6 Questions With she followed the moon back to herself Author Amanda Lovelace
Bestselling poetess Amanda Lovelace’s tenth poetry collection, she followed the moon back to herself, is all about reinvention—a theme showcased not only in the poems themselves, but reflected in the book’s writing process and backstory. After the success of the you are your own fairytale trilogy and the women are some kind of magic series, Lovelace needed to find a way to return to poetry that felt fresh and reinvigorating. In doing so, she wrote some of their most personal work to date.
These new ways of approaching poetry—and the confident, transformed self reflection in the collection’s pages—led Lovelace to realize she was re-becoming the self they’d been all along, before letting in outside criticisms, expectations, and pressure. After a tower moment, there’s a chance to reflect on who you are and who you want to be. Lovelace talked with readpoetry about this re-awakening, how tarot and astrology come through in her work, and her favorite writing prompt.
Kara Lewis (KL): In your author’s note for she followed the moon back to herself, you talk about how this was a transition to personal poetry after writing mostly fictional poetry for a few years prior. How are these types of writing different for you, how do you switch between them, and how does each inform the other?
Amanda Lovelace (AL): You would think that non-fiction poetry would be freeing—the ultimate artistic expression. In my experience with writing fictional and non-fictional poetry, I actually find fictional poetry writing to be both of those things and more. It’s not always easy to find the words to describe my own feelings and experiences, especially when I’m still living through them. In some cases, it doesn’t even feel safe to do so. When I get to create my own stories and characters, I can finally speak about those things in a way that does feel safe, plus I get to be creative and add my own fictional flourishes just for the hell of it.
Best of all, no one can send me a strongly worded text saying, “Hey! I didn’t say that/do that in the way you portrayed!” Because what do you mean? That wasn’t you. It was literally the Not-So-Charming Prince.
Writing she followed the moon back to herself after such a long period of writing fictional collections was actually kind of uncomfortable. It definitely took me a minute to get back into the groove of things and get used to writing as myself again. At the end of the day, though, I’m so proud of how much I pushed myself with this one. Anytime I felt that discomfort, I would sit back and tell myself, “No self-censoring. Let it all out. Worry about editing and adding in metaphors later.”
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KL: You also mention that these poems came out of National Poetry Writing Month, where you wrote a poem each day in April. How did generating poems so quickly change your writing process?
AL:When I began writing moon, I had just come out of writing my longest book to date, make your own magic, which is a non-fiction beginner’s witchcraft guide. I thought I would be exhausted; instead, I felt more inspired than ever and needed to find a way to channel it.
Writing a poem a day (sometimes more) for moon was perfect for me. I also feel like writing poems so quickly made the entire flow of the book better. I might be biased since I’m the author, but moon reads like I was finally having a breakthrough, a much-needed “aha!” moment, and you got to see it happen in real time—day-by-day, page-by-page. If I wrote the book over a longer period of time, I think that essence would have been lost somewhere along the way. I’m glad it all worked out!
KL: Many poems in this collection reference a “tower moment,” or a big crisis and turning point. What is your approach to turning emotional upheaval into poetry?
AL: People tend to see The Tower tarot card as all doom and gloom and chaos, but I don’t see it in such a negative light.
There’s a destruction of sorts that causes a big change, yes, but there’s hope. So much hope and creativity because you can really build anything you want on top of the rubble. You have the chance to become a whole new person.
moon not only showed what I built after the upheaval—it was part of the process and it helped me process.
KL: Another repeating motif in this collection is writing about the self in the third-person to more directly confront your relationship with yourself. How does writing in the third-person change your point of view?
AL: By writing in the third person, I got to step outside of myself—without fully detaching—and see things I wouldn’t normally see. It was like getting a bird’s-eye view of my life.
Focusing on the here and now is good, but what about all the stuff that led up to the amazing person you are now? Sometimes you just have to step back and go, “Wow, I can’t believe how far I’ve come. Look at all these challenges I faced head-on and all the lessons I learned and healing I’ve done. I was pretty badass, considering all the shit I was dealing with.”
KL: Horoscopes and astrology are a big part of She Followed the Moon Back to Herself. What are your big three and how do they come across in your life as a poet?
AL: I’m a Scorpio sun, Aquarius moon, and Cancer rising.
My Scorpio sun gives me the brutal honesty and intensity required of a poetess like me.
In terms of my Aquarius moon—that’s the part of me that wants the best for my community, that wants nothing more than to (hopefully) help make the world a better place with my words, even if they just give people something to relate to.
To quote moon, I think my Cancer rising helps me rise to the occasion of feeling my feelings, which I turn around and work out on the page for all to see.
KL: Can you share a favorite writing prompt with the Read Poetry readers?
AL: Write a poem from the point of view of the person you could have been.
Interpret as you wish.
Order she followed the moon back to herself here.
