Former Flame Fridays - Amelia K.
3/7/15
You were featured in volume 666. What has happened since?
So much!
Overdressed For A Threesome, Underdressed For A Funeral
(Hell is Waiting)
You & I like her more than we like each other
but you can't seem to accept that
you're here to make bearable
the heaving girlsex we want to have. You
are not the man I would have chosen. You
are knuckle deep in a tumulus of fresh basil,
making bad pesto; the only death you bring
is of boredom. I am looking up into the dark
because the son I haven't had yet is telling me
that with a kind enough reticle, you can see
everything that's ever happened in the night sky.
He still doesn't know how close he came to being
a brother, and neither do I; now & then, my body
throbs to undaughter itself. In the now I have created,
you are hot & bothered in your idiotic flannel, Orpheus
with sensible cords. And when her face splits the hymen
of the door, we both turn.What/who inspired Overdressed For A Threesome, Underdressed For A Funeral (Hell is Waiting)? How does it fit into your style/body of work?
My first threesome was so surreal I felt like I had to write about it eventually (it's been almost 20 years). The guy made pesto and he was in cords and a button-up. The vibes were Mormon. I was really only into his girlfriend, but I felt obligated as a bisexual to have sex with both of them. That period of my life was bittersweet, and I wanted to honor it, which is kind of a running theme in my work.
Why Troublemaker Firestarter? What compels you to submit your work? Why be a writer at the end of the world?
I like purple! And the name! And this is a funny time to ask this because I've been contemplating not publishing anymore. I always used to roll my eyes at people who said they never planned to write about themselves, but I never planned to write about myself. I set out to tell a story that I think I'm done telling now. I have always written and will always write, but I've got a couple things coming out next year, and then I think I'm done. I would never turn down a project that sang to me, but I would also never carry on a tune that doesn't resonate anymore. So we'll see! I wish I had a better answer.
Who are your current favorite writers?
Nonfiction: Meg Miller is a really thoughtful interviewer and essayist, and I'm always rereading Roland Barthes.
Fiction: Blindboy Boatclub in general, and Small Bones in a Fist in particular; it's on Spotify. I haven't had time to really listen to his podcast yet because I've been looping this audiobook.
Poetry: Hanif Abdurraqib
Are you a troublemaker, a firestarter, a heartbreaker, a lucky duck, a devil, a terror, or sad and horny?
Always a devil.
Where can people find you?
Phinizy Swamp; I like the alligators, and there's a shade of very, very dark green I only ever see there
What would you want the lovely readers of Substack to do?
My real job is massage therapy, and I wish people knew how incredible their bodies are. It takes real courage to be vulnerable, and it's a courage I don't always have. Don't apologize for the space you take up. Your body is perfect, and you are all so beautiful.