In honor of Small Press Month, Thea Press interviewed Keeley Bruner. Keeley is co-author of Dreaming Along the Laurel and author of Poured Out, which is due to be released later this year.
What inspired you to start writing? In truth, I've always liked writing--I was one of those little kids that would make books about my family, or my house, or different stories that came to mind. My first concerted effort was a book series about a magic pumpkin, which I wrote over the span of a few prepubescent years. As I got older, much like my reading habits, my writing was mainly for school projects and I really did very little on my own initiative until graduating college. I journaled periodically until I began doing morning pages through The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, and since then I've aimed to make it a daily practice just to keep the juices flowing. In terms of my projects with Thea Press, they are primarily poetry about motherhood, which is such a profoundly challenging, disorienting, mind-bending, rewarding experience in so many ways. The best way I could think to capture cupfulls from its firehose was to write.
What does your writing process look like? There are times where I give focused effort to a project, which may be poetry or prose, and I find that the hour after the kids' bedtime works decently well for making some amount of progress. I try not to be in a hurry. If I have ideas outside of that time frame, I have a Google doc where I keep fragments I can return to later. In general, I find there to be no lack of material, just because my life is so eventful at the moment, with three young children. I do have to be more creative about actually getting the ideas outside of my head!
Of your various writings, what is one of your favorites? Why? There is a poem called "God" in Poured Out, the forthcoming poetry collection I have with Thea Press. It's at the very end, because I felt that it really marked where I was emotionally and spiritually at the time I put the collection together. I wrote it while on retreat at the Franciscan Renewal Center, a weekend that felt full of natural beauty and synchronicity, and also primarily silence, which I rarely experience and find quite valuable at this juncture of my life. For me, it almost serves as a sort of manifesto, naming the sacredness all around me at any given time, even when I am unaware.
What are your thoughts on the use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT) during the creative process? Oh, that's a road I am totally unwilling to go down! I spent a month writing a draft of a novel, and it trips me out to think I could most certainly have given a sentence prompt and word count goal and generated something instantly. I doubt how much these tools can truly enrich the human experience, but would be willing to listen to someone's argument to that effect. For me, I think I'll keep doing it the hard way, because the process is oftentimes the reward.
Tell us about one or more of your favorite writers and how they've impacted you. There are so many! But for poetry, I would say one of my most direct influences is Kate Baer, a mom of four who famously wrote her first chapbook in snatches of time at Panera. Her work resonates so much with so many of the experiences, thoughts, and struggles I have as a woman, as a wife, as a mother, and I felt inspired to share my own because she took the time and energy to write. So, a great hope of mine is that folks who read Poured Out will be encouraged to do the same.
What has writing taught you about the world and yourself? I think one of the main lessons, and I know this is a cliche--in fact I know my daughter's teacher has this on the wall in their classroom--is to be myself, because everyone else is already taken. I can compare myself to other writers all day long and be too afraid to get a sentence down, or I can acknowledge that my style is not for everyone and just go with what feels authentic to my soul. One guiding principle I have--and this works well because I am an avid reader--is to write what I would want to read, which may not exist yet. So I think as I lean into my individual creativity, and those sparks of interest which only my mind can join together, that's a sign of success. And then taking it further, I can appreciate that in other writers, musicians, photographers, etc. It's true that each of us has something unique to offer.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers? I think it's the same advice I may have for someone who wants to learn an instrument or any other skill--just do it! You have to practice. And you have to have that experience where you read something you wrote and think it's amazing, and you have to experience that feeling of failure to capture exactly what you wanted. And then, you have to have that experience of revisiting work you did three years ago and realizing that you have gotten better--that you have learned how to express your thoughts more skillfully, more delicately, more concisely, whatever you are aiming for. Because when you have that experience, you'll trust the process and know you're going to get better and better.
Keeley is the mother of three children, partner to Jason, and a lover of cats, babies, naps, and baked goods. She enjoys playing music, especially with others, and writing, especially so she can share it with people in her life.
Contact: moonmusedoula.com
What inspired you to start writing? In truth, I've always liked writing--I was one of those little kids that would make books about my family, or my house, or different stories that came to mind. My first concerted effort was a book series about a magic pumpkin, which I wrote over the span of a few prepubescent years. As I got older, much like my reading habits, my writing was mainly for school projects and I really did very little on my own initiative until graduating college. I journaled periodically until I began doing morning pages through The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, and since then I've aimed to make it a daily practice just to keep the juices flowing. In terms of my projects with Thea Press, they are primarily poetry about motherhood, which is such a profoundly challenging, disorienting, mind-bending, rewarding experience in so many ways. The best way I could think to capture cupfulls from its firehose was to write.
What does your writing process look like? There are times where I give focused effort to a project, which may be poetry or prose, and I find that the hour after the kids' bedtime works decently well for making some amount of progress. I try not to be in a hurry. If I have ideas outside of that time frame, I have a Google doc where I keep fragments I can return to later. In general, I find there to be no lack of material, just because my life is so eventful at the moment, with three young children. I do have to be more creative about actually getting the ideas outside of my head!
Of your various writings, what is one of your favorites? Why? There is a poem called "God" in Poured Out, the forthcoming poetry collection I have with Thea Press. It's at the very end, because I felt that it really marked where I was emotionally and spiritually at the time I put the collection together. I wrote it while on retreat at the Franciscan Renewal Center, a weekend that felt full of natural beauty and synchronicity, and also primarily silence, which I rarely experience and find quite valuable at this juncture of my life. For me, it almost serves as a sort of manifesto, naming the sacredness all around me at any given time, even when I am unaware.
What are your thoughts on the use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT) during the creative process? Oh, that's a road I am totally unwilling to go down! I spent a month writing a draft of a novel, and it trips me out to think I could most certainly have given a sentence prompt and word count goal and generated something instantly. I doubt how much these tools can truly enrich the human experience, but would be willing to listen to someone's argument to that effect. For me, I think I'll keep doing it the hard way, because the process is oftentimes the reward.
Tell us about one or more of your favorite writers and how they've impacted you. There are so many! But for poetry, I would say one of my most direct influences is Kate Baer, a mom of four who famously wrote her first chapbook in snatches of time at Panera. Her work resonates so much with so many of the experiences, thoughts, and struggles I have as a woman, as a wife, as a mother, and I felt inspired to share my own because she took the time and energy to write. So, a great hope of mine is that folks who read Poured Out will be encouraged to do the same.
What has writing taught you about the world and yourself? I think one of the main lessons, and I know this is a cliche--in fact I know my daughter's teacher has this on the wall in their classroom--is to be myself, because everyone else is already taken. I can compare myself to other writers all day long and be too afraid to get a sentence down, or I can acknowledge that my style is not for everyone and just go with what feels authentic to my soul. One guiding principle I have--and this works well because I am an avid reader--is to write what I would want to read, which may not exist yet. So I think as I lean into my individual creativity, and those sparks of interest which only my mind can join together, that's a sign of success. And then taking it further, I can appreciate that in other writers, musicians, photographers, etc. It's true that each of us has something unique to offer.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers? I think it's the same advice I may have for someone who wants to learn an instrument or any other skill--just do it! You have to practice. And you have to have that experience where you read something you wrote and think it's amazing, and you have to experience that feeling of failure to capture exactly what you wanted. And then, you have to have that experience of revisiting work you did three years ago and realizing that you have gotten better--that you have learned how to express your thoughts more skillfully, more delicately, more concisely, whatever you are aiming for. Because when you have that experience, you'll trust the process and know you're going to get better and better.
Keeley is the mother of three children, partner to Jason, and a lover of cats, babies, naps, and baked goods. She enjoys playing music, especially with others, and writing, especially so she can share it with people in her life.
Contact: moonmusedoula.com
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