Jordan Williamson is a father and poet from London, Ontario. His work has been featured in The Temz Review, Tilted House and “Stones Beneath the Surface” a poetry anthology from Black Mallard Poetry.
Read his poem Anthology in the January 2024 issue.
Would you like to tell us a little bit more about your poem? For instance, how or why you wrote it, or perhaps provide some extra context?
Firstly, thank you to Erin and Pinhole for the work you do producing this publication and interview series. A big congratulations on the recent chapbook releases. (editor’s note: Thanks a million Jordan!!)
“Anthology” was written as a reminder that life, however absurd, is also worthwhile. Your being here is inherently valuable. The piece explores the concept of poetry as grounding technique. In times of crises, panic, overwhelming inertia, to focus one’s attention on the body, its surroundings, and list the world as a means of affirming it. A simple request, for the reader to do whatever necessary to keep their skin in the game. If you need to, lean into me, lean into this poem if it helps.
How do you revise your work?
Very little revision for this poem in particular, which is a departure from my usual process. Poems that centre around aesthetic, lyric, concepts or narratives that aren’t derived expressly from lived experience tend to require more editing on my part. This was not the case for “Anthology”. It possesses a directness of language and form to avoid watering down the message or alienating the reader. Editing took minutes, not hours, and was limited to word choice and the elimination of lines.
What are you working on now?
I am in the process of editing and arranging a collection that will be looking for a home in the new year. Time and luck permitting, a chapbook in 2024 should also be ready to find the right home. I also have work forthcoming in ballast.
How or where or with what does a poem begin?
I subscribe to the belief that all poems are love poems firstly, to language. If I didn’t know what poetry was I would still feel like a poet. My relationship to language, written and spoken, is where everything begins. The concept, imagery, form, the emotion of the thing; I’m here for it, love it, but an all-consuming infatuation with words is what got the motor running in the first place.
How do you make space for poetry in your daily routine?
As a working parent this is a question I am constantly asking and the answer is always changing. The best I can say is to keep engaged mentally and spiritually with poetry even when it isn’t possible or practical to put pen to paper. If you convince yourself it’s a way of being and that work is always getting done on some level, even during fallow periods, you will avoid becoming hurt by its absence. It helps that I have an amazing partner who does everything she can to make writing possible for me. I would be nothing without her.
What are you reading or watching or listening to lately that intrigues or inspires you?
It’s been a very good year for contemporary poetry and fiction. There’s been so many amazing releases it has been a challenge keeping up. A few that come to mind are “Long Exposure” by Julia Anna Morrison, “I Do Everything I’m Told” by Megan Fernandes, Richie Hofmann’s “A Hundred Lovers” and really anything by Camonghne Felix. I pretty much tore through Ross Gay’s entire catalogue this year and was stunned by the quality of work being produced by fellow Canadian writers and poets like Fawn Parker, Annick MacAskill, Frances Boyle and Will Manning to name a few. Kirby’s “Poetry is Queer” was a revelation and I’m anticipating Amanda Merpaw’s “Most of All the Wanting” coming out May 2024 will be a read through. It’s a good time to be a person who reads.
Do you belong to a writer’s group? If not, where do you find poetry community and feedback?
Being from London Ontario, Black Mallard Poetry Reading Series has been an excellent addition to the community. Andreas Gripp and Carrie Lee Connel are so nice and supportive. We are lucky to have them.