Charlie Baylis : part five

Why is poetry important?

I’m not sure it is.

Charlie Baylis : part four

When you require renewal, is there a particular poem or book that you return to? A particular author?

Poetry can certainly be draining. Not necessarily the sitting still, writing part but the aftermath of looking for a place for a poem, looking for readers, all the peculiar nonsense that comes with it. When I’m tired of poetry I don’t look to poetry for help. Do not give the alcoholic more alcohol! I might focus on things like playing chess, reading novels, watching stupid youtube videos. I also like rollerblading, swimming, football, nature.

Tldr: Rumi

Charlie Baylis : part three

What other poetry books have you been reading lately?

Louise Gluck, Dylan Thomas, Dominic Leonard, Lisa Jarnot, Hera Lindsey Bird, Luke Kennard, Ocean Vuong, Charles Baudelaire, Nick Makoha, John Ashbery’s French translations, H.D., A.K. Blakemore, Matthew Haigh, Rebecca Tamas, Raúl Zurita...

I’ve also been reading submissions (shameless plug!) for my new journal Anthropocene, which has introduced me to many poets I wouldn’t have read otherwise.

Charlie Baylis : part two

What poets changed the way you thought about writing?

Reading Matthew Welton was eye opening for me. The first book of his I came across was ‘The Number Poems’ after that I bought the other collections. What I found so interesting were the constrictions, limitations, the tactical formulation, mathematics. I can’t imagine the amount of work that goes into one of his poems.

Chelsey Minnis has also been a revelation for me. ‘You have to apply a blowtorch to a lollipop’ - I never knew!

Charlie Baylis : part one

Charlie Baylis is from Nottingham, England. He is the editor of Anthropocene. His poetry has been nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize and once for the Forward Prize. His most recent publication is Drag City (Broken Sleep Books). He spends his spare time completely adrift of reality.

How does your work first enter the world? Do you have a social group or writers group that you work ideas and poems with?

I usually send stuff to magazines. I’m not a particularly social person and tend to be quite guarded about my poetry, so I find the idea of a writers group scary. I do look for feedback if I’m writing something longer, but it’s not a huge list of people, and I don’t necessarily follow their advice.