Matthew Nino Azcuy is the author of the poetry collection My Castle. He lives in Olney, Maryland.
Q: Over how long a period did you write the poems in My
Castle?
A: I wrote My Castle in September of 2017 while finishing up my
associate’s degree at Montgomery College Maryland. It was a beautiful fall and
I wanted to write something different than I had prior. I had independently
published several works, which were very direct poetry.
My prior works did not leave anything to interpretation.
With My Castle, I wanted each poem to be more subjective and universal, keeping
an imaginative and fun universe within the book of poems. It took me about
three to five months to get all the poems together, draft the manuscript, and
revise the final version.
Q: The book is divided in two sections, The Castle and The
Kingdom. What differentiates the two, and how did you choose the order in which
the poems would appear?
A: Exactly, so as you can tell the theme is sort of medieval
in its essence, or at least that is what I was trying to convey. So, in The
Castle, the main character’s forces are defending his castle which is under
attack, while he as king hides in a dark corner during the bombardment and
warfare.
Those chapters are representative of both his and my own
fears that reign inside all of us. The doubt, the anxiety, the past trauma, the
frustration, the heartbreak, etc.
The Kingdom is when his forces have successfully defended
the castle and gained the upper hand and go on the offensive towards the enemy.
That half of the book is representative of when self-discovery happens so that
self-improvements may begin.
It shows that inner strength can bring outer triumph over
life itself. The character masters his own fears with a cry of strength and
wins over his fears and anxieties, though they will always remain.
The first half of the book is sad and depressing; the second
is meant to be uplifting and triumphant.
Q: What themes do you see running through the collection?
A: Medieval for sure. I pictured a 1500s battleground and
castle on a grassy plain. Motivational, spiritual, psychological, and a pinch
of romance (just a pinch).
Q: Which authors do you especially admire?
A: Rupi Kaur is probably my favorite contemporary writer.
Mark Twain is fantastic. Robert Frost writes beautifully but is not my
favorite. I also love and read a lot of religious texts and philosophical texts
(The Torah, The Bible, & The Quran) and anthologies are great.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’m working on two books. One is an action thriller
novel, and the other is going to be a half-anthology half-poetry book.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Though we live in a seemingly dark time, there are so
many resources to still put beauty out into the world. I hope that everyone
harnesses their talents and strengths and puts beautiful things into the world,
whether they be popular or not.
Poetry, Music, Nature, Friends, Family, Cities, Butterflies,
Trees… if art reflects life, then it can used to reflect the light within it.
Blessings and peace for everyone in our time. Thank you for having me!
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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