Julie Mishler

Al: Something tells me you started writing poetry at a young age. Am I right?

Julie: Honestly, I can't really say when I started writing. I have always had a way with words. I even took a Creative Writing course in school. I stopped writing for a long period of time when I had my daughter. When the realization hit me that my baby was graduating from school, it was time to figure out what was next for me. I wrote my first poem after about 20 years in December 2011 and just kept following that path. It has lead me to some amazing opportunities and a future full of possibilities.

Al. How do ideas come to you?  Do you sit with a blank page until something hits?  Or, does it start with a random idea that you later commit to paper?

Julie: I usually write in the wee hours of the morning while the rest of the world is sleeping. I write, or shall I say type, every poem on my cell phone. My entire book was written on a cell phone. Sometimes an idea just hits me, usually in the shower when I don't have any way to write it down. Lol... Many things spark inspiration for me, seeing a picture, hearing a song, listening to others just talk. I can be driving down the road looking at the clouds, trees, or setting sun and the words just hit me.

Al: With poems, at what point do you call it complete? Like, after it's written...do you tinker with it for days or longer.  How do you know when it's the final?

Julie: I am very OCD. I analyze my work over and over and over again. I read the poems so much in my first book for fear there was something misspelled or that the flow was off, that since I published I have never looked at them again. I am very critical of my work. My daughter is like my editor. Before I post anything she reads it over and lets me know if there is something off. She loves correcting me. 

Each poem or piece is different. Some are one stanza and that was my complete thought. Others just flow on telling a story. I love using imagery in my writing. So when the reader reads the words they can envision that moment. In saying that, each person's interpretation of what they have read can be totally different then what I envisioned when writing the poem. I love hearing another's take on something I've written.

Al: If you can have any musical band or singer put music to one of your poems, who would you choose?

It would be a huge honor for any artist to use something I wrote. There are so many talented artists out right now. I love listening to music and am a fan of "most" genres  I was raised on country music and it remains my favorite genre of music still. It would be the honor of a life time to have Reba McEntire sing something I wrote or have the honor of collaborating with her. My Momma got us tickets for my 21st birthday to go see Reba live. I cried when she came on stage. Some people have drinking stories, I have the beautiful memory of seeing one of my all time favorite artists with my best friend in life.