Interview:

Why did you choose Team Taylor for this poem? 

I chose Team Taylor for this poem because, well, it was also based around the other poems I was submitting (which were VERY much up Taylor's alley, but I truly think this one could go either way). Honestly, I'm really into subtle (or not so subtle!) religious iconography in my work, and there's this sort of dissatisfaction with the life and body and an implied search for religion at the end. Media is definitely a big part of culture as well (something Taylor likes), and I'd like to think this poem really explores the way social media can influence our daily mentalities and how depressingly mundane our daily lives seem in comparison to its gripping allure. Also, online fora arguments are a KEY part of Internet culture (and no one can tell me otherwise).

Talk to me about how you manage tone in your poems? Is it something you think about a lot or does this tend to just come out when you sit down to write? 

My tone sort of just explodes when I write. I never map the imagery or specific goal of my poems (perhaps I should), but I go in with a general idea, setting, or feeling and let it grow from there. My tone usually stays constant throughout, and it mostly depends on my mood as I'll be more likely to cook up relevant imagery if I'm really feeling it. I'm a really talkative person, so for a thoughtfully conversational (think vent) poem like this, I just used the tone I'd normally use to text a friend but obviously more "poetic". There's so much emotion guiding my work, so I just lean into that and write poetry that I believe adequately captures the immensity of those feelings. However, I'm always thinking about how I want my reader to feel and the impact I want this poem to make on them. I do think my poems are distinctly me because of their diverse yet intentional tones and the way I consistently make them so. I'm a very observant, perpetually-but-not-always-obviously stressed, sometimes snarky, sometimes avoidant person, and I think that really comes through here. The song that the beginning quote's from is one of my favorite songs of all time, and I wanted that forlorn "aura" to be seeping into this poem.

What was your revision process for this poem like?

I revised this poem in a variety of ways, mainly with lines I felt could be expanded upon more or that I felt were a bit cliche. I wanted to strike a good balance between the mundane and familiar but also out there (things people don't politely say out loud), which I hope is present throughout. I wanted this poem to explore so many things, actually; I kind of just ranted about every worry that had been on my mind, added some contrasting imagery, then refined it to develop a greater sense of irony and humor. This poem was deeply cathartic, as I wrote it after a discussion about slacktivism with a friend, and I wanted it to maintain its confessional tone and relatability to the average person. When I revise poems as a whole, I'm thinking "Does this express my intention as well as it to? Is it too convoluted, imagery or word wise? Does it sound fresh and good?" So yes, the range of words to demonstrate a variety of aspects of average human life was important here, but so was the rhythm. I wanted it to be mostly sharp and punchy, embellished with a few longer, wistful thoughts. Think shower ponderings effectively mixed with r/AITA comments. Fun fact: I also toyed with the idea of crossing out certain words and having that be a poem in addition to the entire poem itself, but eventually scrapped it. Maybe I'll bring it back someday...