Too often, there desperation to rewrite and wonder again and again keeps writers returning to the page. James Penha's poem, "In Due Course," explores this notion, and is now available to read in the print collective! Until then, I'm excited to chat about James's pages penned in pandemic.
What does the pandemic currently look like in your city?
Somewhere between normal and new-normal.
What are some favorite books you've read during quarantine?
Summer by Ali Smith. Madness by Sam Sax. The Lying Lives of Adults by Elena Ferrante. Stranger by Night by Edward Hirsch. Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jodrowski. Real Life by Brandon Taylor. What Is the Grass by Mark Doty. The Night Watchman by Louise Erdich.
Have there been any movies, tv shows, podcasts, etc. that have helped keep you at ease the past few months?
“Haute Dog.” “The Voice.” Live concerts. Live tennis.
How has the pandemic affected your writing?
I find myself unable to complete poems and stories for long periods and then whoosh! everything seems to come together. Repeat.
Are there any projects you are excited to keep working on? If so, can you give us any details (no spoilers please!) about your project?
I am developing a queer adaptation of a section of Aeneid.
If asked ten years from now what the past few months have taught you about being a writer, what would come to mind?
Thank God it's a lonely profession.
Have there been any fellow writers or people in your life who have helped you stay connected during the pandemic?
I edit The New Verse News. My relationship with the hundreds of writers who contribute to the journal are my writing life's blood.
Are you a plotter, pantser, or somewhere in between? Has this changed during the pandemic?
I'm no plotter. What's a pantser?
Where is your favorite place to write? Has this changed during the pandemic?
Same old MacBook.
If you curated a playlist for writing life in the pandemic, what top 5 songs would be on your list?
All Sondheim playlist:
1.) No One Is Alone
2.) Not While I'm Around
3.) Being Alive
4.) Not a Day Goes By
5.) Finishing the Hat
Without too many spoilers, what is your favorite poem(s) you've written since the pandemic began?
My favorite poems are those having nothing to do with the pandemic; they are recollections of happier times.
While the future is just as unknowable as ever, what is something you are most looking forward to this year?
A new president.
Is there any advice you would give to young writers during this time?
Just because the pandemic absorbs you, remember that you have, as well, other times in your life about which you can write.
ABOUT James Penha
A native New Yorker, James Penha has lived for the past quarter-century in Indonesia. Nominated for Pushcart Prizes in fiction and poetry, his work has lately appeared in several anthologies: The Impossible Beast: Queer Erotic Poems (Damaged Goods Press), The View From Olympia (Half Moon Books, UK), Queers Who Don’t Quit (Queer Pack, EU), What We Talk About It When We Talk About It, (Darkhouse Books), Headcase, (Oxford UP), Lovejets (Squares and Rebels), and What Remains (Gelles-Cole). His essays have appeared in The New York Daily News and The New York Times. Penha edits The New Verse News, an online journal of current-events poetry.
To learn more, follow James and his writing journey at his website and on Twitter.
Thanks for chatting, James!
