Ask the Author: Tanya Manning-Yarde
Answered Questions (6)
Tanya Manning-Yarde
WOW! It evolved out of a challenge from my best friend. Carla, a teacher, author of several books of poetry and lifelong friend, was pivotal to this book coming to fruition. For years, we have been for one another a sounding board and editor. Last year (2017) she posed the idea of us doing a poetry reading and book signing together, but the catch was that I first publish a book of poetry. She has a way of pressing me that makes me grow, and her words did just that. That's how the manuscript, after many years of rewriting, came to fruition. She was essential in helping it incubate and be born. Another friend, Fisiwe, read the manuscript and helped me order the poems. She pulled the words "Every Watering Word" from a poem in the manuscript, and said that it should be the title. And so it is.
Tanya Manning-Yarde
I am inspired by a variety of things. Some poems I write are "journalistic," meaning poems that are based on events in the news. Inspiration also comes from conversations I have with others which then spawn new ideas to investigate. Inspiration also comes from tunneling through old journals and drafts that I have kept for decades, using them as fodder for new writings.
Tanya Manning-Yarde
I am working on another collection of poetry as well as essays/blogs about homeschooling and literacy development.
Tanya Manning-Yarde
To read a variety of texts/genres, not only the ones you prefer. To experiment in writing different texts/genres. It builds dexterity and minimizes stagnation.
Tanya Manning-Yarde
Having an ability to translate what is in the "ether" into reality, to be a conduit that takes life experiences, ideas and issues and spool them into poems and essays, mirrors that others can see themselves.
Tanya Manning-Yarde
I try to write through it, but it is a challenge. Sometimes I don't write at all, and it bottles up. Other times I just draw down and sit and write. Even if just a few words or phrases come out, that is progress. That becomes a stepping stone for more words, and from that process the journey continues. Process is product.
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