the title because an artist friend of mine once put on a show in which he was working in his small studio completely nude, and if you so chose, you could watch him paint, in the nude, through a small peephole in the door of the studio.  It was a unique, if not grossly narcissistic, concept for a show, and the idea of the naked artist stayed with me, and it seemed ridiculously obvious as a title for this collection.  I chose German for the title and chapter headings as a tribute to my heritage and to express my appreciation for the language – it has a certain raw beauty which I love.  And I published under my maiden name, Fehr, out of respect for my heritage and my family name... and because it is who I was, who I am, and who I will always be – it just seemed more honest to me.

TO BE CONTINUED...