Prior to the release of The Devil’s Wife, we sat down with author Will Winters to discuss his new collection, finding oneself, and the challenges that come with writing poetry. Check out the conversation below and preorder The Devil’s Wife starting May 19th at barnesandnoble.com.
“The apple is so compelling.
Its shiny, crisp skin glows,
And I have never seen such a,
Tempting red.”
– an excerpt from Will Winter’s, The Devil’s Wife
Nymeria Publishing: Can you explain the overall theme of this collection?
Will Winters: The overall theme of this collection is that it’s easy to judge what you see on the outside, and it’s easy to say they should change. But people don’t understand that somebody doesn’t end up the way they do because they are inherently good or evil. They become who they are because of their experience and how they, and the people around them, respond to those experiences.
N: How do you feel your experiences in life have shaped your writing?
W: All I know are my experiences. They helped me change into the person I am. Whether that’s a good or bad thing, I don’t know, but that’s what molds my poetry.
“Fiery red ants crawled up my arms,
Their little legs poked holes into my skin,
They sharpened their teeth on my bones.”
– an excerpt from Will Winter’s, The Devil’s Wife
N: How did you come up with the title for The Devil’s Wife?
W: It was a very last-second decision that just came to me. I was trying to figure out how to tie a bunch of poems together, and I started to form this story in my mind. I asked myself, “who is the main character?” “What do they want?” “How does this story end?” The title just came to my mind, and I wrote a few new poems to support the story.
N: What inspired you to start writing poetry?
W: Poetry is the best way to transfer what’s happening in my mind onto paper. Since I had to face a lot of monsters on my own, it was the only way I could understand my feelings. I have a hard time articulating my thoughts, but if I can write them down, it’s like it turns into raw power. It’s my power, and that’s why I love it.
“Because even then
In the darkest corners of the slimmest cracks
That’s where evil grows.”
– an excerpt from Will Winter’s, The Devil’s Wife
N: Which poem was the hardest to write for this collection?
W: “Rose” was a challenging poem to write because the syllables had to match their respective alternating stanzas. The rhyming was taxing because I wrote, “and petals fall in pieces.” I loved the imagery, but I could not figure out what rhymes with pieces. Even if I found a word, it had to make sense for context. So it was the most difficult to write because of all those details. I came up with the first stanza, and it took weeks to come up with the rest.
N: What made you want to turn these works into a collection?
W: I had all of these poems piling up in my google docs, and what inspired me to take action towards publication was the Apple TV+ show, Dickinson. Even though Emily Dickinson only had a few poems published in her lifetime, she had masterfully woven a passion into her work that lasted for lifetimes. I hope people feel the same fire from my poetry as I do with hers.
N: What can readers expect next from you?
W: I’m writing a story about a serial killer and a questionable protagonist. She just so happens to fall in love with the serial killer's ex-wife.
“And though I can dream of courageous acts,
Reality is fleeting, I know.
Forever stuck in an unwanted body,
With a mind that’s pecked by crows.”
– an excerpt from Will Winter’s, The Devil’s Wife
The Devil’s Wife will be published October 2022 by Nymeria Publishing. You can visit nymeriapublishing.com and follow @nymeriapublishing on social media for updates about The Devil’s Wife’s release.