How would you describe your writing process? Do you usually begin with a specific feeling in mind? 

The process can begin as a response to a current event issue, a response to artwork, a poetic description of something scientific, or it can be triggered by an actual image. Regardless, yes, I then strongly wish to translate the everyday into tangible poetic language.

Your poem, "The world turns pointillist" is so beautifully written, as you describe the natural scenery as something fractured yet somehow inextricably connected. Can you talk a little about how you came up with the title of the piece and how it's meaningful to you? 

Thank you! I love how you express “something fractured yet somehow inextricably connected.” That is perfect. As a visual artist as well, I definitely associate color, texture, light, and other art terms in my writing. I think this helps to create a more vivid, richer image or description. “Pointillism” refers to Seurat’s dabs of color to a surface so that from a distance they visually blend together. I thought that was a perfect way to describe a present-day beach scene and to describe the way I perceive the world – as being made up of all these “dabs,” so many different perspectives, and yet it all does go together as a whole picture, a whole world.

What do you hope readers take away from "The world turns pointillist"? Additionally, do you often think about your audience as you write?

Truly, I hope that readers will recognize and further appreciate all the tiny intricacies, the billions of cells, that make up the world. I say “I look for love here,” but I mean wherever I am, the loving of the planet. And, lastly, I hope the reader feels hopeful that what appears to be broken, might still house “life.”

I see that in addition to being a well-decorated poet, you've judged writing for the Raleigh Fine Arts Society for several years. Can you talk about what that was like and how it potentially affected your view on writing or inspired you in some ways? Additionally, what do you tend to look for while judging writing?

The contestants in those competitions have been school-aged. What I most admired, I think, was their bravery with language and also a willingness to explore current issues, and to explore those challenges at times from a very believable face-it point of view. I  have also been impressed with the commitment to the work they were doing.

You also wrote an ekphrastic poem in response to a photograph in a project with the Film Shooters Collective: revela't. Have you written other ekphrastic poems to other mediums before? Are there any specific works that you'd like to respond to through poetry?

What was so fascinating about writing about that photograph was that it was double-imaged and created by two photographers. Yes, I love writing ekphrastic poetry because it not only provides a focus, but you are working in tandem with another artist! I have responded to works in museums, 2D work as well as sculpture, and several photographs. I did recently read a poem that was in response to an actual IKEA ad, which I thought was a fantastic idea that I would like to try. I also would love to try a response to a famous piece of architecture, such as a Frank Lloyd Wright house. And I would like to expand more the definition of ekphrastic and combine mediums.

What advice do you have for young writers?

If you love it and feel you have something to say, write, write, write, and read even more. Be aware and try to look for what might not be obvious. I write in many ways because it is how I process the world, how I try very hard to understand the world.

Read Terri’s poem, “the world turns pointillist” in dulcet Literary magazine, vol. One, Issue No. 1.