Meet Summer Creative Writing Academy Visiting Writer Adrian Ernesto Cepeda!
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Adrian Ernesto Cepeda is the author of the full-length poetry collection Flashes & Verses… Becoming Attractions from Unsolicited Press and the poetry chapbook So Many Flowers, So Little Time from Red Mare Press. His poetry has been featured in Frontier Poetry, poeticdiversity, The Wild Word, The Fem, Rigorous, Palette Poetry, The Yellow Chair Review and Lunch Ticket’s Special Issue: Celebrating 20 Years of Antioch University Los Angeles MFA in Creative Writing. One of his poems was named the winner of Subterranean Blue Poetry’s 2016 "The Children of Orpheus" Anthology Contest and two of his poems “Buzz Me” and “Estranged Fruit” were nominated for Best of the Net in 2015 and 2016.
Adrian is a Pasadena City College alum and an LA Poet who earned a BA from the University of Texas at San Antonio and an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University. He lives with his wife and their cat Woody Gold. You can connect with Adrian on his website: http://www.adrianernestocepeda.com/ |
5 Questions for Adrian Cepeda
When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?
I remember when I was seven years old, my Papi gave me his typewriter and I would type out Star Trek fan fiction stories and sports newsletters. It wasn’t until my undergrad at Texas in San Antonio when I rediscovered the magic of poetry. My MFA years at Antioch LA are the reason I am a successful published poet.
Who are your writer/teacher influences?
Dr. Heather Sellers and her book The Practice of Creative Writing. Kim Addonizo’s Ordinary Genius. Edward Hirsh’s The Poet’s Glossary. Robert Pinskey’s The Sound of Poetry. Robert Haas’ A Little Book on Form: An Exploration into the Formal Imagination of Poetry. John Berger’s Way of Seeing.
What do you think the role of the writer is or should be in today's society?
The role of the writer today is to inspire. Inspire young writers to want to create and live a life devoted to the words they create on the page and not the amount of money you have in your band account. I always ask young writers, what kind of legacy do you want to leave behind? Your words are legacy. Your words are eternal. Forget superhero(ines), Writers live forever.
What are your suggestions for beginners who want to become writers?
Read everything you can get your hands on. The more you read, the better writer you become. Champion writers you love. Buy their books. Post reviews of their books. Repost their poems and stories. Go to poetry readings. Support writers. The advice I tell students is something the actor Benicio Del Toro shared to all artists: “Turn down the volume of your Expectations, and Turn up the volume of your Perseverance.” Perseverance is the key. You will experience failure in your life, but the best writers persevere. They are the ones who laugh at rejection, keep on writing and submitting. Write every day. Hone your craft like an athlete. And most importantly, never, ever give up,
If you could meet and chill out with 1 writer, living or dead, who would that be and why?
Anaïs Nin. I’ve been reading all her books and I would love to spend an afternoon learning, conversing and being inspired from the master of erotic prose. It’s difficult to write about the amorous art of love making and she does it so beautifully and electrically charged I would love to hear her voice in person.
I remember when I was seven years old, my Papi gave me his typewriter and I would type out Star Trek fan fiction stories and sports newsletters. It wasn’t until my undergrad at Texas in San Antonio when I rediscovered the magic of poetry. My MFA years at Antioch LA are the reason I am a successful published poet.
Who are your writer/teacher influences?
Dr. Heather Sellers and her book The Practice of Creative Writing. Kim Addonizo’s Ordinary Genius. Edward Hirsh’s The Poet’s Glossary. Robert Pinskey’s The Sound of Poetry. Robert Haas’ A Little Book on Form: An Exploration into the Formal Imagination of Poetry. John Berger’s Way of Seeing.
What do you think the role of the writer is or should be in today's society?
The role of the writer today is to inspire. Inspire young writers to want to create and live a life devoted to the words they create on the page and not the amount of money you have in your band account. I always ask young writers, what kind of legacy do you want to leave behind? Your words are legacy. Your words are eternal. Forget superhero(ines), Writers live forever.
What are your suggestions for beginners who want to become writers?
Read everything you can get your hands on. The more you read, the better writer you become. Champion writers you love. Buy their books. Post reviews of their books. Repost their poems and stories. Go to poetry readings. Support writers. The advice I tell students is something the actor Benicio Del Toro shared to all artists: “Turn down the volume of your Expectations, and Turn up the volume of your Perseverance.” Perseverance is the key. You will experience failure in your life, but the best writers persevere. They are the ones who laugh at rejection, keep on writing and submitting. Write every day. Hone your craft like an athlete. And most importantly, never, ever give up,
If you could meet and chill out with 1 writer, living or dead, who would that be and why?
Anaïs Nin. I’ve been reading all her books and I would love to spend an afternoon learning, conversing and being inspired from the master of erotic prose. It’s difficult to write about the amorous art of love making and she does it so beautifully and electrically charged I would love to hear her voice in person.