Today we interview JH_Foliage, winner of The Sunflower Awards 3.0 in the poetry genre. Join us as we learn more about their writing style and inspiration.

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1. What were some of the inspirations for the poems in Cement City? 

All of the inspiration came from what I observed in my city every day. There's plenty of nods to public transit for example; my family doesn't own a car (the reasons of which are alluded to in "The Old Buick") so I travel by transit. I often jot down poems on my phone while waiting for the bus on my way to school in the mornings. A city can be boring, but it's weaving in emotion that makes it interesting.

2. What do you like about writing poetry? 

It's cathartic. It challenges me to put feelings into words in a concise manner. It has a rhythm unlike prose, and it's like a sword that goes straight to your heart.

3. How did you feel when you found out you won in your genre for the Sunflower Awards?

Surprised. I didn't think I would place in the top 3, so I'm really grateful for that. 

4. Do you have any advice for other writers? 

Poetry is incredibly subjective and it's really hard to offer constructive criticism if you're not the right audience for poetry. I think it's important that you recognize what is your target audience, then go from there. See what people are interpreting from your poems and ask yourself if that's how you intend your poems to be received, and go from there. That helped me decide I wanted to go the concise route instead of flowery. 

5. Do you have a favorite poem of yours from this collection? Why is it your favorite? 

Choosing a favourite is hard. But I really like Inverted Stars. I'm proud of the imagery I came up with it, combining the tangible and what's not so tangible, especially with a topic like homelessness. It's an ode from the heart about being stuck in the present and when fate turns for the worst, there's company in the unfortunate outcome of events.

6. What does your writing process look like? 

For poetry it's non stop typing until I have a bunch of ideas down. Then I go back and focus on a thing from my city + an emotion, and work from that focus. The first line might be a source of conflict, it might be a statement, it might set the scene/mood for the rest of the poem. And then I write and rewrite until the syllables and inflections fall from my tongue in a rhythm I like when I read it outloud.

7. Where is your favorite place to write? 

Don't really have a favourite place to write. But I think my best, most raw ideas come from writing on my phone on the transit bus. Air conditioning plus the atmosphere of sleepy students....there's something invigourating about it.

8. When did you start writing and why did you start? 

For poetry? Started, oh, I think 2 years ago or 3? Not sure but Thoughtless was my first collection. I started because I saw poetry was popular on Wattpad and I liked reading poetry, so why not start writing it too?

9. Do you have a favorite poet and/or a favorite poem? 

No favourite poet; unfair to pick one! As for a poem I really like The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes. He's a big inspiration for my style of concise but beautiful poetry. 

10. What is your favorite book and why?

I can't choose favourites! But recently I've read Chemistry by Weike Wang and it made me cry because it's the first book that resonated with me as a Canadian born Chinese girl - not to mention it's written in an unconventional way, but again, a powerful coming of age story. 

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Thanks again for chatting with us, JH_Foliage! We wish you the best.

Check out their books on their profile and give them some love! :)