Saturday Spotlight- Rhian Williams

I hope everyone had a nice weekend last week. This week's spotlight feature is a bit different so I am super excited about sharing it with you. This week's Indie Author is Rhian Williams and she writes poetry. I was only 14 when my first poems were published so poetry has always held a special place in my heart. Rhi has a unique style of writing that comes straight from the heart. Here is a sample of one of her poems from her blog.  You can read more of Rhi's writing, photography, and poetry over at her blog, Bits and Bobs. 

She looked, sighed, dropped to her knees,
she waited, teased, kissing her hips,
the agony achieved in hesitation
from one woman to another
anticipation over skin and smiles.

Just wait, one more moment for her,
touching from heart to hips,
with swift, soft, fingertips,

Here's my Q & A with Rhi:

1. How long have you been writing poetry?

I wrote my first poem at 17, and I remember it pretty clearly, even if I don't actually have it. It was pretty awful, and after that, most of my poetry was cathartic, and out pouring of everything bad and terrible I felt, none of the good. I think this is something every poet has to go through, if not every writer, it's important to get everything out so you can grow and learn and find your style. I think I managed to get it all out by time I was 24, not that I don't write plenty of cathartic poetry, or poetry about the bad and terrible things in my life (or the world), but I can write in a way that is more accessible to the reader.

2. Do you feel promoting a collection of poetry is harder than a novel and do you have to do anything different from promoting a novel or is it the same?

It's definitely harder, but that's just the nature of poetry. Even if it were published by the big poetry publisher Farber and Farber it would be hard. Poetry is a niche market and then some, most bookshops here have one shelf for poetry and that's it. It's a bit like the forgotten sibling, overshadowed by Harry Potter and Dan Brown, even though it's older. More and more people may write it, but I see that as inevitable with the population increase of the world, and technology. So I've got a bit of a challenge ahead of me, and I'm not entirely sure of all the details to be honest, but it can't be any harder than therapy.

3. What types of poetry do you prefer to write?

 

I prefer to write freeverse poetry, poems with their own rhythm and rhyme scheme (if they rhyme at all), but I have experimented with different forms, difficult forms, like sonnets, sestinas and villanelles, but I always return to freeverse. As for subject, I tend to go through phases; I write about anything and everything, but I'll have periods of time where I will stick to a certain subject, a certain person or event.

4. What is your current WIP?

At the moment, I'm working on putting together another collection of poetry, as it turns out, over the years I've got a lot of poetry that's just sitting in a few disorganised folders on my computer. I'm also trying to finish my first novel, which I'm half way through or so, but it takes me a long time to do anything, so it'll be my work in progress for a while longer yet. Along with another four half started novels, a couple of half finished short stories, and some other bits and bobs, I always have something on the go, something to work on. To top it off, I will be going back to university in September to do a degree in English Lit. and Creative Writing.

 

You can purchase Rhi's book "I Love You like a Madman" in both print and ebook formats.

Ebook available at: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/55547

Paperback available at: https://www.createspace.com/3600315

 

 

 

Connect with Rhi:

site - http://scruffy-duck.net
twitter - http://twitter.com/anxiousgeek
facebook - https://www.facebook.com/people/Rhi-Williams/845245075

You can find past Saturday Spotlight features on my Writer Spotlight Page. Next week's featured Indie author is Cheryl Shireman.