with Lannie Stabile:
Q1: When did you start writing and first influences?
Lannie: I started writing when I was a wee lass of eleven or twelve. Back then, Shel Silverstein, Gary Soto, V.C. Andrews, and R. L. Stine really rocked my world.
Q2: Who are your biggest influences today?
Lannie: I’m influenced by writers I consider friends. People like Todd Dillard, Taylor Byas, Madeleine Corley, Danielle Rose, Jason B. Crawford, Rota, and Sam Herschel Wein. We often trade drafts among one another, and getting a first, raw glance at talent like theirs is always inspiring.
Q3: Any pivotal moments when you knew you wanted to be a writer?
Lannie: In sixth grade, a student teacher had the class try their hand at poetry. I wrote a poem about a lion called “Long Live the King,” and it was well-received by the teacher and my peers. I definitely caught the bug then. But I started getting serious about writing just a few years ago, after a serious bout of depression. I thought, “You know what? It’s now or never.”
Q4: Who has helped you most with writing?
Lannie: If I named everyone individually, it would take way too long. Suffice to say I have a robust support group on Twitter. Special shout out, however, to Jason and Rota who got me back in the saddle after a handful of years away from poetry.
Q5: Where did you grow up and how did that influence your writing & did any travels away from home influence your work?
Lannie: I grew up in Metro Detroit, but I don’t think where I grew up influenced my writing much. More so how I grew up. And that was poor, neglected, and surrounded by people I didn’t trust.
Q6: What do you consider the most meaningful work you’ve done creatively so far?
Lannie: Good Morning to Everyone Except Men Who Name Their Dogs Zeus is definitely my most meaningful work so far. I like to say the poems challenge Greek mythology, sexual assault, and men obsessed with other powerful men. I wrote it for myself, to work out some of my own trauma, but I published it for other survivors and the men who think this book isn’t about them. I really hope it changes someone’s life. Even just a little bit.
Q7: Favorite activities to relax?
Lannie: I…uh…I’m not great at relaxing, to be honest. I mean, I read while walking on the treadmill.
Q8: What is a favorite line/stanza from a poem of yours or others?
Lannie: My wife, Kaitlyn, and I started rewatching CSI during the pandemic, and Grissom once quoted Thoreau: “I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” That line really stuck with me.
Q9: Any recent or forthcoming projects that you’d like to promote?
Lannie:
Absolutely. Next year, ELJ Editions is publishing my first flash fiction chapbook, Something Dead in Everything. My 2021 goal was to focus more on prose, so KACHOW! I also have a couple other poetry chapbooks looking for homes. Maybe I’ll have more to announce later in the year 😉
Twitter @LannieStabile
Instagram @Lannie_Stabile
Website LannieStabile.com
https://feralpoetry.net/three-poems-by-lannie-stabile/
https://www.frontierpoetry.com/2020/09/25/poetry-lannie-stabile/
https://dailydrunkmag.com/2020/12/01/two-poems-by-lannie-stabile/
Fevers of the Mind 
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