An Interview with Desney Carlene
Desney Carlene provides poetic literature to introspective readers in a lyrical atmosphere, with an authentic voice. Helping them to feel vulnerable and empowered to face their own mental and emotional wellness journeys. Desney is the owner of Desney Carlene Inc. and lives in her hometown of Chicago, Illinois, as a proud Southsider.
What inspired you to start writing this book?
My own journey with mental health and wellness. I wanted to create a resource and sense of community for people who were going through the same thing as me.
Tell us the story of your book’s current title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?
It has definitely gone through several lives. I started with a completely different title before and changed it maybe three or four times. But settling into this title, being named after a poem within the collection, felt right.
Describe your dream book cover.
Lots of flowers, whimsical, something that sings and captures the spirit of the work wholeheartedly. I also went to school for graphic design, so I design my own book covers. I would say what would make it a dream is having something reflect exactly what’s in my brain and for it to be captured fully upon the page.
What books are you reading (for research or comfort) as you continue the writing process?
K.M. Weiling’s Writing Architectypal Chararacter Arcs, and Recover Your Self-Esteem by Carolynn Hillman.
What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?
I was also a dancer for 20 years, and I’m a digital collage artist. By day, I’m also an Accounting Specialist for a property management company. So I’m both left-brained and right-brained.
Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?
What made me want to write is I wanted to capture my surroundings with words. I remember being six years old, writing my first poem. I was determined to try to capture the beauty around me that I could hear and see. I became obsessed with it. That started everything.
Where is your favorite place to write?
At home, at my bar table within my kitchen.
What advice would you give your past self at the start of your writing journey?
To relax. This is a journey of the soul. Not of money or fame. You write because you wish to heal people, and that is noble of you.
What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?
That they are not alone within their healing journey. That it is both beautiful and very hard, but they have friends with them.
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