KARAN

Bethany, thank you for these wonderful, captivating poems. I was immediately taken by your personification of Storm, giving it agency and character throughout the series, making it an extended metaphor. In “Storm is Misunderstood,” you write, “Storm mouths oceans, swishes them between its teeth, / spits them sideways.” Such a powerful and dynamic presence! Let’s begin with a process question. How do you begin, write, and finish a poem? Do you start from personal experience, an observation, a line or an image? Do you have a writing routine? And, most importantly, why do you write poetry?

BETHANY

Thank you, Karan! It’s an honor to be published by ONLY POEMS. I’d like to answer your last question first: why do I write poetry? I write to make sense of the world and my place in it. The impulse to write began when I was a shy little girl. Writing helped me find my voice and allowed me to say the things I was too afraid to speak. I’m especially drawn to poetry because of the intensity of the language and emotion, and the elements of discovery and surprise. Entering a poem feels like entering a new world. I love getting swept away and not knowing where I’ll end up. 

How do I start a poem? It depends. Sometimes, there’s something that happened to me, and I want to work out how I feel and what I think about it. Sometimes, I’m struck by an image and I start with describing that and see what metaphor springs from it. Sometimes, I start with an idea of something I want to explore or as a challenge to myself to try something new. In general, I try to just write a good first line then let the ball roll wherever it wants to go. I often have several “false starts” before I find something that feels like it’s going somewhere. Once I feel that creative spark, I just follow that. My editing process involves getting feedback from trusted poet friends in a couple different poetry groups that I participate in. There’s this myth of the lone writer, but I believe poetry is best practiced in community.

KARAN

I’m fascinated by how this series of poems works together to create a larger narrative about Storm. Could you walk us through your process of conceptualizing and crafting this as a series? Was it a deliberate choice from the outset, or did it evolve organically as you wrote? How do you feel the series format allowed you to explore the character/idea of Storm in ways that a single poem might not? Is this going to be a collection? 

BETHANY

I read Emma Bolden’s poetry collection House Is an Enigma, which portrays the speaker’s struggle with severe endometriosis. I was struck by how the poet used “house” to represent the speaker’s body, yet it became something more than just a metaphor, almost a character.  

I wanted to attempt something like this using Storm to represent my anxiety disorder. I wanted this character to take on its own life, a life that is beyond the metaphor. With each poem I wrote, I learned more about Storm and in a way, more about myself. 

This series of poems is part of a manuscript that I’m working on that is about anxiety, weather, and prayer. The Storm poems are weaved throughout the collection, as an on-going thread. 

KARAN

Your titles in this series are particularly striking, each one setting up a different scenario for Storm. How do you approach titling your poems? Do the titles come to you before, during, or after the writing process? What do you aim to achieve with your titles, especially in a series like this?

BETHANY

I’d say 90% of the time, the title is the first thing I write. The title is prime real estate. It’s the first thing that a reader will see, so it should grab their attention. For this series, the titles set up the situation of each poem. Coming up with the titles was like giving myself a writing prompt. I’d sit down and think What situation should I put Storm in?  I’d come up with that situation as the title, then write the poem based on that.

KARAN

In “Storm Writes a Novel,” you take an unexpected turn by having Storm create a story about a parrot named Crackers. This meta-narrative approach is both playful and poignant. How do you balance humor and seriousness in your poetry? Do you find that this balance allows you to explore deeper themes in a more accessible way?

BETHANY

I’m so glad that the humor is coming through! I don’t think of myself as a naturally funny person. I can’t say that I purposely sit down to write a funny poem. Rather, I just start somewhere and see what will come of it if I allow my brain to go wherever it wants to go. I try to get to a flow state that allows my creative right brain to speak and the subconscious connections to surface. 

KARAN

There’s a sense of both power and vulnerability running through these poems. In “Storm Arrives at My House,” you write, “I lie down, spread my arms, embrace storm / like a lover I once lost to a gust.” How do you approach writing about the duality of nature — its beauty and its potential for destruction? Does poetry serve as a way to process our complex relationship with the natural world? What is your relationship with nature?

BETHANY

For me, nature is a source of both wonder & fear. This two-headed feeling extends into other areas/topics for me as well: motherhood, friendships, religion & spirituality, life/death. Many of my poems explore and wrestle with this duality. I don’t have an “approach,” so much as an obsession. It’s what keeps me up at night, you know? The thing that I can’t stop thinking or writing about. Nature is just one of the realms where this plays out. 

KARAN

There’s a school of poetry that believes a poem or a poet can categorize their work in one of these four ways: poetry of the body, poetry of the mind, poetry of the heart, poetry of the soul. Where would you place your work within this framework, if at all? And do you see yourself moving in a particular direction with your poetry?

BETHANY

I don’t think humans (or our poetry) can be separated like that. We are mind, body, soul, and spirit. I strive to bring all of myself to my poetry. Over the course of my lifetime, I hope to explore many elements and angles of what it means to be human. 

KARAN

As an Appalachian writer, how does your regional identity inform your poetry? Do you find that the landscape and culture of Appalachia influence your themes or imagery? 

BETHANY

I now live near Pittsburgh, PA which is Appalachia, although certainly more urban. I was born & raised in West Virginia, the heart of rural Appalachia. My great grandpas were coal miners. My grandpas were a factory worker and a carpenter. I come from a line of hard-working, Bible-believing folks. The mountains themselves, the creeks and the critters, they all show up in my poetry. As well as the destruction of nature, the mining and fracking and polluted drinking water. The sense of belonging somewhere, to a people, even after I’d left home. A deep spirituality and religiosity. The culture, a rich history of storytelling and folk music and pepperoni rolls and moonshine. The friendly & hard-working people. The unsafe working conditions and oppression that has often been experienced by the people living here. All these things influence my poetics. 

KARAN

What is some of the best writing or writing-adjacent advice you’ve received, whether during your formal education or through your experiences as a writer? And what is some advice you’d offer other young writers?

BETHANY

The best piece of advice I was given is don’t wait for inspiration to write. Create a regular writing practice. Show up even when you feel like you have nothing to say. I’ve found that journaling every day is a great exercise against writer’s block. It’s impossible to have nothing to write, because you can always write “I have nothing to write.” 

My advice is to do the best you can with what you have. I don’t have an MFA. I don’t have a lot of money or a lot of time. I’m a busy mom with two preschoolers. What I do have is access to thousands of books (through my local library system), a community of other poets, and a few hours each week to commit to practicing poetry. I use these to the best of my ability to continue to pursue excellence. 

My second piece of advice is to be a life-long student of writing. We all have more to learn. Never stop reading craft books, taking classes, trying new things, pushing yourself to learn or try something new.