“I was unsure of this poem because it strayed from conventional African poetics. It did its own thing and I wondered whether it would be received well.”

“‘Beach Death’ is a poem I very much found as I wrote it, in that, I wasn’t quite sure who exactly I was writing about when the words began. The images that came to me, and their associations in my life, ended up blurring the lines between several people in my life, overlapping the ways in which they were all both meaningful and harmful to me. I found this personal mystery compelling and felt that any further intricate work with the poem would destroy my relationship with it.”
“'Muzzling’ came at a time when I was uncomfortable with the vulnerability that sharing it would require, both through sharing my own thoughts and directly referencing the people in my life. I put it away in hopes of a time when that discomfort would be entirely gone.”

“‘A Million Vincents’ was written earlier this year. I was inspired by the idea of seeing Vincent Van Gogh everywhere. I tried to get it published, but went nowhere and abandoned it. I'm not sure whether the problem was with the idea or the execution or the genre. Maybe I'll revisit the idea in fiction...or just leave it alone.

’C.diff’ was based on my experience catching C.diff in hospital last year, during a stem cell transplant for lymphoma. It was supposed to be a surreal take on it, and I really tried to push it. No takers. I don't know whether it was too out there for people. Anyhow, it ended up abandoned and unloved.”

“‘Conversations with my better half’ began as a writing exercise in an advanced poetry class. I was interested in the concept of a poem written in the form of a conversation with a clear back-and-forth, but every time I tried to mess with the formatting of it, I hated it more and more. I submitted it for our in-class workshops, and sharing such intimate and personal work with my classmates made me recede into my shell just a little bit. I never touched it again until now.”

“I didn't give this piece a chance as I think the theme is hazy. When you are writing about life, it gives you endless dimensions to write on. However, I believe if you can define any one of aspects clearly, it does the trick. I felt that I poorly touched on this aspect. “

“It is very short form. Up for interpretation.”

“This was one of my few very early attempts at poetry. It was also one of the very few moments in my life that I have written unbridled and unstructured. I wrote this piece two years ago, and did not hesitate to bin it straight after it was done. I couldn't read it without feeling scalding hot shame for the way my desperation manifested on the page. It is a poem about desire and unrequited wanting. Why was I expecting my desperation to not show? I loved it because it is mine. I loathed it because it was mine. I am thankful to have never emptied my laptop bin.”

“I trashed this piece because I was told by a friend no one will want to read this. It sounds way too feminist and woke, and there are enough poems on the internet covering this issue. However, I wrote this poem because I was angry, when someone close to me suggested women should stop complaining about periods and menopause because we all have to go through it and that’s just the way it is. This poem was written out of pure rage and also to educate those disillusioned people, that we do not suffer the same way, we all struggle on many different levels, so please do not insist we should just put up with it. It is not a weakness, but a strength.”

“This was a love song to my favorite cat who has a bad heart and other health problems although he’s only seven. I didn’t set out to write a poem, just to show my love and grief in words. The piece might be trash, but Perry is a treasure.”