#16 Steven J Fowler, poet, writer & performer

'Swords and soft friends.'

Happy New Year, and thanks for continue reading That Poetry Thing. To kick off 2023, we have the wonderful Steven J Fowler. SJ Fowler is a writer, poet, and performer who lives in London. He has an extensive list of accolades and publications (over 40!), not to mention over 200 performances in over 40 countries, 4 large-scale event programs, numerous commissions, collaborations, and more.

His work aims to encapsulate an expansive understanding of what poetry and literature can be - exploring the textual, visual, asemic, concrete, sonic, collaborative, performative, improvised, and curatorial. His most recent work includes the novella MUEUM and the poetry collection The Great Apes.

Where do you write?
In a notebook. Then I tend to type it up as the first phase of edit. This I do at my desk or sat in my lazy boy.

Morning writer or late-night words?
Late night normally, but morning caffeinated sometimes.

Coffee, tea, or any other drinks?
Coffee and fizzies.

Handwritten notes or phone files?
Handwritten notes.

Something to nibble while you write?
A bird feeder, perhaps.

What's your most tempting distraction?
Swords and soft friends.

Any desk essentials?
Sword and soft friend.

What's on the speakers?
A soft friend. Or Ween, Michael Nyman, or anything on cassette.

Writer uniform?
I have some nice flowy shorts and a headband with Knut the polar bear on it from a pharmacy in Berlin.

What are your pre-writing rituals?
I deliberately don't make writing time as I believe in obliquity - focusing conscious attention elsewhere to enter into relatively constant incidental flow states. So no ritual is possible unless it's rapid, like crossing myself or sheathing my sword, etc.

Perfect bookshop to hide on a rainy day?
I get all my books from charity shops.

The best word in the English language?
Sword.

A poem that has changed your life:
I don’t remember individual poems. But some poets wrote poems that changed my life as direct mentors or collaborators. Tom Raworth, Tomasz Salamun, Anselm Hollo, and many, many more.