Creator's Conversations with Anna Saunders

Hey book lover! Today we will be talking with Anna Saunders - the founder of Cheltenham Poetry Festival. She is the author of six poetry books and her latest poetry book Feverfew was released on 4th January 2021. I didn't invite her just because she is a writer or a poet. I invited her because she is also a very good reader- a pure bibliophile. I hope you will enjoy the conversation between two readers.

Kangkan: The number of books written by you clearly says how much you are passionate about writing. What is the inspiration behind this?
Anna: I worked for a publisher and he said I had ink in my veins rather than blood. My family are all writers, my parents were journalists, novelists, poets - and I grew up in a house full of books surrounded by passionate bibliophiles. I learnt early that literature could affect wonders - it could enchant and intoxicate, take the reader to other worlds, and I soon developed an appetite to consume it in large amounts and then to write it.
I wrote my first poem at the age of eight and was hooked. I loved the way you could capture the moment and keep it, as you would within a photograph. As I grew up I turned to write prose and drafted a few novels. I then returned to poetry in my twenties and thirties but I was working quite long hours and wasn’t able to devote enough time to it. I kept files and files of poems but it wasn’t until I took an MA in Creative and Critical Writing, under the wonderful Prof Nigel Mcloughlin, that my work really started to shape. Whilst doing the course I had my first book Communion (Wild Conversations Press) published. That was to be the first of six books, the latest being Feverfew (Indigo Dreams),

Kangkan: 2020 was a curse for our world. On the other hand, it also offered ample time to those booklovers who could not read because of their tight schedules. What is the most amazing book you read in 2020?
Anna: I was lucky enough to find more time to read through 2020, and now 2021 - I read quite a lot of poetry so it is hard to single out one book - but highlights include How to Carry Fire (Christine Thatcher),The Impact Of Limited Time ( Kitty Donnelly), A translation of Euripides by Robin Robertson and Owl Unbound by Zoe Brooks.

Kangkan: I have read a few poems of your latest poetry book Feverfew. They sound very bold and confessional. What Feverfew is offering to the reader from your point of view? I also noticed in the content list that the poetries were divided into six sections. What does that symbolise?
Anna: Feverfew offers readers a sense of solidarity. We all suffer heartache, grief, joy - and by reading other writer’s accounts of these conditions we sense that we are not alone.
When I say ‘ surely these white stars will heal’ in the title poem, I am not just talking about the healing properties of the plant - but of poetry itself. Helen Ivory described it as ‘ extremely good medicine’ and I hope the book will offer some solace.
Feverfew contains some confessional poems but also explores politics, climate change, philosophy, psychoanalysis in a way that I hope is engaging and inspires thought and contains a rich lyricism, a consistent musicality.

Kangkan: The readers of kmgreads would love to know about Cheltenham Poetry Festival.
Anna: Cheltenham Poetry Festival was launched in 2010 and it is a yearly feast of wordy happenings.
I launched the Festival in 2011 and it kicked off with a sell-out performance by iconic punk poet John Cooper Clarke at Cheltenham Town Hall. It has since gone from strength to strength.
In the last ten years, the Festival has offered events featuring our greatest living poets, spoken word artists, musicians, actors, dancers, writers and filmmakers.
We also offer an extensive outreach programme for those who suffer economic, physical and other barriers to cultural inclusion.

Kangkan: What are you currently working on?
Anna: I am currently working on my seventh book - All the Fallen Gold.

Kangkan: Now I am going to ask you three questions which are popular among the readers of "kmgreads". I ask these three questions to all the guests of Creator's Conversations.

1. Nikita Gill, a famous poet on social media once said in an interview, "Eight billion people are living their life in eight billion ways."- what is your way of living life?
Anna: Poetry has given me a way of living that affords pleasure with no side effects! I spend my days working as a mentor, a festival director, a poet and a teacher. It is a very giving artform.

2. Tell us a secret of your life that you have not shared with anybody.
Anna:

3.There are so many readers of my blog who want to become full-time writers. What will be your message to them?
Anna: If you are talking about writing poetry then I would suggest- write and read. Then read some more. Consuming poetry is essential for anyone who wants to write well. Don’t be too self-critical either, it can stop you in your tracks. Find workshops and groups and try to meet other writers, at least online, being part of a community can be very inspiring.

Kangkan: Thank you for your time, Anna. I hope you will come again and then we will chat more. This interview is just the icebreaker. Haha! All the best.

This Creator's Conversations is a part of the Feverfew Blog Tour hosted by Isabelle Kenyon. I hope you got something to cherish your life from our conversations. If you want to know more about Anna, you can visit her blog. You can also follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Go and buy a copy of Feverfew if you want to explore her thoughts. Don't forget to share this interview with your friends, foes and family. Keep reading, keep smiling. Bye!

Listen to this interview: