{"id":7458,"date":"2023-08-17T16:27:05","date_gmt":"2023-08-17T15:27:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/applesandsnakes.org\/?p=7458"},"modified":"2023-08-25T16:51:08","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T15:51:08","slug":"linden-mcmahon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/applesandsnakes.org\/2023\/08\/17\/linden-mcmahon\/","title":{"rendered":"Linden McMahon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Describe yourself in 3 words\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Just a hopepunk hobbit<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What inspires you?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At the moment I write a lot about the ecosystems we\u2019re part of; my relationships with land, plants and animals. I\u2019m also facilitating nature connection sessions, and I\u2019ve been veering more and more towards projects which combine ecology and creativity. I\u2019m working on a project with the RHS at the moment, co-producing an interactive exhibition about weeds with a group of teenagers \u2013 the theme has been a really exciting way into thinking about our relationships to plants. And, though it sounds clich\u00e9, the young people I work with inspire me a lot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Tell us about your worst ever gig?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I got to the finals of the Scottish Slam Championships and blanked on stage in the first round. Had to have a big chocolate sundae to cheer me up after.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s your number one poetry pet peeve?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

People who sneer at \u201chobbyists\u201d and create a sense of hierarchy based around paying your dues and how professional you are. I don\u2019t want to dismiss commitment to craft, but poetry is a hard world to be professional in, and I wish we could all enjoy it without capitalism stealing the joy in it. Poetry is for everyone!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Whose words do you love at the moment?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I read a poem by Hera Lindsay Bird the other day that made my brain fizz.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What piece of advice would you give to your younger self?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are other kinds of success than prizes and top publishers. Don\u2019t lose the joy and connection that got you into poetry in the first place in pursuit of someone else\u2019s idea of what you should be doing to be a \u201creal\u201d poet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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If you could travel anywhere in space and time, where would you go?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s hard not to try and think of a moment where we could have averted something that created suffering. Like, is there a moment I could intervene to change the course of the climate crisis? But I\u2019m not sure when or what that would be. If I was just sightseeing, I\u2019d go back to the time when homo sapiens and Neanderthals lived together and see what they got up to.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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