DANIEL J FLORE III

In this interview, we sit down with Daniel J. Flore III, author of the poetry collection Lapping Water, which came out on January 12, 2017 from GenZ Publishing.

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Please describe what the collection is about in one sentence.

Lapping Water is collection of poems exploring emotional territory within myself that I had not yet come to grips with yet. It was a place of loss and healing. An exploration of beauty and the aftermath of the absence of it, that is shared with the reader.

 

In the closing lines of the first poem, “tap water,” you write, “hear my gait / my stripped, bare mind.” Do you think these words reflect your writing as a whole? That is, do you feel like Lapping Water is a very personal or confessional collection?

I think those words are a good way to introduce a collection like Lapping Water but I don’t think they reflect my writing as a whole. I’m often times not writing about myself. In the case of Lapping Water, I look at the the poems as emotion paintings, not necessarily indicative of who I am as a person.

 

What was the inspiration for this book? Where does the title Lapping Water come from?

I wrote Lapping Water to capture where I found love and to deal with the absence of it.

A lot of the poems were written across the street from a pond and I would hear geese and swans. I would imagine the water lapping against the bank late at night and I think a lot of that got into the poems and title unconsciously.

 

What was your time frame for writing?

14 years. When I was ready to put together a  book I pulled from 14 years worth of poems.

The poem I called in sick was written when I was 18 years old. Lapping Water was completed when I was 34.

 

What were your biggest learning experiences or surprises throughout the publishing process?

The ease of it. It can be difficult when you're working with other people (especially creatively), but Lapping Water, my first book, came to fruition very smoothly.

 

What would you have done differently (either in the writing process or in the story itself) if you could do it again?

Honestly, I wouldn't change anything about it. I think it is the book I wanted it to be.

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How have you built a personal brand and gained readership?

I have promoted with posting audio recordings of all the poems in Lapping Water along with an some videos.  I have also done some poetry readings at bookshops that have also been recorded to reach a vaster audience. I post new work almost daily too so people that are interested in my work can get a taste of what I'm currently working on.

 

Do you have any fun routines when writing?

My cat Tulip loves to be around me when I'm writing. I call her my poetry supervisor. It’s fun because when I sit down at my desk she loves to walk all around the paper and is very interested in the strokes of the pen. It’s nice to have a buddy there when I sit down to work.

 

Most poets draw from other sources. Who is your favorite author? Why?

Jack Kerouac. He had such intimacy and beauty and freedom in his poems. As well as pain and love. The man was a force.

 

Any music you think would accompany your book well?

Ha! Nautical sounds, actually. Waves and water. Sea and surf. I also think piano would sound nice.

 

What’s next for you?

I have four more books coming out with GenZ Publishing, which I'm very excited about, plus new manuscripts that I am currently working on.

 

Wow! Four seems like a lot… are they all poetry collections?

Yes. Poetry is all I write. I’m very excited about these collections because they have taken my voice to all different directions. They are Humbled Wise Men, Christmas Haikus, which is a very warm hearted book and that celebrates my love for the holidays, Home and other places I’ve yet to see, which is a followup to Lapping Water that sort of starts from nothing and takes the reader to some enriching places, Pink Marigold Rays which is an examination of spirituality, sensuality, and summer and The Meaning of A Sigh, poems of the U.S.A,  which celebrates our country in 365 poems (one for each day of the year.)

 

Find Dan on Facebook @dan.flore.7 and PoetryCircle @dan-flore.