Today we’d like to introduce you to Caitlin Gemmell

Hi Caitlin, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?

The urge to write — to make sense of the frantic thoughts running through my head, give a voice to the characters constantly pestering me to be brought to life, and craft a story that only I can tell — has been with me for as long as I can remember. I’ve always known I am a writer. What I didn’t accept until recently is that I am a poet. But my poems have found homes in the world, whereas I’m still working up the courage to publish prose.

Perhaps, more than anything, I identify with the title of “storyteller.” No matter the form my art takes, the reason I create is to share a story. Stories are essential to human existence. Besides the important function of providing entertainment, stories help people relate to others, shape beliefs and culture, inspire, and help us to make sense of our lives.

As someone who has been on the path of a witch since the age of twelve, stories are among my most important tools for creating magic and sculpting my reality. Words have power. Words contain magic. They are magic.

And it’s been delightful seeing my poems awaken the magic in others. When I send them out into the world, it’s always with the intention that they will be found by those who need them. And that has proved to be the case time and again.

My readership is growing but is still fairly small, however those who do discover my poems and my newsletter on Substack tend to stick around. Though I create poems on my own, it’s truly a collaboration between writer and reader. Once fully formed, a poem can mean different things to different people. As an animist, I see poems as living creatures. They interact with those who read them, shape shifting accordingly.

When I first began to accept the call to be a poet, I shared my poetry on my old Instagram. Eventually, I gathered the courage to begin submitting a few poems to publishers and was shocked at how easily they found homes, Prior to this, I had queried various publishers in an attempt to publish short stories. None were accepted. But doors kept opening for my poetry, and so I kept on submitting. Not often. But often enough. The majority of the poems I have submitted have been published. This has given me the confidence to consider myself a poet. I fully embrace this title for myself that I would have rejected even five years ago due to lack of confidence stemming from narcissistic abuse.

The journey hasn’t always flowed smoothly. At times I’ve felt more like I’m navigating a stormy sea. But by being courageous, building connections with kindred spirits, harnessing the strength to keep going when darkness threatened to quash my creativity, and accepting the seeker’s call to action, I have found my place in the world as a poet.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?

The journey hasn’t always been smooth. Though I was raised by wonderful, supportive parents, I’ve dealt with anxiety for most of my life. I’ve always been what my mother affectionately, and maybe with a hint of exasperation, terms “worry wort.” But perhaps because I’ve always been capable, with a “keep calm and carry on” outward appearance, my intense anxiety was never really acknowledged by my family.

I remember when I was quite young I went through a phase in which I had trichotillomania, whereby I would pull out my eyelashes and eyebrow hairs. This was of concern to my parents, so I stopped when I realized it was causing them distress. I then switched to biting my fingernails whenever my anxiety became too great. That’s a habit I mostly managed to break, but I still resort to it in times of great stress.

I learned to mask from a young age, so the fact that I was struggling wasn’t really noticed by anyone. I’ve always been a private person, keeping my thoughts and feelings to myself, only sharing little pieces of my inner world with those I feel comfortable with. It’s interesting that poetry, which emerges from my inner landscape, is what I have chosen to share with the world.

Another struggle has been to overcome my inner critic. My inner critic can be harsh at times, and this is mostly due to experiencing narcissistic abuse. While grieving the death of my father, I found myself swept into a relationship that took me down a dark path and was ultimately extremely toxic. I’m still trying to untangle the threads and remember whose voice I’m really listening to. Rewriting my story has been the most healing, sacred experience.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?

I’m mostly known as a poet, though I studied art and design at Bournemouth and Poole College in England and have exhibited my visual art in the past. Fiber art is what I tend to create the most, when I’m not writing. As with my writing, I’m inspired by fairy tales, myth, nature, magic, and romance/relationships in the creation of my stitched story pieces. One of my favorites depicts the swan maiden fairy tale, revealing the threads connecting swan to woman. Threads that connect is an important motif for me, both in terms of writing and visual art.

I love how my stitched stories have been purchased by those who are unearthing their personal mythologies, and how doors are opening for me to step through as a poet and myth maker.

I think my animistic beliefs and formal academic study of myth and culture (both as an undergraduate through Empire State University and as a graduate student at Prescott College) contribute to my own unique way of creating art that stirs the mythic imagination.

Who else deserves credit in your story?

There have been so many people who have supported me along my journey as a poet and creator.

Some of my earliest cheerleaders were English teachers. Mrs. Woodfin, Mrs. Richmond, and Ms. Baxter (who married my other favorite high school teacher and is now Mrs. Waldron) were the first to recognize my talent as a writer and encouraged me to develop my craft. I suppose I should also thank Ms. Morley, my teacher at my school in England. It was through her assignment to her third year students to make a book that I was first hit with an inner spark of knowing that my path would lead to that of an author. I was seven at the time. The book I wrote and illustrated was about a squirrel and a little girl who helps him find his most cherished possession that he lost in a fit of frantic energy.

Those that have helped me the most in recent years are the many friends, writing partners, Instagram community of kindred spirits, subscribers to my newsletter on Substack, and family members who always believe in me and have shown up in a major way to help make my dream a reality. I’m so grateful for all of these beautiful souls.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://caitlingemmell.substack.com/about
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/icapturethestory/
• Other: https://pangobooks.com/bookstore/icapturethestory