An Interview With Kay Walsen

At the bottom of a creak, running, trickling and rushing past, lies a shiny, dark thing. It is square and thin, but not paper-thin, and it has not sung or beeped or shaken or flashed in hours. It is strikingly human-made. Surrounding it, the trees waltz in the wind and whisper the sweetest secrets. They talk of its owner; they say they live with a dog, a book and a house, a home yet to unpack, on wheels, and they do not miss the phone.

Is creative non-fiction the new trend? Not long ago, author Mark Kennedy, the first of his sort on the Serein Lark Review, told us all about his AuDHD diagnosis. Now, Kay Walsen joins our hall of non-fiction fame, with words of a dead phone and woodland ephemerals and fiddleheads. I am proud to present the Serein Lark's newest contributor, Kay Walsen, with their creative non-fiction piece, 'Mayflowers':

Can you introduce yourself? Who are you, Kay?

I’m a human living in Vermont, U.S. I write poetry, creative non-fiction, and flash fiction. I grow food and weed crops. I work with children, teens and young adults in the realm of mental health. I’m queer, and my life is based in local community. I write because I have to get all the words out somewhere.

You are only our second creative non-fiction writer! Is it your usual genre?

Creative non-fiction/memoir is my primary genre because I can simply allow my experience and thoughts to flow out into words without having to dig around too much. I find writing to be a way of solidifying my feelings, a way of trying on a permanent form for them.

For how long have you been writing?

I’ve always been writing, although I didn’t always put it down - I used to just leave it in my head. It’s only been in the last two years that I’ve had a consistent practice of writing for at least an hour a day.

What would you like to tell the reader about 'Mayflowers'? Why should they read it?

I wrote this short piece while I was staying on a piece of land in a renovated school bus while completing the construction of my house. The land was on a hillside that blocked the cell tower, so I had no reception while I was there. I thought it wouldn’t feel much different than having service, but I found it actually to be quite a special experience. I had to move through my boredom without the easy solutions my cellphone usually gives me. I would like the reader to think about how time moves differently without a device and in what ways we disconnect ourselves from our own experiences when we avoid boredom.

Talk us through what inspired your piece and the process of writing it. Was it still particularly difficult to get down, or did the words flow like a river?

I typically write my short memoir pieces in one sitting, and this one was no exception. I also typically write short pieces on my cell instead of on a keyboard. I find it helps me to slow down - it forces the words to come out slower than I can form them on the screen, so I am always thinking one or two sentences ahead of what I’m writing. When I write on a keyboard, I catch up with myself, and then I keep going and forcing words out that I haven’t thought through enough. There are positives and negatives to both forms of writing. I am grateful to Eva at the Serein Lark for providing very helpful feedback and helping me form this piece of writing into something more polished. Thanks, Eva!

Here is an excerpt from Kay Walsen's 'Mayflowers':

I am amazed at how the world transforms when I am out past the furthest reach of service, up that extra half mile of Maple Hill into the small dip where the brook meets the creek and the topography cuts out the signal. I may as well be in the wilderness.

Do you have any habits for when you write, such as always having a cup of tea by your side or a special place you must write for the sake of the creative juices (or something more peculiar, such as Victor Hugo's alleged need to write in the nude)?

Hah, I didn’t know that about Victor Hugo, and I’m tempted to try it myself! I have no requirements besides no interruptions. I write in the driver's seat pulled over on the side of the highway, standing in the grocery store, at airports, cafes, intersections, in the woods, at home. I have written in bathrooms at friends’ houses when I’m worried that if I don’t get it out immediately, I’ll lose it and I don’t have time to go elsewhere. This is a great advantage of being in the practice of writing on a cellphone - it’s always accessible, and you can get things out right when they come to you.

What do you enjoy reading? What are you reading right now?

I enjoy reading, but like so many other people, “I don’t read enough.” Most recently, I read T. Fleischmann’s Time is a Thing the Body Moves Through, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It felt natural, like talking to a friend. And deeply personal. Currently, I’m two chapters into both Earnest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises and David Budbill’s Judevine. I try to keep my writing diverse and remember it should be a pleasurable experience, not something we do out of a sense of piety.

Do you have any other publications you'd like to point our readers to? Or is there someplace readers can follow you for updates on future work?

I can be found on Substack at kayprocy.substack.com. I run a small DIY distro called Before The Dog Press. I’ve just been printing my own material so far in addition to small submission-based projects, but I’m always excited to talk to other queer writers and photographers who are interested in collaborating.

Just another thank you to Eva and the Serein Lark - the world needs more of this: more small-scale publishing and zines and personal sites and DIY projects and people getting their writing and art out there. During a time when the world is being flooded with generated content, it feels radical to just be a human making art to share with other humans.

Thank you, Kay! And congratulations on publishing 'Mayflowers' - it was a joy to watch it unfold and blossom through revisions. Now, give me a day or two - I must find a bus to live in - it is dire - and an overflowing creak - and no phone signal - just a little break, please - give me a dog and flowers in spring - see you there!