1.Tell us about yourself! (Write some personal stuff, some professional stuff, etc.)
Greetings to everyone reading this.
Firstly a heartfelt gratitude to Fiona Xu, President of The Front Page Initiative, for granting me this oppurtunity to speak about my writing journey and spread a word through this interview.
My name is Ermina Afroz and I’m a 20 year old Indian, modern day artist. I am a self- published writer and poet. My first book goes by the name of Comma which is a collection of 150+ short poems to be read alongside beautiful and breathtaking illustrations of sorts. It deals with themes of love, hatred, destruction, mental and physical abuse, independency, strength, and of course women, to never be ruled out. Additionally, I have a personal collection of over 250 short and long poems and my ultimate aim is to always keep creating and spreading my thoughts and emotions with my readers. Further more, I am a blog writer, cheif editor and a contributor as a co-author. I’m presently inclined towards adding some new work to my collection and look forward to every readers and viewers’ support. On a personal note, I’m quite an ambivert and resonate with people quite a lot based on their experiences and emotions. I’m a keen listener and love to hear people talk about their stories which gains me knowledge and helps me with my poetry. Therefore anyone reading this, in need of a listener please feel free to approach.
2.Why did you start writing? What is your favourite thing about poetry and writing?
Writing came out very naturally in me. It was that one thing I could do without any stress, pressure or deadlines.
Through the course of my teen years, half mess- half peace, many emotions proliferated and matured in my mind and back then being a shy meek girl, I hardly had the courage to bring it out and express myself in person. That is when writing and specially poetry writing was welcomed by me in my life. I needed a platform and my diary was it. And yet I never shared them. I was so paranoid that I used to write and hide or write and tear apart the pages. It wasn’t until I was 50 pieces in, when I actually thought about compiling it all into a book, and that thought, to be noted, came after good 2.5 years. That is when i started, and successfully, finished writing Comma with an overwhelming feeling.
However, inspite of the beautiful response I’ve got since it’s publishing, my insecurity and fear hasn’t yet completely vanished. It still lingers somewhere and it makes me realize how much more there is left of me to do in order to reach that zenith.
Yet, to imagine a life without writing and poetry anymore is a nightmare for me. It’s my solace, my safe place. And the one thing I absolutely love about poetry is it’s unprecedented nature considering the fact that a single piece of poetry can have a million perceptions simply on the basis of who is reading it. There could be as many assumptions of it as the number of readers. And never to rule out how large a role does criticism play. Until you as a writer are told the direction towards which your work has been perceived to go, your mind doesn’t expand beyond it’s limits. It’s then that you come to acknowledge the variety of thoughts and emotions people have and it helps you grow as a writer.
In the end; I would simply like to pass on a very important lesson that I learnt through the course of my writing journey. To every aspiring writer and author reading this, remember there is no haste. This one is very specifically not a race. You’re allowed to feel and you’re allowed to express. But until you can do that in front an audience, do it for yourself. Write for yourself and do not feel the pressure to create something magical. Start small, start simple. A three liner or three words, it’s nevertheless a great start. You always have my support.
3.What is your contact information?
(Instagram Handle, Twitter, Facebook, Email, any information you'd like people to know).
I’m available for professional contacting through my mail id which is as follows:
Following is my Instagram handle:
@erminaafroz.poetry
@ermina_afroz (you can always dm me privately)
Following are the two links to my book: -
For international amazon buyers:
You may type the name of my book “Comma” on your respective amazon website.
Published October 19, 2021
Written by Fiona Xu ~ Graphics by Abinaya Balaji
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