Photography by Katrin Braga

By Alex Duncan
@anarmyofhearts

I met Megan Fennya Jones about four years ago at a time when I was fleeing my own life by planning a solitary trip to Iceland. A mutual friend knew that Megan had also travelled to Iceland, and that she, too, was a writer—a poet. We arranged to meet at a coffee shop where she would tell me where to go and what to do on what she confidently assured me was the exact trip I needed to take. Without knowing her, I trusted her. I came to learn that Megan is intelligent, artful, inquisitive and perfectly strange. As a poet, she traces back through connections—romantic encounters, intimate friendships and the relationship with herself—and illuminates the human experience with quirky examination, blunt honesty and sometimes bizarre specificity. In doing so, she invites her readers to peek through the endearing, refreshing and sometimes harsh lens of her perspective, which casts neon light on moments that might otherwise feel mundane or rushed over. I met with her to discuss the recent launch of her first chapbook, Normal Women—a collection of poems written between the ages of 19 and 25. She answered the door to her apartment and pulled me into her turtleneck for a hug before providing an explanation as to why she was waltzing around her kitchen in bright turquoise running shoes: a desperate attempt to cure foot pain as prescribed by a friend of a friend’s doctor. Or something.

“Apparently, I need to wear running shoes at all times right now and eventually the pain will stop.”

I nod and take a sip of my wine.

“Like, I can never not wear runners. Even in the shower. How weird of me.”

I think to myself, the poet is the poem and the poem is the poet.

And with that, we begin our interview.

Loose Lips: Tell me about your chapbook and for those who may not know, what is a chapbook?

My chapbook came out in November with a local publisher called Rahila’s Ghost Press. They approached me to submit for consideration and I was really excited when they told me they were publishing it. It’s called Normal Women. It’s out there. You can read it. A chapbook is a smaller version of a larger book. Mine is a selection of poetry about my life and stuff that I think about and read about and look at.

LL: How long have you been writing poetry for?

I think I started writing poetry when I was a little kid, but more in the form of small stories. I was always really encouraged by my mom, who always asked me to write things for her. I kept writing poetry through high school and then continued on to do my creative writing undergrad at UVic, where poetry was the genre that I studied, but I also did an English Literature major. So, I was studying poetry from a literature perspective and I was writing it as well.

LL: How did you transition from being a writing student to creating an identity for yourself as a writer in the professional realm?

When I graduated, I didn’t find myself writing all that much and it’s only been the last few years that I’ve started writing again. It took me some time to figure out what my voice was and what I wanted to write about. I spent a lot of time reading and spending time with other poets, absorbing a lot of information and lessons from people before I felt confident to start producing my own work. Once the assignments and expectations of university were removed, I struggled for a while to figure out who I was writing for if I was no longer writing for my classmates and professors. I think it took me a long time to realize that I just needed to write for myself (and for my mom and my best friends) and that that was enough.

LL: In an era of Instagram celebrity poets like Rupi Kaur, do you view this online platform as a positive spotlight on poetry that’s bringing it into a more modern, accessible space, or rather, that it suddenly feels diluted.

I think writers like Rupi Kaur are revealing that there might be a commercial market for poetry, which is something I’ve never considered. I was always taught that poetry readers are a niche market! I was told not to be a poet if you want millions to read your work: be a poet because it fulfills you. Which is true as well!

LL: Social media platforms seem to provide an instant stage for one to share an experience that is so immediately accessible, which can be both mundane and powerful.

I’m really open to whatever medium people want to use to share their poetry. A friend of mine that works in publishing recently said that now is a really good time for poetry because it is such a confusing and upsetting time in the world, so people are looking for ways to parse what’s going on and for meaningful ways to connect with what’s happening and with other people’s experiences. Poetry is a really nice way to do that.

LL: Can you tell us why you decided to explore the medium of a chapbook?

I think the chapbook is a really good form for poetry because it’s only 25 pages so you can read it over and over, which is how I think poems should be read.

LL: Do you have a favourite poem from the book?

I really love all the poems in the chapbook because they’re from a span of exciting times in my life; I was changing so much and figuring out who I wanted to be in my twenties. I really hold them close to me-the poems from that time in my life. I was going through a lot at that time and many of the things I was writing about were pretty tough on me. I hope that the experiences I write about are ones that women can relate to. I feel really connected to all the poems and don’t think I could pick a favourite one. I just want to be nice to them all.

LL: Is there an overarching theme one might notice when reading it over and over?

One of the main focuses in the book is how a woman goes through life so conscious and aware of how she appears to others all the time. That’s something that I’ve always struggled with and have found that a lot of women also experience.

LL: A lot of normal women?

Yeah, normal women.

(At this point, two normal women who are sitting on a couch, drinking wine start laughing. One of them is wearing bright turquoise running shoes.)

If deep diving into woman-centric poetry is your thing (because it’s 100 percent ours), you can purchase the Normal Women chapbook by Megan Fennya Jones here. 

Alex Duncan is a freelance writer, professional actor and author of the children’s book An Army of Hearts.  She enjoys spending time in the forest with her dogs, Maddie and Scout, and often thinks in rhyme.