Nichole Acosta will be one of the featured poets in Hot House: A Summer Poetry Extravaganza on Thursday, July 31 @ Organic Modernism in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, produced by 3Po3try NYC (https://www.facebook.com/3po3trynyc).
Acosta is a multicultural, Brooklyn-based poet heavily influenced by rappers Narubi Selah, Eve, and Missy Elliot, spoken word poets Lemon Andersen, Beau Sia, and Amiri Baraka and comedian Bo Burnham. Though she hated writing as a kid, her English teachers pushed her to love it. She's been performing since the age of 11, and in 2006, she finished in the top 15 out of 500 youth poets in the Urban Word Slam. She's known for both her cutting and positive words, taking on human nature, popular culture, and the challenging nexus between love and relationships. She is the founder/producer of Epic XII, a unique quarterly performance event featuring 12 collaborations between musicians and poets, and is the Director of Community Relations for The Inspired Word. Her first book of poetry, Field of Fireflies, was released in October 2013. Her website can be found @ http://nicholeacosta.wix.com/poetry. Visit Epic XII on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/TheEpic12.
The following is our quick interview with Ms. Acosta:
What’s your definition of poetry?
Poetry is a self-expressive rhythm broken into lines and stanzas.
What’s your favorite place to write?
On the subway.
Does your poetry have a central theme? And if so, what is it?
Love, in all its shapeshifting forms. It's something that every topic imaginable can return.
What one word describes your writing style?
Mostly lyrical these days, but with a purpose.
What's your idea of the perfect poem?
One that isn't afraid to bare some battle scars and really resonates with people from all walks of life.
What's your best writing moment?
When the poem feels finished, the story is told, and the message is locked in.
What's your worst writing moment?
When my pen runs out of ink and I'm alone without another pen.
If you could steal one line from any poem, what would it be?
When I was a kid I used to think "impossible" was short for I am Possible. - Lemon Anderson. Or...Craziness is no act. Not to act is crazy. - Amiri Baraka
That second one gave me my poetry-is-what-I want-to-do moment.
What time of the day do you mostly write?
When I open my eyes to start the day. That's when the best stuff comes out of me.
What book changed your writing forever?
Spencer Johnson's Who Moved My Cheese? It really changed my perspective on how to handle and adapt to a lot of change that was happening in my life at the time and pulled me out of a black hole I wasn't sure I was ever going to get out of.
What poet, dead or alive, would you like to be friends with?
Amiri Baraka.
Do you have any writing superstitions? If so, what are they and how do you deal with them?
I have to have the right notebook. Lucky enough, I have friends and family have gotten me really nice ones over the years.
What comes easy to you with poetry?
Saying what's really on my mind.
What are you hoping to accomplish with your poetry?
I'm just learning how to love myself and others better, telling my stories and hoping people find empowerment, truth and inspiration in what I have to say, that it sparks a real positive change in as many people as possible.
To purchase advance tickets to Hot House: A Summer Poetry Extravaganza, go to http://3po3trynycsummer.eventbrite.com.
Photo credit: Jay Franco (http://jayfranco.co/).
