Acclaimed UK poet and YouTube sensation Hollie McNish’s poems are written straight from the heart. Covering breastfeeding, sex and families amongst a myriad of other subjects, and most importantly, only writing about her own experiences and feelings she’s been adopted by many who may never have read a line of poetry before. Her honesty and beautiful writing style has led to published work, including her latest collection Plum, from which she’ll be reading at the Arts Centre this month. I spoke to her about taking her two year old on tour, respecting her gran and running workshops with teenagers.
n your upcoming tour you’ll be returning to Norwich Arts Centre to read from your brand new book Plum, your
first full length collection. It’s a semi autobiographical account of the life of a young woman from 7 to 30 with a mixture of recent poems mixed with writing from your younger self. Why did you choose not to make it 100% autobiographical? It is 100% autobiographical really! It’s poems about everything and anything, about growing up as you say from 7-30.
All just poetry and stories from
my life or from friends lives (I’ve asked their permission to share the embarrassments!). Tere are no fictional people in the poem, save one based on Lady Chatterley. Nobody Told Me covers the scary and often odd world of pregnancy and motherhood. I imagine writing those poems was quite a lifeline for you at the time? Yeah I think so. I can’t remember a huge amount of the writing process, just like I can’t remember a huge amount of life then! But writing often helps me get my thoughts in more of a calm order. And there was so much then I had no idea about that I needed it, I guess. You studied at King’s College Cambridge, and did a Masters in Development Economics. How did you jump from that to poetry? I’ve just always written, so I carried on. I didn’t write hardly anything at Cambridge but when I was studying Economics I wrote loads on the topics there – lots about migration. Ten after I’d finished my Masters, my partner at the time basically shoved me onto a microphone and it all took off from there. But I didn’t quit my day job for another five years. I was also very lucky that people shared my poems a lot. When you won the UK Slam Poetry Competition in 2009, did you imagine you’d be able to be a poet full time, or make enough to live on through it? No, but I also don’t think I wanted to be! I’d just finished a Masters in Development and Economics and the idea of doing something I saw as unpractical as poetry wasn’t massively appealing. As for living from poetry, I feel very very lucky to do that now. A mix of touring and more commercial things have enabled that really. Commercial things that I’m still proud of and glad to have done, though I understand the arts isn’t often keen on that
side of my life. Who are your own favourite poets, both old and new? At the moment, my two favourite books are Physical by Andrew MacMillan and How You Might Now Me, by Sabrina Mahfouz You’ve collaborated with Kate Tempest amongst others. Who else would you like to work with in the future? I’d like to work more with UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative and Donald Trump, in two very different ways! What’s the line that you are the most proud of writing? Men are having breakdowns. Girls are having Botox Cunnilingus is censored more than rape scenes or blow jobs.
It sums up my opinion on everything that is strange and unnatural and so wrong with our culture in terms of it’s gender categories and sexual censorship regulations/ morals. I also like the half rhyme of Botox and blow job. I’m not saying this is a good poem, but I like it the best right now!! How are you finding juggling being a mother and going out on tour? OK and not OK. But OK mainly. But that is only because her dad is an actual dad and looks after her half of the time. So I’m not juggling anything really. I’m relying on other people to share it. I also take her on the tour a lot. But that I love. It is much harder than going alone, but a lot more fun. If I finish a gig and she hasn’t needed a wee halfway through the show, I feel I’ve done well. It lowers my bar a bit!
LIZZ PAGE Read this interview in full at
outlineonline.co.uk
INFORMATION Hollie McNish is at Norwich Arts Centre on 5th July. Tickets available from
norwichartscentre.co.uk
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