We recently connected with writer and educator Kirsten Ogden and have shared our conversation below.
Kirsten, we are looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the writing craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
Something I tell my students to do to develop their own, unique voices is to write without topics – that is, to do what educator Peter Elbow calls “freewriting” or writer Natalie Goldberg calls “first thoughts” or those “morning pages” that Julia Cameron urges writers to do in THE ARTIST’S WAY. Whatever you want to call it, writing in present moment in your natural voice without the necessity of a topic or prompt or a writing exercise on a daily basis can help us get more closely connected to that hungry voice inside of us — and when we can get closer to that voice and get comfortable with it, then we can manipulate it and modulate it for different genres, purposes, and audiences. But it’s important to navigate all that with a solid foundation in our own, unique voices.
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?
Of course! I’m a poet, writer and educator currently living in Los Angeles and teaching at Pasadena City College. I’ve been writing as long as I can remember and I’d call myself a multigenre writer. I’ve always been aware that I was writing, too — and what I mean by that is that it was a conscious choice to begin keeping a diary as young kid, and to keep that diary in a way that storied my days, if that makes sense – so I was always aware that there was an audience out there somewhere, some day. I also loved poetry and rhymes as a child growing up in Hawai’i, so writing poems was an early occupation. When my family moved from Hawai’i I lived in southeast Louisiana and the Bay Area, and have spent time in Alaska and now have a home in Los Angeles. These varied places each with their unique cultures definitely impacted who I am and how and what I write.
After working in theater and performance and after writing and directing plays and writing screenplays for a bit, I began to go back to writing poetry and literary non-fiction more seriously while also building a teaching career. All of my life, special teachers and mentors like fiction writer Nancy Zafris and poet Katherine Harer have been mentors. And my students give me a lot of inspiration too. In fact, one of my students said to me, “you need to stop helping us and put your work out there” because so many of my students have had books published, which was kind of a challenge to finally put together a manuscript which became WHAT THE BODY ALREADY KNOWS, the poetry collection that won the Finishing Line Press New Women’s Voices poetry prize.
I also like to help other writers — beginner writers especially, because I really do believe that we are all naturally born creative, and if we can write, we can change ourselves and our world for the better. Maybe that’s corny, but I really believe that.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
One of the most rewarding aspects of being an artist for me is teaching young writers and also engaging with other artists and creatives, building a community, and supporting beginners in their own creative pursuits. I love teaching journaling workshops, and as an artist and writer, I absolutely love exploring and experimenting with new mediums and genres, and sharing that work with communities to help them tap into their own creativity. I’ve been experimenting with book arts [[see my website at https://wellalteredeiderdown.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
I don’t think art or creative pursuits need a goal or mission – I am so very interested in the action of art and creativity – the process. Art and creativity are one of the fundamental ways that we connect with other human beings on this planet. But I will say that Something that inspires me and drives me is also helping anyone who wants to tap into their creativity to begin a writing life for themselves. Writing has had a big impact on my life and my sense of well-being, and so I try to help others see the therapeutic benefits of a writing life. It’s powerful.
Contact Info:
- Website: kirstenogden.com
- Instagram: sizzleandbounce
Image Credits
1. Headshot of K.E. Ogden – courtesy of the author.
2. Cover What the Body Already Knows by K.E. Ogden
3. Advertisement Promo – courtesy of the author
4. “The Writing Life” – Photo courtesy of the author.
5. Cover Art for Inscape X Core Healing Arts Chapbook, Pasadena City College Creative Writing Program
6. Dr. Ogden with CORE Student Fellows at the Pasadena City College 2023 Flex Day presenting a workshop on the Therapeutic Benefits of Writing, and holding copies of the Healing Arts chapbook and workbook, available through the Pasadena City College ELS Division Creative Writing program. Photo courtesy of the author.
7. Kirsten Ogden and friend Jimmy Santiago Baca, who appeared as keynote speaker and workshop leader at the 2023 CORE Healing Arts Festival at Pasadena City College. Photo courtesy of the author.