Sunday, July 19, 2015

"RIPTIDE" Interview



"Riptide'" explore the process and scope of chronic illness through everyday accounts, as well as traumatic episodes. This chapbook is divided into two sections. It begins with the poetry, and then moves into an essay form for the author’s statement of poetics. "Riptide" utilizes the extended metaphor of being unable to escape the clutches of a rip current, along with water imagery, to frame the narrative moments of the text. The reader undergoes a "pull from safety," while the speaker exists within the space of simply being and experiencing. Cauller achieves a gritty, raw, and real perspective on the cycle of illness and the inescapability of its grasp. 

Visit amazon.com to purchase "Riptide"

Below is an interview with Author, Renée E. Cauller:

Jasmine:    How does the sequencing of the poems reflect the speaker’s understanding/non-understanding of their condition? Do you see the speaker swimming back through the current, or remaining adrift indefinitely?

RC:    I definitely see the speaker swimming through the current and healing. Perhaps not in this piece though. Getting out of the riptide could be a whole other project in itself. The process of healing is a long one and I wanted to share the moments stuck in the current. I believe that the only way out of an issue/problem/illness or whatever is through, experiencing and feeling every moment – being present. I am still going through this, personally, and thought that it was important to remain in that space for the poem and not to conjecture unnaturally out of there. The last line ends on a positive/hopeful note – which could answer your question.
The sequencing is not linear in time. However, I do think it holds meaning. If I put a dense/heavy block of text, I like to give the reader a reprieve with a lighter poem after. There is definitely a trajectory to my piece. It is the process of working through these things. It is the cycle of progression and regression.

Kara:      If you had no illness, you do you think that would affect your writing? Do you think that the medical aspect provides you with a positive influence for your writing?

RC:          I chose to center the topic on illness for this piece. It is something that inspired me. It was something I needed to get out/express. Anything I’m working through emotionally or personally is something that fuels my writing. I don’t think a lot of the people in my life, including even my family, really don’t know what it is like to deal with these things on a day-to-day basis. Perhaps that is something that I needed to get out there – the darker moments of it all that weigh me down. I choose to center around illness in the piece. However, other pieces that I have written have nothing to do with this and include other interests and research topics. For example, I have written a chapbook titled “Dendrite” that explores development, neuroscience, astronomy, and psychology. I wouldn’t say that illness provides a “positive influence” for my writing. At times, it is quite negative due to the medicine making me quite foggy and not clear headed – which is not the ideal mindset to be writing in. However, it did give me inspiration to fuel this project.
Jason:    Your poetry is personal. To what degree, if any, do you limit how much of your personal experiences and feeling you are willing to share through your poetry?

RC:    I don’t really limit myself. My poetry has always been personal to some degree. Once I started submitting my work for contests, getting published in literary journals, and attending readings – having to read my work in front of people really shattered that potential fear of not wanting to fully reveal myself. I think some of the best work can come from emotionally charged things, and I wouldn’t want to put boundaries on that. I guess the only limit I would impose would be in the editing part of the process – cutting out text that doesn’t function effectively.

Chamara: In your poetics, you call poetry “feeling” saying that the “truth leaks through,” as inescapable process. Do you think it is always possible to convey that feeling and truth to your audience? Do you write with your audience in mind? Do you expect people to be able to feel, relate, or understand through your poetry?

RC:    I would love for my audience to be able to relate in someway. At the very least, I want my work to invoke feeling/emotion. I cannot predetermine or assure that my readers will get the same truth that I am getting from the piece. Writing is cathartic to me – and perhaps I let it out on the reader, so they may not get what I am getting from the work. But if I can invoke some type of feeling, I am satisfied. However, anyone can interpret my work however they naturally do. I don’t think there is ever one way to interpret a text – even if the writer’s intention was specific. I don’t really write with a specific audience in mind.

Brittany:   Why do you believe found language impacts individuals to the extent that it does? How can one “lose” language? What exactly do you think the difference in impact is if the reader is aware that the language is found, from where, and under what circumstances, versus leaving it unmarked?

RC:    In this draft, I actually edited out the found language. For such a personal piece, it wasn’t functioning in the right vein with the rest of the work. There got to a point in writing when it didn’t really fit anymore. Found language is tricky because it may have more of an impact on the reader if they know where it is from. If it is unmarked, the writer almost claims the language as his or her own – which can be problematic. I think found language can be quite powerful if used in certain ways, but for this piece it ended up not adding much.

Verisha:     How do you plan on creating a pull from safety within your work besides the obvious medical concerns?

RC:    By disorienting the reader and keeping them on their toes. Switching up the heavy blocks of texts, with light, flowing, minimalistic text. Reality is constantly shifting for the speaker, the medical and the sense of hope in tandem. The pull from safety you’re referring to is the extended metaphor of the riptide. But using water/ocean imagery as well as the form I mentioned, I keep the metaphor constant throughout the piece.

Brian:    Do you see a relationship between chronic illness and poetic form in your work? How would you describe it?

RC:           The sections of my poems that are heavy blocks of text set up a direct relationship between form and illness. These blocks are rushed and everything is presented all at once - overlapping and intertwining. It is overwhelming and intense. Then there is a slight reprieve: a lighter poem, in content as well as in form. This is similar to illness and the process of getting sick and getting better/progression and regression.