CREATIVE WRITE-IT
  • About
    • Our Mission & Philosophy
    • Our People
    • FAQs
  • Programs
    • After School Programs
    • Creative Holidays
    • In-School Programs
  • Books
  • Blog
  • Online Studio
  • say hello

A Miscellany of Writ Bits & Bobs!

"stretchING poeticisms into paragraphS" - INTERVIEW WITH GUEST POET RYAN PREHN

7/11/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture

As part of NAIDOC Week 2020, we're celebrating books and words by indigenous writers. We were lucky enough to sit down (online) with Worimi poet Ryan Prehn, who spoke to us about discovering how poetry gives him a structure to express himself.
You are a man of many author bios! Can you write one for us to introduce yourself?
With pleasure! My name is Ryan Prehn. I am a writer that writes and a poet that, uh, poets. I am a proud Worimi Aboriginal living on Wurundjeri Country, but I grew up on palawa Country (Tasmania). 
Some of my works have appeared in print or online for Cordite, Australian Poetry Journal, Red Room Poetry, Overland, Plumwood Mountain Journal and Guwayu: for all times (anthology).

What do the words ‘connection’ and ‘story’ mean to you?
Most words have multiple definitions and almost endless meanings. ‘Connection’ to me is any single thread that runs between two junctions (like a spiderweb; or the imagined lines between plots of stars in the night sky, making constellations). Some connections are known of and might be very important. Others, though, are undiscovered, and the fun here is in finding or making them yourself. ‘Story’, then, is the weave you make as you plot the stars. You can start a story nowhere and with nothing, and as long as you don’t let go of the person you are telling your story to, you can take them anywhere and show them everything.

What have you learnt about yourself as a writer? 
I actually always find writing difficult. For a long time, I thought I was just a lazy creative, but as the years have passed, I have recognised a couple of things about myself as a writer:
  1. For me, inspiration is everything. I thrive when inspired because my focus hones onto one thing. The noise of an impossible number of ideas, and the variance of each, tunes out and a single, bright hum consumes my senses. And inspiration does not just magically strike us, we have to seek it out. It is a different kind of work.
  2. I work better with structure and pressure. Hard deadlines, expectations and obligations are often the only things that get me to the finish line. And to be completely candid, I will always get the job done if there’s money in it for me. An artist’s gotta eat, too.

What led you to poetry as your chosen form of storytelling?
It took me a decade of writing prose and avoiding poetry to realise I was a poet trying to stretch his poeticisms into paragraphs. Having not read much poetry that spoke to me, I had a somewhat limited view of what poetry was and could be. I dabbled in songwriting as a teenager but never thought of this as poetry. 
About five years ago, Lionel Fogarty gave a lecture and a reading that I attended at the University of Melbourne, which completely smashed the lens through which I viewed poetry. Shortly after, a friend lent me a copy of ‘A Coney Island of the Mind’ by Lawrence Ferlinghetti. I was intoxicated by the newly discovered possibilities in which dense meaning could be prescribed by only a few words. 
I haven’t given up on prose, but I can’t seem to step away from poetry even when I try.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
How can you choose just one! This itself is a great trial. Ethical dilemmas always arise in this question, so just this once let’s no worry about ethics! 
I would choose the power of persuasion. It is no secret that there are many factors threatening our continued existence on planet Earth. With the power of persuasion, I would push the leaders of all nations to curb global warming, stop the persecution of all peoples and their cultures, halt the destruction of precious ecosystems, and make ice cream free.

Do you have any advice for young, aspiring writers?
Never stop writing and never stop reading. Don’t be afraid to share your work and ask for feedback, but in the end, you are the weaver, and you decide which dream is best and why.
Sometimes I find it helpful to imagine the person I am writing for. This can be a real person, or an amalgamation of many different people. It helps to get out of your own head for a little bit and see what you have written from a different perspective. 
And lastly, never be afraid to be unorthodox: it is a powerful thing, to see the line, step over it, and fall into a world of endless potential.

Read some of Ryan's award-winning poetry here. Or visit this link to discover NAIDOC celebrations near you!

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Creative Write-it

    Where young writers (and some older ones) write.


    Archives

    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    July 2019
    May 2019
    December 2017
    September 2017
    June 2017
    March 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014

    Categories

    All
    Author Interviews
    Competitions
    Kids Writing
    News
    Poems
    Procedural Writing
    Publishing
    Reflective Writing
    Short Stories
    Songs
    Workshop Leaders
    Writing Advice
    Writing Prompts

    RSS Feed

Picture
Creative Write-it is dedicated to inspiring, encouraging, and empowering young writers. Read more
Helpful Links
Find an After-School Program
Browse School Holiday Programs
Ask about an In-school Program
​Contact us
Stay in Touch

Sign up for news, writing tips, upcoming programs, and more!

* indicates required

© 2020 Creative Write-it |  ACN 604 374 629 |  Based in Balwyn North VIC 3104 Australia.

Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Contact Us


We acknowledge that we live, write, and share stories on the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nations, the original storytellers of our country.

We vow to use our creative power to contribute to the land that has given us the freedom to imagine, dream, listen, and write a better collective future.

We pay our deep respects to elders past, present and emerging. 



  • About
    • Our Mission & Philosophy
    • Our People
    • FAQs
  • Programs
    • After School Programs
    • Creative Holidays
    • In-School Programs
  • Books
  • Blog
  • Online Studio
  • say hello