Mel Sherrer : coda

The forms in which I write are minimalist, and the tone sentimental. It seems necessary to me in an age of brevity to make a poem say something that affects the reader, and say it without much ado. My hope for my poems is that they turn on a dime, sucker-punch, and teleport through great distance and time in mere moments.

Mel Sherrer : part five

Why is poetry important?

Poetry is important because it is the only art from which must, by certain definitions, seek to evaluate the human condition. Poetry cannot simply narrate, fascinate, propose theory or philosophy. Poetry has to show us something about human nature that is worth keeping. I like to imagine that during the origination of language the first things we attempted as a species to say to each other were identity, but the first things we attempted to say about each other were poetry. Poetry is important by nature, because we will always need language for perceiving each other, and poetry is one of those languages.

Mel Sherrer : part four

What do you find most difficult about writing poetry?

I find the attitude surrounding writing as a career to be the most difficult aspect about writing poetry. There is a scarcity mindset (and perhaps real scarcity as well) amongst writers which makes the career climate around poetry absolutely cutthroat. There is a lot of pressure in this socio-economy to capitalize on one's writing, and that response to fine art is exhausting. It makes creation difficult. I have to put a lot of intriguing ideas away for later, simply because they may not be marketable. 

Mel Sherrer : part three

What do you feel poetry can accomplish that other forms can’t?

I love that poetry can convey a spot in time. I do not feel that any other form can better render emotion from a reader in the examination of a single moment. Also, there is a type of play poetry can accomplish that would render other forms unreadable. For me, poetry induces the most experimentation and innovation, because it allows the most play.

Mel Sherrer : part two

How does your work first enter the world? Do you have a social group or writers group that you work ideas and poems with?

My poems make it first into the world by way of readings (my favorite method), and publications. I used to have a cohort around the time I was completing my MFA, but the best and most focused work I have done on my writing has been in the years after that, working from home, in seclusion. I'm sure my friends in writing would extend feedback if I ask them for critique, but I habitually keep my writing, revision, and submission process private until a project is published.

Mel Sherrer : part one

Mel Sherrer (She/Her) is a poet and performer. She received her B.F.A. from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, and her M.F.A. from Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Mel teaches and conducts Creative Writing and Performance Literature workshops. Her work is/will be featured in Storm Cellar, Variety Pack, Platform Review, SWWIM, Interim Poetics, Santa Fe Writers Project, The Racket Journal, Limp Wrist Magazine and others. She currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada.

What are you working on?

I’m finishing up a work-in-progress chapbook, and conceptualizing a full-length manuscript. I completed two other chapbooks this year and something about the brevity and beauty of chapbooks really appeals to me, as a minimalist it just seems to fit. So, I have been predominantly working on chaps.