1) Why don’t you show yourself or use your real name on social media?

 

Well, in a way I do show myself quit intimately in fact, only it’s through words, but I get why people want to know why I don’t put pictures of myself out there, and the reason is very simple: I am just not interested in any kind of self-promotion beyond my work. I don’t like that kind of attention, honestly, so I prefer to stay anonymous which is also very freeing creatively, as I can write without being as self-conscious of it.

 

2) You say in your biography that you are happily married. How did you meet your wife?

 

Well first I had to get my act together. I was a drinker for quite some time when I was single, just trying to figure myself out as most people do in their twenties, but once I got sober, I realized I was done with any relationship that wasn’t 100% authentic. I also knew I just had to be patient and not settle for anybody who wasn’t right. I went on a lot of dates that went nowhere in my twenties, but then one day, while I was minding my own business I ran into a friend at a coffee shop, and they said there was a woman I just had to meet. They gave me a number, and a day later I made the call. I could tell just by the sound of her voice, she was special. Then we made a date to meet at a coffee shop, and I remember when I walked out my door there was like this heavy feeling in my guts, and I thought, “Oh shit, this could be the real thing,” and it turned out it was.

 

3) What inspires you to write so much about love?

 

I get my inspiration from a lot of places, but mostly from life and literature. I have been with my wife for over a decade now, so I am constantly learning more about love from our relationship, but also about life, and what’s important. So I write about what I have experienced, and how I feel. Love is such a vast and complex subject, there is also no end ot exploring it. I am also a voracious reader, so I am inspired by other poets who write about love like Pablo Neruda, Rumi, and Rupi Kaur.    

 

4)   There is often a criticism of instagram poetry as not being real poetry, how do you respond to that?

 

I think it’s funny because I used to think that way. I actually have a degree in poetry and was taught to believe poetry had to be a certain way, but when I started seeing how instagram poetry connects to people, I really liked that. I have never liked elitism in anything, and gatekeepers who think they can say what poetry is or isn’t, so I think of social media poetry as it’s own genre, with it’s own conventions and themes, and I have really enjoyed working within those parameters.

 

5) What is love?

 

I actually get this question a lot, and I usually respond by saying, “Read my poems,” because it is such a complex subject, but ultimately love is the glue that holds us together, it’s the unifying theme of the universe. It’s what really matters in the end. For more on the subject, please read my books.

 

 

Do you have advice for anyone still single?

 

Yes, be patient. Don’t settle. It’s better to be alone, than to be with somebody who makes you feel alone. Wait, I just realized I am talking in poems, so that is a good sign that I mean what I say in my poems, so go read my poems because they don’t just talk about being in love, but also waiting for love, and learning from love.

 

 

Thank you all for reading, and being part of this journey. I hope that my words have touched you in some way, and that you will continue to find poetry everywhere you go!
You can follow me on Instagram or Facebook @markanthonypoet  

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