Capria’s Prose Poem, “A Book of Life in Ten Parts” is currently live at The Fertile Source: http://fertilesource.com/?p=774

In “A Book of Life in Ten Parts” a brave perspective emerges challenging the assumption that carrying a life to term (and the subsequent lifetime role of motherhood) proves to automatically be the best choice when one conceives. Can you talk to us about the writing of this poem? How did you choose this point of view?

I have a love for vignettes. My favorite pieces comprise of brief glimpses and for “A Book of Life in Ten Parts,” flashes seemed perfects. Every time I hear a mother talking about her experiences, they are always divided into tiny moments: baby's first steps, the first doctor visit, young child sticking butter up his nose. You never hear about the other side, the woman who experienced motherhood briefly but decided against it. Just because a woman has had an abortion doesn't mean she is any less of a mother. She carried some form of life inside, nurtured it as long as she could, but in the end, decided that she couldn't go to full-term. It's an abbreviated form of motherhood but motherhood nonetheless. I wanted to give a voice to those every-day women and did my best to speak for that generalized population.

Have you, as a writer, come across other poetry or literature that explores this subject? What would be your dreams for how your poetry might inspire others? What would you say to others facing a pregnancy they may be ambivalent, at best, about carrying to term?

One of my favorite poems is “The Mother” by Gwendolyn Brooks. The poem is about an impoverished woman who decides to abort her child and spends time focusing on the things she and her child will never experience together. But that persona is still a mother and at the end of the poem, she speaks about how much she loves these lost children.

The most obvious piece about abortion is Hemingway's “Hills Like White Elephants” which will always be one of my favorite short stories. There is just something so gut-wrenching about the piece but at the same time, it's so beautiful. There is that hope that after the abortion, the characters will be able to reestablish the normalcy in their lives.

Probably the most beautiful piece of literature was written by a classmate of mine in college. She wrote a brief memoir about her own abortion and read it to our class. She cried in the middle of the reading but forced herself to keep reading. Afterward, I hugged her and thanked her for reading it. To this day, I think it was the most beautiful piece I've ever read/heard. Abortion is a topic explored in literature but not really spoken about.

As for my own poetry, I would hope that someone might read a piece and think, “Wow, that's how I feel” or “I never thought of it that way.” Personally, I do not think that abortion should be such a condemned medical act. The majority of time, the pro-life argument seems to be, oh think of the baby. There is the immediate thought that abortion is a form of murder.

But no one ever thinks that abortion can be a form of love. If a mother-to-be knows she cannot financially/emotionally/physically provide for the child, then she is doing what is best for the child by having an abortion. I know that adoption is an alternative but there are so many children in the social services system that are never placed in a family. So which is better in that respect? Raising a child the woman might resent or putting the child up for adoption and never being guaranteed that the child will find a loving family?

Having a child, choosing abortion, or putting the child up for adoption is such a personal choice. A woman shouldn't let anyone else dictate that choice for her. I think that she'll instinctively know what her best option is. No one but the mother can decide if the time is right for her to give birth. The thing that people need to remember is that what is best for one person isn't necessarily best for another. That goes for childbirth and abortion.

Some women swear that motherhood is the best thing that has ever happened to them and other women just don't see motherhood fitting into their plans. Those choices are wholly personal. Personally, I'm tired of seeing abortion being used as a political position. No one is forcing anyone to have an abortion. We live in a democracy and the right to choose is a wonderful thing.

Can you talk about the saying quoted in the poem, “children come into the world with a loaf of bread under their arms”?

The quotation alludes to the idea that motherhood is a gift. Children are great miracles that will enhance a woman's life. It was something I heard my grandmother say once and remembered when I was writing the piece. It's meant to be a Catholic sentiment, the idea that motherhood is encouraged by god. I find it to be a somewhat limited expression due to the fact that there are plenty of people who have worthwhile lives without becoming parents. I might be biased though because I lack the desire to have children. Writing is my version of parenthood.

Where do you find inspiration for your other poetry and writing?

I have a number of pet themes I am constantly inspired by. Current events are a big part of that. The oil spill, breast ironing in Africa, all of that. My favorite topics have to do with the body. I am incredibly interested in science and that runs through my work. Anatomical models, fetal development, deformities, historic diseases, all those things interest me. Mythology is another source. I love all forms of mythology and fairy tales. The stories can be adapted in so many ways to fit into the modern world. I am also an unabashed believer in the supernatural and often, aspects of the paranormal make it into my work. I love ghost stories. Those were my favorite things to read and write when I was young.

Who are your writing mentors? Who encouraged you along the way to write? Do you think having a writing mentor matters?

I recently graduated with my MFA and my writing mentor was novelist, David Grand. He was a fantastic mentor and encouraged me to embrace all of my thematic quirks. I have a hatred for editing and David constantly reminds me that part of the writing process is revision. I revise the same way I took medicine as a child: unwillingly but with the understanding that it will make me better.

Another mentor was my high school English teacher, Lisa Klein, who was incredibly supportive of my writing. I constantly read my work and participated in writing workshops because of her. My family has encouraged me throughout my career. They read my writing, but admit that sometimes, the stories frighten them a bit. Having a mentor can be helpful but just as beneficial is having some form of a first reader.

My fiancé is my reader and when I have a piece I'm not sure about, I ask his opinion. When I was working on my MFA thesis, there were many nights when I would shake him awake so he could read a story or two.

What are you currently working on?

I'm working on a number of things. I focus mainly on chapbooks and novelettes and there are about six titles that are pending in my files. I am constantly jumping from one work to the next until a piece holds my attention for an extended amount of time. I prefer writing very short works and it is uncommon for a story to exceed three pages. Even that's a bit long for me.

I've also been working on prose poems but in the sense that I translate poetic forms into prose. For example, when writing a prose haiku, I might focus on three paragraph stories that have five sentences, seven sentences, and five sentences respectively or I might have a single paragraph 17 sentences in total. Sometimes I'll write a traditional haiku across the page but add several stanzas to the paragraph. It all depends on what the chapbook demands to be written as. Often, I put chapbooks on my website http://alanaicapria.com.