We recently connected with Nayeli Knudsen and have shared our conversation below.

Nayeli , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

When I first began doing typewriter poetry back in 2014, I was driven by the idea of story and the unique journey of every person.

Custom typewriter poetry, at its core, is a practice of being in complete service to others. You become in charge of crafting a piece of poetry that honors the story that was told to you by a patron. For me, it is vital to take myself out of the writing so I become a funnel for another’s voice. When they walk away with their poem I want them to feel as if they were a collaborator in their own poem.

As a poet who mostly centered their writing around self, I learned how listening to others experiences and desires makes us interconnected in essential ways.

This process had definitely made a better writer and ignited my passion for service through writing.

Nayeli , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I first encountered typewriter poetry at a UCLA sponsored event back in 2014. Essentially, patrons come up and discuss a topic that they would like a poem about (topics range from the serious to the raucously outrageous to tragedy to you name it – it truly can be about anything they want).

After listening their story, poets then craft a poem inspired by the topic within about 3-5 minutes. The poem is then read and given to the patron.

I found this practice to be captivating; a true testament to making other’s stories into art.

It was from this driving force that Melrose Poetry Bureau was founded.

Over the last 10 years Melrose Poetry Bureau has garnered clientele from all walks of life. Myself, Bobby Gordon, Brian Sonia Wallace, and Linda Ravenswood, core members/founders of MPB, have built a business that emphasizes a meaningful event experience for patrons.

We saw an opportunity to offer a more intimate experience for parties. Unlike a more traditional favors or takeaways, custom typewriter poetry is truly tailored to the person. We want patrons to leave with a piece of writing that speaks to them.

The most gratifying moment is when someone is moved by the piece crafted for them and tells others they MUST come and get a poem.

What I want people to know about the art of custom typewriter poetry is that everyone has a story worth being turned into art and it is an honor when I am tasked with its creation.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I, like many writers, have always been a perfectionist with my work. I think that the struggle of having ADHD has also lent itself to this plight of perfection. There is always this underlying belief that I need to compensate for my shortcomings by being exceptional.

The practice of writing a poem for someone in 3-5 minutes and giving it to them on the spot forces you to escape your “editor’s brain” because there simply isn’t time. I have found this practice to be healing in the sense that you must let all the criticisms about your writing go and its just going to be what it is. Here, without the limitations of yourself, magic can happen.

I have learned that my writing does not have to be perfect to be impactful. Rather, it is in the imperfections and rapidity that you free yourself. I am a better writer and person because of this.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I have always been fascinated by learning and acquiring new skills, which is why my life/career is a grab bag. I have worked in marketing in for a 3D scanning company to education services for homeless youth to a business development for a real estate company. On the surface, everything feels disconnected from each other but as I looked back on the mish mash of occupations, I realized how they built on each other to enable my poetry business to grow.

Any job I had got me more access to different human perspectives, which only helped my craft. Additionally, any marketing job that I held helped me learn how to optimize my own business (eg. I became HubSpot certified and learned inbound marketing for free, which grew my poetry business revenue 70% within a year).

This is all to say that if you feel like your path is more disjointed like mine, there are always lessons and skills you can apply for the things you are passionate about. I would say don’t be discouraged by the fact that your life is all encompassed by one thing. You can not only still pursue that artistic venture, but bolster it with jobs that don’t quite seem connected. You just need to find your own through line even if it doesn’t make sense to other people.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.melrosepoetrybureau.com
• Instagram: @melrosepoetrybureau
• Facebook: Melrose Poetry Bureau
• Tik Tok: @melrosepoetry

Image Credits
Andrew Heiser – feature photo only