Jasminum McMullen is the two time champion of Berwyn
Public Library's series Poetry Idol. She has participated in poetry reads at
such places as The Show n Tell in Berwyn, IL, A Touch of The Past in Bellwood,
IL, The Blue Note Jazz Club in Maywood, IL, Cafe Ballou and Genesis on the Ave
in Chicago, IL. She is an avid listener of music more specifically independent
hip hop from her hometown of Oak Park, IL. She has appeared on Chicago femcee
Trinity's 2011 mix tape The Valley and the upcoming May 2012 release of The
City is Ours. Jasminum released a recording project titled The Reunification of
Destiny in the fall of 2011 to hand to hand sales at Ain't She Sweet Café, in Chicago’s
Bronzeville neighborhood where her poems were featured. Jasminum received her
first publishing from CJ Laity's chicagopoety.com
CRAM series and her work can be found in volumes 11 and 13. On May 7, 2012
Jasminum released her first collection of poetry to the public via CreateSpace
and Amazon.com channels titled In My Write Mind. The poet is sitting
down to answer some questions in an intimate interview she is conducting with
herself about poetry and the self publishing process.
In
My Write Mind has a wealth of content that you cover quite
well. I see poems about writing poetry in The
Reunification Of Destiny, poems on loneliness in The Island, poems on societal issues in 911 and Occupy, there’s
dedication pieces like In My Mother’s
Room and your belief in God in Testimony
just to name a few. Was that your intent?
Yes,
The poems have evolved over time and I see my own growth in the work. The
various topics were intentional because when I think of In My Write Mind I
think in terms of how thoughts randomly affect our minds daily.
It seems you organized the work in categories as well.
Yes,
I spent a couple days organizing the entire manuscript and slowly pulled the
ones away that did not fit until I had the final then I went on to putting
things in order of feeling. I feel the reader will move from one emotion to the
next and feel the journey once they have read In My Write Mind in its entirety.
There are 54 poems written for In My Write Mind. How long does it take to write 54 poems?
Ha!
I didn’t know I even had enough poetry written at the beginning of this project
to finalize a book with 54 poems. I have been writing these poems since 2010.
When your poetry journey began?
Yes.
I love the cover of In
My Write Mind! I interpret it differently every time I look at it. Did you
create this image on your own or did you commission an artist?
Oh
no, I cannot take credit for the cover. The cover art was provided by Vicky
Almanza.
Have you worked with Vicky Almanza on any other projects?
No,
actually we are working together for the first time. My partner LaToya put us
together. I gave Vicky a copy of my cd The Reunification Of Destiny and at
first I had some ideas then I just decided that it would be best if Vicky
interpreted the cover in her own way. I am very happy with the results and hope
to work with her in the future.
When you sit down to write, where do you draw your
inspiration from?
I
usually do my best not to force myself to write, I produce some of the worst
writing when I force myself. I draw my inspiration from every person, place or
thing I encounter. I am a feeler. I don’t sit down to write. Writing sits me
down and then poetry happens.
In For Poems
Preparing To Leave The Nest, the first poem listed in In My Write Mind; it reads with a cautionary tone, was that your
aim?
That
poem was the last poem I wrote for In My Write Mind. It came to me one day at
work. I was feeling a little anxious about putting my work out into the world
for all to see. I wrote that poem to address my feelings and to encourage
myself. It seemed appropriate to make the last poem the first poem it just
seemed to fit.
Describe your experience with the self-publishing
process. Would you recommend self-publishing? Would you consider
self-publishing again?
When
I first set out to do a self-published project I felt it would be a breeze as
long as I had the content. I was incorrect. If a person is experienced in
self-publishing then it would be easy to navigate the process. I found that
formatting to meet the specifications of CreateSpace was the most cumbersome
process. I felt like I was in a dark room with a lighter trying to avoid
furniture.
Well the finished work that is In My Write Mind is telling the world you found your way around.
Yes
and when I made it to the wall I turned on the light switch.
(laughs)
On what channels can we find your book?
In
My Write Mind is available through the E-store CreateSpace provides www.createspace.com/3834640 and also Amazon.com for $7.00 USD.
Will the book be made available for Kindle or Nook?
It
is the new thing right? Well, I’m an independent artist that is open to the
possibility however it will depend on how people respond to this project
otherwise it would not be worth the investment.
What’s next on your to do list?
To
get In My Write Mind in as many hands as possible. I’m looking forward to
getting back to basics by returning to open mics around the city. I’d like to
become more of a performer and Chicago has a lot of talented artists that I can
learn from.
Well you certainly have the skill of writing poetry and I
look forward to watching you evolve as a complete artist. Good luck to you and
the In My Write Mind project!
Thank
you so much.
