I live with Synaesthesia. Synaesthesia is a condition which causes one or more of an individual’s senses of sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell to cross, allowing one to, (in my case) hear, see and taste words, letters and numbers as colors, or hues of color. This is something I never used to speak about, not even to my closest family and friends. Once, I tried to explain my experiences with Synaesthesia to a friend in Middle School, and the look he gave me quieted me about the subject for 24 years.

 

Last year, a friend I share my work with on a regular basis asked me, “Have you ever heard of a condition known as Synaesthesia? Do you experience it?” I related to my friend that yes, I do experience this condition, and have for as long as I can remember. I went on to explain that I hear words, letters and numbers as colors or hues of colors. When I say “hear words”, I mean I actually see colors before my eyes that represent various words as I read them, or as they are spoken to me. Here are a few examples of what I experience. The letter “S” appears dark green to me, so the word “sandal”, appears as hues of green when I read, say or have it spoken to me. Longer words that contain the letter “S”, or longer words that have the “S” sound, appear as hues of dark green or brown. The word “night” appears orange before my eyes when I hear, say or read it. I also can taste some words. Salt tastes red to me, an apple taste blue, and cold. All words I read, say aloud or hear, appear as colors at the same time I hear them. I believe this is the reason why I write often. Each time it is a new experience.

 

Aurora: Take us through the process of writing a book. Do you begin with a theme, or with the intention of completing a book of verse specifically?

 

Michael: I have never set out with the intention to write a book. I do not feel myself disciplined enough to do this. I feel it would stifle my writing. Also, I detest themes in whatever gruesome form they raise their loathsome heads. When a publication opportunity arises that allows me to gather work for a book project of my own, or a collaboration, I chose the work that I feel best represents where I am in my writing at a particular time.

 

Aurora: Your latest collaboration with CE Laine is one of the smoothest and most natural collaborative efforts I have read. What were the methods the two of you used to achieve such results, and did you work separately, or consult with each other each step of the way?

 

Michael: Thank you. C.E. Laine and I work very well together, as our minimalist and image-filled styles compliment each other. I am happy that you referred to our collaboration as natural. I have dubbed my writing style Natural Bohemian Dadaism, though I generally reject schools of thought on poetry that give a particular way/style of writing a name. I believe that poetry must be free to yield truly crafted work. And thus, there were no set methods of word/verse creation we used when writing Suburban Fairy Tales of Brilliant Ash and Blue Sins. And yes, we did work separately and with little consultation, and only shared our work in progress as it developed maybe one time before it was complete, as I remember. Once we were finished, we shared our collective work fully, and things fell into place right away.

 

Aurora: You have begun illustrating some of your own work, and it’s been great seeing your work unfold as an artist. Any plans to further develop that aspect of your career(such as art shows and further book illustrations), and how did you become an artist?

 

Michael: I create artwork when it is able to reflect my poetry. My work as a poet comes first and foremost. I began drawing and painting at a young age, probably nine, out of a desperate need to create, and thought for many years that it would be my vocation later in life. I competed in several high school and tri-city art competitions during my teen years, and met much success. Though around the age of nineteen, I realized that I was creating art only to please others. It had become something that was no longer mine, so to speak. This realization took the inspiration completely out of my art, and I gave it up for many years. About 1 1/2 years ago I began creating art again.

 

I may at some future time, again incorporate my art into a book of verse, as an extension of my poetry. At this time I have no plans to display my art in a show.

 

Aurora: How personal is your work? Is there anything you ever keep back from the reader? And, how open-ended do you believe a good poem ought to be, allowing room for personal interpretation by the reader?

 

Michael: My work is deeply personal. And no, there is nothing I hold back, though my work is written in such a way that the reader may not understand my exact meaning, and must instead make their own interpretation, or come to their own conclusion, as to the meaning of a particular piece. This is purposefully done at times, using layers of metaphor and simile. I believe a poem should be open-ended, though only when it suits the purpose of the piece. If I am writing from personal experience, which I do more often than not, I try to create scenes within a piece of poetry that allow the reader to identify with my work and its subject.

 

Aurora: You are stepping down as editor from the publication you established and successfully ran for three years, Adagio Verse Quarterly. You have also been editor of the now-defunct Dante's Bastard Son, and The Bohemian Rag. Are you taking a break to fuel your creative fires? Is running a poetry publication something that might interest you in the future?

 

Michael: Yes, I am taking a break to write more, though I believe this break from running my own magazine(s) may be a lasting one. About a year ago, I began to feel as if editing and publishing AVQ, among other magazines I have co-edited or guest edited, was beginning to change the way I felt about my work, in terms of taking the spontaneity and creativity from it. It was not long before I could plainly see that sometime in the near future, I would be unable to devote the quality time it takes to write good work; work I could be proud of. So, I decided recently that I could not let this happen, and have stepped down from my various editorships to concentrate on my poetry.

 

Aurora: You used to primarily write fiction in the beginning. Why has poetry captured your pen at the moment?

 

Michael: Actually, I am surprised that you knew I wrote fiction in the beginning, as I never wrote for publication, and it has been only very recently that any of my fiction work in the horror genre has been published. I began writing poetry out of a need to create the closest thing to art that did not require paint. I also began writing poetry after the sudden death of my youngest brother in 1997. For me, poetry is a way to say a million things in a short time, with intense image and crisp meaning. For me, fiction does not capture words that way, at least not in such a small amount of space. With poetry, I can say what I have to say, hopefully well, and move on.

 

Aurora: Are there any topics you won’t cover in your poetry? Are there any areas you feel writers just shouldn’t touch?

 

Michael: No. I can not think of one topic that I have been afraid to cover, due to the fact that I thought it was too sensitive. Life is short, and I believe that it is particularly the responsibility of the poet to present life and all its complex and startling realizations.

 

Aurora: Do you have any specific writing goals? Do you think there will ever come a time when you will push back your chair, put down your pen, and conclude that you have done all you want to do with your writing?

 

Michael: The only writing goal I have, other than to continue writing work I am happy with, is to reach as wide of an audience as possible, and share with them as many common and personal experiences as I am allowed to. No, there will never come a time when I put down my pen. To do that, would be to take away from myself the venue I use to communicate with others.

 

Aurora: We’re always hearing that poetry is dead, and that there just isn’t the interest in it that there once was, yet we still keep seeing new poets crop up with exciting work. Any comments on the future of poetry, and what we can do to ensure that there is one?

 

Michael: This is true. And no, there is not the interest in poetry that there once was. But was there really ever? For the most part, poets have written painstaking crafted work for centuries, and always for little or no money, and even smaller audiences. If we are lucky, every once in a while we get a, “Wow, I like this,” along with a look that says, “Why don’t you write fiction...?” New poets writing exciting and image-filled work keep emerging because there is a real need for poetry, and the insightfulness it brings. I believe this to be amazingly true, especially today. Just look around. Speaking for myself, when I see the daily unfolding of world events, I can often be heard mumbling from my desk, “What in the hell is going on!?” This is where the poet comes in. It is he/she that enables the world, as a whole, to realize what the results of their actions are. It is this need that ensures the fact that poetry will never die.