And this is my first question to her, which is, Mariela, this is your debut poetry book and you've already received praise from poet laureate Juan Ferda and have been invited to some major literary conferences. You've had really great feedback so far. While why do you think this debut book is having such an impact on people?
My Dearest April, thank you so much for the invitation and your lifelong friendship. You mean so much to Me. It makes me so sad to think that there is such a thing as people celebrating anything other than Love, which is precisely why I wrote the book and why I feel like Orange Line to Tennessee is is really connecting with folks. My poems are playful and they're accessible in that they're not complicated
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 2:09
I worked in the book industry for a hot minute, and I know that people look at someone like you and seeing this book and the recognition that you've gotten as like, an overnight success and really some of the things that you've accomplished have even surprised me. But I want people listening to know, like, how long did it really take for you to compile these poems and the photographs? And how long did it take you to put it together? And what was your publishing process like?
And they, in the 70s, started a publishing company to promote Mexican American writers, primarily women, although it's interesting, it's mostly the men that rose to the top, although I have to say it's impressive. They were the first to publish. Former poet laureate Juan felipe, former poet laureate of Texas garment, the foia, another well known writer who unfortunately passed way too young, but Michelle seos How to Be a chicano Role Model. It's one of my favorite books
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 1:11
It's so funny when I think about your parents and just what an impact they've had on the literary world for Hispanic, Latino, Chicano authors, because they were just your parents to me, like my neighbors next door for so many years, and you were just my best friend. See, and we don't think about the impact that we're all having in the world as we're living it
So asking me if I have a favorite poem is like asking me which of my children are my favorite. And to be honest, I picked them all because I love them all. But I do currently have a favorite, and it's based off of a series of poetry readings, readings that I have done lately and how people respond to the poems. And this one just seems to be very powerful and it connects with folks in a way that I think in a deeper way than most of the others
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 2:58
And if you're listening to this and there's somebody out there that you're still in love with, like, what are you waiting for? There's no shame in that game. It's not okay to stalk or be inappropriate, but I think there's a respectful way to reach out and just say, hey, you're on my mind. And I think An Inconvenient Truth is a great poem to send to so many people. But anyway, I have a couple of questions
So, yeah, sometimes I tell people partners that I've written poems for about their poems, and sometimes I don't. I primarily write for myself, but I think I've also written poems for my dad, for instance, that I've shared with him because I wanted him to hear how I feel and how much I appreciate him while he's still alive. I didn't want this to be something that was just shared at his funeral, but he never got to hear
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 1:04
And just for the record, I posted the picture from inside at least one poem that I know that's about him. In this Answering the mystery for many people I know, there have been people wondering about who you've were for many years and you stayed quiet, which I think is nice, but I think he recently maybe wrote about you or said something about you or something. Here you go. Your preview and news. Breaking information for the world
His name is Richard Brodigan and he says all girls should have a poem written for them, even if we have to turn this g****** world upside down to do it. So, yeah, I'd say I did my fair share. And as far as poems in the book for Rivers, he has two. One of them is called backwards flowing rivers. I think that title kind of speaks for itself. And the other one is called Fortune Cookie
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 0:34
So his is not the inspiration for the title of the book and the poem that is also called Orange Line to Tennessee. So can you share the meaning and inspiration for the title of the book and that same poem that's inside the book and how you chose which poems would make it in and which ones didn't? And you have so many beautiful photos. I mean, your Instagram is full of them. How did you choose the poems and how did you choose the title?
And so in any case, for me, it's about that potential. It's about the possibilities that exist. And I hope other people will come to see it in the same way. And as far as how it became the title, well, I have to give credit to my fantastic editor, who happens to be my father. And I just have to say how blessed I am to have come full circle and to have had this opportunity to work with him once again
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 1:02
Unless we were listening to this, or if somebody interviewed you and how did you design the COVID If you did? Did you design this cover and where did you print? How was that process for you?
Oh, my content is important to me. And so I obviously wanted to have really well written poems and poems that I felt that connected with folks. And so I had way more poems and went into the book and I had my dad edit them and we chose the strongest ones. But the look and the feel of the book was just as important to me because of my background in graphic design and in working for my dad's publishing company at such a young age
April Powers
@AprilPowers · 0:52
And I love you, and that's such a great way to end it. I just have two more questions for you, and I want to leave it open to other people to ask you more questions at the end. But I love that you have poems in different languages, that you translated at least one of the poems into English and French. And as a Polyglot myself, it's really fun to bounce around and see words in different languages expressed through your poetry
I think it's so important. It's just another form or way of connecting with people in the world. And I think that whenever you can speak to someone else in their language, it just creates a more richer experience and a greater connection. And for me, it's just another form of showing love in the world. And so I'm grateful that there are folks who are reading their languages in my book, in my poems, and connecting with the work that way