We were lucky to catch up with Kelsi Montgomery recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Kelsi, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

The most meaningful project I ever worked on to date was a book I never published. It was also handmade. When I was a junior in high school, I took a creative writing course. There, I learned how to write poetry, I met my friend and editor and started to learn my writing voice. While taking that class, I was also taking an English III class. My teacher for that class, Ms. Lee, had introduced in the beginning of the year a project that we could get to if we finished our mandatory reading. Our end of year project would be to make homemade poetry books. The announcement was made before I found my footing in poetry, but was still exciting. I’ve always loved crafty things, something I could work on with my hands. However, as the year progressed, I began writing simple poems I wrote in Creative Writing, which were left on little scraps of paper. Soon enough, I was writing poetry about anything. By the time we finished our mandatory reading in English and Ms. Lee began preparing us to make our poetry books, she allowed me to teach my very first poetry workshop to my classmates. I taught my classmates the exact way I was writing poetry at the time – choosing song lyrics, figuring out the meaning and expanding it into a poem. My classmates were able to fill their own poetry books with some of the work they made from my workshop. We spent the last two weeks pulling scraps and pieces from this table in the middle of the classroom – covered in recycled and repurposed items that Ms. Lee brought. I made my book out of a manila folder, wrapped it in pink design paper, made the pages out of index cards and bound the book with yarn through holes placed in the seam of the folder. I named that book “Fallen Leaves”, and turned it in to my teacher. When I got it back with an A, Ms. Lee left a note on the back cover, something along the lines of “Congratulations on another book”. I had put together a book some months back, but didn’t have it public for too long. I didn’t consider the project an official book, but I was deeply proud of it. It had shown my entry in poetry, which was a leap of faith and vulnerability in the first place. Weeks after the project was finished, I decided to turn into a book I would independently publish. I had dreams of independent publishing for some time, as my cousin and his wife had introduced me to it. But this project was the first time I was truly confident in my work and wanted to share. I published it via Barnes and Noble Press in July 2024, and kept it up until 2025. I wasn’t ashamed of my work. It showed the beginnings of a voice that would create more mature poetry from a future project called “divinity: a divine collection”. Every time I think about my evolution as a writer, as a poet; I have to give credit to that little handmade poetry book and Ms. Lee – as I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have the courage I have now without it.

Kelsi, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Kelsi, I’m from Baton Rouge Louisiana and I’ve been a writer since I was 12. I’m currently a college student, hoping to study print journalism and music performance. I’d like to think that the “writing bug” was genetic, as my father was an aspiring playwright turned restaurant owner. The real story is I began writing in sixth grade, when my English teacher gave an assignment that entailed writing a short story. My short story, which was nowhere near short (subtle foreshadowing), was a thriller about a high school aged girl trying to find out who killed her boyfriend, only to find that her jealous best friend was responsible. While the story itself wasn’t the most remarkable, the reaction from my classmates sparked the passion for literature and storytelling. My classmates rushed to me when I finished my public reading, begging for a sequel or anything other writings I could offer. From then on, I began writing silly stories similar to that first short, and began my journey in publishing by anonymously publishing fan fiction on….Wattpad. Every author has their cringy start. I did that for awhile, switching pen names and creating exaggerated stories about my favorite celebrities. At the turn of high school, I started writing more stories that had some structure, getting away from the dramatic fan fiction elements and even incorporating historical and cultural aspects I learned in school. This was personified by my enrollment in a creative writing class my junior year of school as well getting advice about my self publishing from my cousin. I became a poet around sixteen, after hating poetry for most of my younger years. While learning to love it, I realized I “hated” it because I didn’t understand it. When I realized that creativity is fluid, without rules or bounds, I took a lot of the academia prospective from it and used it as a form of expression. I wrote my first poetry book and novel at seventeen – both of which were previously published. I would go on to write second and third poetry book at eighteen, which were published and taken down as well. While I was proud of these projects, I believed – still do – I was chasing simply the high of having physical content instead of learning my work and even keeping certain things for myself. While I still write poetry, and currently have a novel in progress – I’m in no rush to publish anytime soon. In recent days, I’ve leaned towards personal essays, which have been therapeutic as I approach adulthood and navigate college. I primarily share my work on my Substack “in bloom…with room to grow”, which acts as online diary and commentary spot. Writing will continue to be my passion, no matter if I gain monetary value from it or not. As I mature as a writer, I find my value in having readers resonate with my work, instead of buying it and keeping it on a shelf. Hearing that I’ve affected someone positively is the ultimate goal. While I’m primarily a writer, I have also been a professional jazz singer since fifteen – playing my fair share of gigs at local Baton Rouge venues with reputable bands. Singing jazz and having the occasional gig smooths out the rigidness that comes from writing, work and just…life. It allows me to separate from the physical from a bit and decompress. Ultimately, I hope to show as a creative that age is just a number when it comes to intellect and talent. For most of my career, which started very young, I’ve always been the youngest in the room. Overtime, society’s expectation for different ages has discouraged me in certain areas – causing me to have a bit of insecurity over my age. But I’m often reminded that one’s physical age and mental age do not always align in creativity and intellect – and that age shouldn’t matter in the world of expression and creativity. I encourage young creatives like myself to be bold in their skill and talent, to never let someone underestimate you or determine your worth based on a number that is irrelevant to expression.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Perfection is subjective. As creatives, especially those who publish or share their art in some way, we have this natural desire for our art to be perfect. Admittedly, rejection and criticism can affect one’s self esteem when it comes to their work. So we nitpick, criticize and alter our work so much that we lose the initial value, the initial intention. And at that point, where’s the expression? I had a conversation with another creative a while back in which we discussed the principle of saying “f**k it”. Perfection, creativity, “goodness” – is purely subjective. It’s opinion based, given by those who may not have context, who may have differing opinions and ideals. Differing upbringings and cultural norms. Your perfect may not be another person’s perfect, but it’s yours. Why does this matter? When I was in my creative writing class, going through the throes of learning to write poetry, my teacher introduced this idea of letting your work simmer. Writing what you wanted, tucking it away to rest and coming back with a fresh mind. The goal was to have a piece of work you were maybe unsatisfied with initially, letting it rest, and coming back with an open, non critical mind that could see the intention and beauty in the piece. I used my own deeply southern, Louisianan analogy to interpret this idea. Most people know Louisiana for Gumbo, at least I’d hope so. Locals and those who have slaved over a hot pot of gumbo know that while the gumbo may be good when you first make it, you have to let it sit overnight before you can fully enjoy it. Why? When that pot sits, all the seasonings and herbs and spices (most importantly energy) has blossomed and has turned into a more fulfilling bowl of gumbo. Ultimately, your work is for somebody – not everybody. And as long as you love your work, no one else matters. I’ll admit, the notion is easier said than done. But accepting it and putting it into practice also works.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

More than books sales or a picture of someone holding my work, having someone return to me and saying that my work resonated with them on a personal level will always be rewarding as a creative. Like other things as a writer, this took awhile to accept. I thought success as an author was tied to how much money you make, how many books you and sign and sell. I’m not discrediting that version of success, as I’m not totally avoiding that either. I’ll be honest, many books can be bought – but can they be read? Could they be digested and understood? I’m no genius, just talking. This idea applies more – to me – to my personal and commentary essays I publish on Substack, which has produced an audience who do resonate with my work. But there is meaning in everything: silly romance stories, poetry, personal essays, a simple conversation. Everything has a meaning and intentional purpose. When I began to publish on Substack, I was using it to navigate womanhood and adulthood. It was a place to brain dump, less rigid than publishing or a novel that still had some structure. Substack kept my passion for writing alive, while allowing me to feel and vent. My platform isn’t the biggest, but it attracted young women like me who were also feeling the same things. And when many of them expressed it through social media comments, I experienced a dopamine hit that I could never get from sales. I experienced connection. The golden word for us creatives. It provided this sense of community, affirmation that these cannon events occurring in my life were just growing pains that everyone goes through. It made everything happening to me and around me feel a lot less lonely. Knowing that you connected with an audience, knowing that those readers are able to see aspects of themselves in your work is a feeling that will forever be rewarding as a writer – and gives me the passion to keep writing.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: allshedoesiswrites
• Other: TikTok: allshedoesiswrites
  Substack: in bloom…with room to grow