Interview with Minadora Macheret by Mary Cook
Minadora Macheret
is a Ph.D. student in Poetry and Teaching Fellow at the University of North Texas. She received the James Merrill Poetry Fellowship from the Vermont Studio Center. Her work has appeared in Tinderbox Poetry Journal, Rogue Agent, Connotation Press, and elsewhere. She is the author of the chapbook, Love Me, Anyway (Porkbelly Press). She likes to travel across the country with her beagle, Aki.
“I know a poem is ready for publication when it’s done singing…I will read my work aloud and make sure it is creating the emotional resonance or telling the story I want/need it to…“
In this interview for emerging writers, poet Macheret shares scenes of her writing practice, submission process, and her journey of publishing her first collection. Plus, tips on navigating the application process for graduate programs. Read to find out our fellow writer’s journey in the writing community! Interview by Editor: Mary Cook.
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MC: While at University of North Texas, you published the chapbook, Love Me, Anyway. Can you tell me about that experience? What was it like to finally see your book in hard copy?
MM: I was so excited the first time I held my book in my hands. I remember calling my best friend and repeating “it’s here, it’s here.” The poems in this collection reflect a coming to terms with grief of a disabled body, dead mother, and the interstitial spaces occupied when the speaker no longer fits into society’s “normal.” I sent out this manuscript twenty times before it was picked up by Porkbelly Press. I wanted a publisher who not only reflected values of equity, diversity, and inclusion, but also treated books as objects of art, too. This press in particular hand sews each book, and allows the writer to have input/suggestions for cover design.
You have published poems in many journals such as Connotation Press, The Deaf Poets Society, and Crab Fat Magazine. How do you decide what journal is a “good fit” for your poetry, and how do you know when a piece is ready for publication?
I read a lot of journals to see what sorts of poems they’re publishing along with whom they’re publishing. I also look at their mission statement or the journal’s values to make sure that I want my work represented there. Due to my work dealing with specific themes, I will look for journals dedicated to promoting disability, Judaism, chronic illness, etc.
I know a poem is ready for publication when it’s done singing. Not to sound too silly, but what I mean by this is that I will read my work aloud and make sure it is creating the emotional resonance or telling the story I want/need it to, to convey a particular idea.
What advice would you give to emerging writers who are working to publish their first piece?
Read. Read. Read. And read some more. Look up journals that you want your work featured in, look at submission calls, and turn to different online writing communities to ask about current trends. Use websites such as Duotrope or New Pages to search for journals. Even Submittable offers a section to discover different journals and calls for submissions. And after you’re done reading and narrowing down where you want to submit to, submit to 3-5 places at a time with a packet you’ve put together. I’ve found that most journals ask for 3-5 poem submissions, and I will have three or four poems that go together thematically and then throw in a wild card poem that I really want to see published that may not fit that particular theme.
Emerging writers often face rejection, especially early in their writing career. Do you have any advice on handling rejections?
One of my teachers taught me that a rejection means that journal or publication is not the audience for your work. So, that’s what I tell myself with every rejection (and I’ve had many) that my work hasn’t found its audience yet and that’s ok.
As application season is drawing near, many students are concerned with writing their statements of purpose, getting their recommendations in order, and updating their resumes. This, along with finishing an MA, can be daunting. Do you have any advice for navigating the application process?
Start early in the year narrowing down where you want to apply. I would advise researching the schools that you are applying to and making sure that they state on their departmental websites that they cover tuition through teaching assistantships or research assistantships, or through other work programs through the university, like working in writing centers. If the website doesn’t tell you, then call the department and speak to their director to find out how funding is distributed (if it is offered). Not all programs will offer funding or some will just offer partial funding. Make sure to ask your recommenders ahead of time for letters of support, and don’t wait until the last minute. Also, set up a schedule for yourself with deadlines of when you need to have drafts of your statement of purpose completed and always ask if any of your mentors could look over your final draft. Setting a schedule for yourself is the best way to stay organized, complete the MA, and meet application deadlines.
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Mary Cook is a first year MA candidate studying Composition and Rhetoric at Kansas State University. Previously, she attended Waynesburg University, earning a BA in English and Education, and the University of Dayton, earning an MSE in Teacher Leadership and Literacy. She has taught middle school English for the past four years in Dayton, Ohio and Fairbanks, Alaska. Now living in Manhattan, Mary teaches Expository Writing II at K-State and writes about her travels around the world.