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Interview with Nick Yuk



As a member of Rockland Poets, it has been my privilege to meet many talented writers such as Nina Belen Robins (https://www.leighwintersstoryofhope.com/post/interview-with-nina-belen-robins). Another skilled writer I have had the privilege of competing against is Nick Yuk, author of Hymns for Vultures. He is honest and real and I completely devoured his chapbook. Here is the interview he was generous enough to grant me following the publication of his book.


Q: How old are you? How long have you been writing poetry? What was the catalyst that got you to write poetry?


A: I’m 33 years old and I've been writing poems since I was a kid. I got into poetry honestly cause I thought it was how you got girls. I thought love poems were a surefire thing, though my idea of a poem then was just combining lines from different Meatloaf songs. I still cringe when I think about that. I gave poetry up for a while and when I got back into it, it was a kind of therapy for me. A way to work through trauma that I felt no one else would get.


Q:What advice do you have for budding poets?


A: My advice for budding poets is going to sound cliche but listen to and read other poets. Get out to shows and find inspiration. Don’t be afraid to hear something and go “I know how that feels” and then write your story of it.


Q: Roughly how many times have you performed your work? How many times have you won a poetry slam? What advice do you have for a poet who wants to perform or compete?


A: I honestly have no clue how many times I’ve performed. I’ve been going to shows all over for like 8 or 9 years now. I’ve lost more slams than I’ve won which is great. This means my poems or my performance still needs work and that’s a great feeling. It’s why I can still do my signature poem “I’m Not an Alcoholic” still cause I know there’s still work I can do on it. I’ve had a lot of great advice over the years for performing. The best advice I ever got was when you perform that poem before you get on stage remember what it was like when you wrote it. When the emotions were so strong they kinda just bubble out on the page you need to be back in that mindset. It’s scary as hell especially if you write about suicide or depression, but you want the audience to feel what you felt. Another piece of advice I give poets who perform is that your poem is a story. Poets have this weird thing we call poet voice where they over-enunciateor stretch words to fit some predetermined rhythm. Your poems are stories. Pretend you’re at the bar and you’re telling me a story. Talk to me.


Q: Which of the poems in your book Hymns for Vultures do you think best represents you?


A: All the poems in that book represent me, since they’re all from my life. But the title poem would be a good one. The hardest part about alcoholism, depression, and ,suicidal ideation is how lonely it all feels. Like no one in the world knows what this is like, or they have their own issues so I have to deal with this myself. Even Alcoholics Anonymous, it’s like a dirty secret. This is something shameful and we need to hide it all. But it’s not shameful. More people than you can imagine feel the way you feel, have already gone to war with the demons you’re fighting. For me Hymns for Vultures means we come together. That if we’re all broken we make a new painting from all our shattered pieces.


Q: In your opinion what is the connection between prayer and poetry?


A: Poetry is prayer. A prayer, to me, is just saying how you feel and what you think out loud and hoping it resonates with someone enough to move them to action. Motivational reverends will ask how come we only talk to God when we need something. My answer was always cause we’re hurting for something. Whether you’re writing a piece about systemic racism or your struggle to not kill yourself, you’re putting how you feel out there hoping things change or that your words help someone else move to change. I’m not a religious man, but I believe a prayer is just a word for poetry you haven’t shared with anyone yet.


Q: What poet is your hero? What about them do you admire?


A: I have so many poets that I admire, some for their poetry and others for what they’ve done for different poetry scenes. Take Bryan (Roessel), they have great poetry but they have this way of making you feel safe like “It’ll all be ok let’s get through this poem together.” Damian Rucci and Cord Mordeski have created a huge poetry culture in NJ that has been such a beast that even PBS is doing a full series on the “NJ Poetry Renaissance.”


Q: "I Am Not an Alcoholic" is one of your most performed poems at slams. What makes it your go-to poem?


A: ”I’m Not an Alcoholic” is what I call my ringer. It’s a poem I’m so intimately familiar with that I don’t have to think of how to perform it, like some sort of poet muscle memory. I know when to raise my voice or lower it, when to pick up the pace or slow it down for effect. Performing poetry is just that a performance. Knowing a poem as well as I know that one means I can also adjust based on other poets and crowd reactions. Slams have a ,strategy and when you can freestyle certain aspects of the performance it gives you more latitude to play with to get that score.


Q: In your opinion what is the relationship between mental illness (i.e. depression, suicide) and poetry?


A: This a great question that I feel every artist tries to answer but I don’t think I can. Maybe mental illness makes us question or see things most people don’t. How does a photographer see the perfect shot while out for a stroll? How do painters see the different shapes and details to recreate skylines? Maybe it’s cause everything is just a bit broken and only artists want to point it out.


Q: What keeps you going (besides poetry)?


A: Honestly what keeps me going is my family and friends. I’m lucky to have a very strong support system. They hold me accountable, they help try to show me there’s value in the things I’m interested in and do, and they’re patient with how often I forget or outright dismiss my own value. Also, it’s kinda weird for me to keep going. I have grey hairs in my beard and they are my favorite thing in the world cause I never thought I’d live to be old enough to have them. Things like that keep me going the random realization of “holy shit look at this” makes things a lot easier.


Q: In the poem "Remember" I actually thought you were writing about an actual lover, but you masterfully crafted a poem on death. Do you remember anything about writing that poem (which might be my favorite)?


A: “Remember” is a fun poem. A random fact about me is my wife, Gloria, actually has to try and restrict me watching Hamilton or Dr. Who because sometimes I get so overwhelmingly upset or angry at the characters and have to leave the room. But for that poem the line was just stuck in my head and it was all I could think about. I thought about self-medicatehow often I had imagined or tried to die. I thought of all the people I lost over the years and it just came out.


Q: What is the relationship between addiction and poetry?


A: I’m not sure if there’s a relation between addiction and poetry. I think you see a lot of addiction in poets cause they’re trying to self medicate. Whether it’s to numb the pain or lower their self-conscious about feelings about being emotional or just to feel something. It’s not a connection between poetry and addiction rather hurt people being creative.

Q: Is there anything else you would like to add? Which do you feel is your most important poem?


A: Not sure what else to add but I can always answer more questions. If I had to pick my most important piece it would be “Believe.” Not because of the writing or any bullshit like that, but because people come up to me and tell me how much that poem means to them. I remember one night I performed that at a show in Montclair and this woman came over crying and told me she was 16 hrs sober and she felt terrible for relapsing after so many years clean and hearing someone else going through the same struggles and hearing that same pain made her feel better. I’ve actually kept in touch with her over the years and she still reaches out to tell me her sobriety milestones and it means the world to me to know that my poetry made a difference to someone.


I guarantee you, Nick, your poetry has made a difference to many people.

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