We recently connected with Beverly Army Williams and have shared our conversation below.
Beverly, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
Last September an essay that took me nearly 40 years to write was published in The Rumpus.
When I was 14, my sister, who is two years older than I am, was kidnapped and sexually assaulted. Almost as soon as I understood what had happened to her, I wrote about it. At times I wrote fiction (including during my MFA in creative writing program, when I wrote my dissertation, a novella) about a young woman who is assaulted, always trying to change the outcome. I struggled to write about her assault in essay form, only finding satisfaction when I began to tackle that day in poetry. My mentor, Sawnie Morris, helped me to see that my struggles came because I found myself telling my sister’s story when I wanted to tell mine–the story of being the sibling of a rape survivor. My mentor helped me to see that my story mattered, too, and within the year, I not only continued to write poetry on this theme, but I also wrote the essay that The Rumpus published.
It’s meaningful to me not only because it’s the result of almost 40 years of trying to figure out what I wanted to say, but because so many people have shared with me that they relate to the essay’s story. There is so much silence when it comes to sexual assault, and I think my essay shows that it is powerful to break that silence.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’ve been writing since a young age. I took an MFA in creative writing (fiction) at the University of New Mexico and have continued to write. To support myself while writing, I’ve worked as a writing professor. In addition to writing and teaching, I am a mixed media artist, working primarily in textiles. I am a big fan of long-term projects and am in my sixth year-long project (a daily postcard project in which I make a papercut postcard each day and mail it to someone who has signed up to receive a postcard), a 150-day project, I’m also working on my tenth 100-day project in which I create a zine of unsolicited advice using my alter-ego Dear Ms. Tomato. All of my work, from writing to drawing to embroidery, has this in common: I follow my curiosity. I believe curiosity is critical to creativity, which is why I recently co-founded Creative Patina, a School for the Curious with my long-time friend and collaborator, writer and artist Joyce Hayden. We teach workshops that combine writing and visual art in a supportive, fun, encouraging environment.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I live in a constant state of wonder and delight because I embrace my curiosity. I know, for me and many others, curiosity leads to creativity. I’m so grateful to be able to pursue the questions that ignite me.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I don’t think I could be a writer without being resilient. Writers face rejection constantly. As a college teacher with students who plan to be writers, I realized it’s important to show my students how I react to rejection. Whether in the classroom or on social media (for my students and alums who follow me), I always celebrate rejections. I share the rejection and also share that each rejection gives me another opportunity to find a home for a particular piece of writing. Being open about my rejections has buoyed my resilience.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://prairie-summer-090.notion.site/Creative-Patina-Spring-Workshops-74c857d81be64fa2bd9b53d48a44a399
- Instagram: @beverly_army13
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beverlyarmy13
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beverlyarmywilliams/
Image Credits
Headshot (first photo): Gale Zucker All others: Beverly Army Williams