The Next Big Thing: Interview With Jenn Monroe

What is the working title of the book?

Something More Like Love—the e-book edition!

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I wrote almost all of the poems in this chapbook during the month of April doing the “30 poems in 30 days” challenge. Most of them were composed in my office at Chester College of New England. At the end of the month it seemed to me that they were alike enough in tone, subject, and form that they would make a solid chapbook.

What genre does your book fall under?

Poetry.

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

This is an interesting question for a collection of poetry. My poems don’t really have characters, but voices. I think Cate Blanchett would be great for all the “female/feminine” voices. And Gary Oldman for the few male/masculine voices.

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

In the same way there are no characters, there’s not a singular narrative that unites these poems, so it is difficult to think about it in those terms. Poet Barbara Louise Ungar offered this in her blurb, and I think it gets to the heart of what you’ll find: Jenn Monroe's poetry finds its wellspring in divine reality in which everything moves through and out of love. "Imagine," she playfully exhorts in the poem "Love for Oil," "a love spill" that results in "slicks of love." "Imagine the mess we'd be in then." We are in a mess--but you will feel better about it after reading this lovely chapbook: happier, calmer, and more joyful.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

For the core of it, about a month, give or take. But many of these poems are combinations of events and situations that happened years ago between people who are only memories to me now, but that I wrote about then.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My husband, my friends and my students at Chester College of New England. Everyone and everything that I sincerely loved at the time.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Some of the poems are funny. Some of them are surreal. All of them are honest. I think there’s something in there for everyone.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

It was published by Finishing Line Press in February 2012 they will offer the e-book as well.