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Exclusive Interview: “Ædnan: An Epic” Author Linnea Axelsson

 

For people who don’t regularly read poetry, the idea of an epic poem conjures images of, well, epic stories told in verse: Beowulf, The Illiad, The Odyssey.

But Linnea Axelsson’s epic poem Ædnan: An Epic (hardcover, Kindle, audiobook) has no monsters, no warriors, nothing from the fantasy realm.

Instead, it’s a real world story with political and social ramifications that’s as relevant now as it was when it came out in her native Sweden in 2018.

With a new English language translation bringing this book to the U.S. for the first time, I was pleased to send Axelsson some questions via email for the following interview.

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Exclusive Interview: “Year’s Best Canadian Fantasy And Science Fiction: Volume One” Editor Stephen Kotowych

 

When we think about the best science fiction and fantasy, some people only think of writers from the U.S., Britain, and Japan. But despite what Disney insists, it’s a big world out there, and good writers come from all four corners of the globe.

And yes, that includes Canada.

Which brings me to the following interview with Stephen Kotowych, the editor of the new anthology Year’s Best Canadian Fantasy And Science Fiction: Volume One (paperback, Kindle), in which he explains why he assembled this collection, what the rules were, and his plans for Volume Two, Volume Three

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Exclusive Interview: “The Infinite Loop” Author Oneyda González

 

With The Infinite Loop (paperback), Cuban poet Oneyda González is presenting her poems in English translation for the first time. In the following email interview, González discusses what inspired and influenced these poems and this collection.

(Oh, and if you’d prefer to read this in González’s native Spanish, click here.)

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Exclusive Interview: “Phone Ringing In A Dark House” Author Rolly Kent

Twenty-five years after releasing Spirit, Hurry, author Rolly Kent has come back to writing poetry with Phone Ringing In A Dark House (paperback). In the following email interview, Kent talks about this new collection, what influenced these poems, and why he started writing poems again after a certain someone was elected president.

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Exclusive Interview: “Low” Author Nick Flynn

 

During the pandemic, many people used Zoom to stay connected to friends and loved ones. It’s something poet Nick Flynn did, though as he says in the following email interview about his new poetry collection Low (paperback, Kindle), he also used it to stay connected to some helpful poets.

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Exclusive Interview: “Removal Acts” Author Erin Marie Lynch

 

Congratulations are in order: Erin Marie Lynch is putting out her first book of poetry, Removal Acts (paperback, Kindle). And if the poems I’ve read online are any indication, it’s going to be a good one. To find out who and what influenced these poems, and how this book came together, please check out the following email interview.

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Exclusive Interview: “A Film In Which I Play Everyone” Author Mary Jo Bang

 

Poets influence other poets. But good poets are influenced by other things as well. Take Mary Jo Bang who, in the following email interview about her new poetry collection, A Film In Which I Play Everyone (paperback, Kindle), cites David Bowie, surrealist painter Dorothea Tanning, and even Back To The Future Part III as having an influence on these poems.

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Exclusive Interview: “New-Generation African Poets: Tisa” Editors Kwame Dawes & Chris Abani

 

For nearly 10 years, editors Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani have assembled an excellent anthology series of poetry by African writers called New-Generation African Poets. But unlike other geographically-based poetry anthologies, these don’t just present one or a couple poems by numerous poets. Instead, a handful each get their own 20 to 40 page chapbook in which to present their poetic vision. In the following email interview, Dawes and Abani discuss the newest installment, New-Generation African Poets: Tisa (boxed set).

 

Please note: All answers are from both Mr. Dawes and Mr. Abani.

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Exclusive Interview: “Bioluminescent” Editor Justine Norton-Kertson

 

Sometimes it can be difficult to keep literary subgenres straight, especially where science fiction, fantasy, and horror are concerned. Dieselpunk, grimdark, silkpunk — you practically need a dictionary to keep them all straight. Or, barring that, a really good genre-specific anthology. Which brings me to the follow email interview with Justine Norton-Kertson, the editor of Bioluminescent: A Lunarpunk Anthology (paperback, eBook), in which they not only explains what “lunarpunk” means, and how it relates to “solarpunk,” but also what went into this collection of short stories and poetry.