An Interview with T.C. Anderson
T.C. Anderson is a multimedia artist based in Houston, Texas. Additionally, T.C. is a writer and poet, with work published in Capsule Stories, Pages Penned in Pandemic: A Collective, mental health anthology Pluviophile, The Raven Review, and more. She proudly serves as a reader for the literary journal for youth writer organization The Young Writers Initiative, Juven. Her poetry collection, The Forest, was published by Riza Press in 2021 and will serve as the inspirational basis of the aforementioned art installation being developed with artist Mari Omori, as well as a launching point for a larger, developing cross-media project.
Currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design & Media Arts from Southern New Hampshire University, T.C. is also a graphic and multimedia design professional who has won numerous accolades for her design work, including Gold Medallion Awards from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR).
What inspires you to write?
The need to tell stories. Storytelling is embedded in everything I’ve done in my life thus far – my day job/career is in graphic design, which is a visual manifestation of communication and storytelling. The entirety of my interests – video games, photography, books, television shows and movies – revolves around storytelling. I feel like storytelling is in my blood. It’s the most powerful tool we have as a species and has been a key driver in our evolution. The more stories we hear in this world, the more chances we have to grow, learn and become a better and stronger humanity, and I hope the little contributions I put out in the world can help with that in some way.
What are you working on next/what was your last project?
I am currently developing two separate projects. The first is a full-scale art installation I am building with my collaborator and mentor, Houston artist and educator Mari Omori. Part of the installation, a tea-stained mosquito net and card stock paper slip piece called The Branches, has already been exhibited a few times in the Houston area as a sort of preview and test run, and we are now in the process of actively making work for the full installation and proposing the installation to a few local galleries. My poetry collection The Forest is the inspirational basis for the installation, so it’s exciting to see my words manifest in more visual ways!
My second project is my next poetry collection, which I am furiously tackling over the summer, as I have a particular publisher in mind to which I’d like to pitch the book. While The Forest was in many ways a proof of concept and more artistic journey, this second one is an extremely personal dive into my life before moving to my home in Houston. It’s both therapeutic and terrifying to write, but I think a much-needed process, so I can relieve myself of the weight I’ve long carried with me from my past.
Tag three of your favourite IG poets we should read:
Miriam Taylor (@miriamtaylor6069) is always a joy to read, as she combines her words with art like I often do. She is an absolutely amazing talent that should be read by so many more people. I always greatly look forward to anything Hinnah Mian (@hennapoetry) writes and journals – her words and visual aesthetic combine for an unmatched literary experience. I also greatly love the collaged poetic works of Zohra Hussain (@zoxhssn), who uses materials from her Candeur Avenue brand to visually support her beautiful musings.
How do you beat writer's block?
I don’t force it – my creativity flows better if it’s given time to breathe. However, I do try to gear my mind into the space of writing when I feel I’ve got enough room away from the process to think freely again. I can’t write every day on a schedule like some people can – my creative process, even with art, is much more phasic, and it’s been that way for as long as I can remember. But it works well for me because that time and level of separation allow me to take in influences and inspiration to which I may not have otherwise given the time of day.
Do you take poetry classes or read books on poetry?
Not as often as I would like, but as soon as I finish my Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design later this year, I aim to take more creative writing classes and workshops! I already have a class in mind I want to take that’s taught by a local poet I greatly admire.
Do family and "real life" friends read your work?
They’re some of my biggest supporters and probably at least half of my book sales, haha! I am super fortunate to have a great circle of supportive people. Not as many are on Instagram, where I post the majority of my work, but everyone has been amazing when it’s come to the release of my book. My mother-in-law nabbed 15 copies and gave many as gifts to my husband’s family, and my boss’s book was actually the first I signed as a published author! It’s all been extremely exciting, and I am beyond blessed.
How many finished books do you have?
Just the one so far – my first poetry collection, a short 42-page volume called The Forest. But I have plans for many more in the future, including novels!
What does "good poetry" mean to you?
For me, it’s storytelling, and this applies to pretty much any kind of media I consume, including music and video games. Storytelling is a much broader concept when it comes to poetry, though; it could be an emotional journey on which it takes you, not necessarily a three-act epic the likes of the Odyssey. And I don’t have to know what the author’s originally intended story was – it could be a story left to interpretation by the reader. In fact, whenever I talk about my book The Forest, I oftentimes don’t allude to what my intended meaning for the work was because I want readers to bring their experiences and perspectives to the work, rather than the other way around. Finding a middle ground between an author’s storytelling voice and the reader’s personal interpretations always leads to a great literary journey for me.
What is your revision process like?
It’s giving the work time to breathe, then coming back to it with fresh eyes. There are some that I don’t feel need this (or maybe they did, and I’m just too close to the work), but I tend to use this process for anything I hope to include in a book or submit to journals or anthologies. For my book, having a beta reader also greatly helped me see things that needed improvement as well!
What is your writing process like?
Chaotic and off-the-cuff for the most part! For poetry, I fly by the seat of my pants – I’m one of those people that gets frustrated when I randomly come up with a great line while I’m driving and can’t type it into my notes' app because I’m behind the wheel. I work in fits of inspiration, which sometimes translates to periods of inactivity. But the output always seems to be more authentic than heavily calculated or manufactured. One of the creative writing classes I took several years ago worked in the manner of crafting multiple drafts for a single poem, and that workflow never worked for me with poetry. With full-fledged stories, though, I’m completely the opposite – I plan and world-build, almost to a fault. I sometimes lose interest in writing the actual story because I’ve spent so much time concentrating on the world-building! That’s something I’m working on, though.