Local Authors Interview With: Courtney Bates-Hardy
Photo Credit: Ali Lauren Creative Services.
What is your story?
I’ve been writing poetry since I was about seven years old. My first book came out in 2013; it’s a book of fairy tale poems called House of Mystery. These aren’t your typical fairy tales—they’re full of transformation and blood, monsters and witches. The book is out of print now, but you can still find a copy at Mortise and Tenon or reach out to me directly for one.
Since then, I’ve been working on a second collection of poems, which is due out in Spring 2024 from Radiant Press. The writing of this collection was heavily influenced by events in my personal life. I’ve been in multiple car accidents, including two rollovers. As a result of those accidents, I experience chronic nerve pain in my neck and shoulder. I did not accept that this (and other conditions) meant I was disabled until I began writing this collection.
Around the same time, I finally accepted that I was also queer. I grew up in a conservative Christian school, and gay people were not only not talked about but students who came out as gay were expelled. It took about ten years for me to admit that I was queer after I graduated.
Both of these journeys have influenced my writing significantly.
What books do you remember reading when you were growing up, how do they influence you today?
I read a lot growing up but the ones that were most influential were likely a big set of books that looked like encyclopedias, but they included myths, fables, fairy tales, and retellings of historical events. The variety of stories fascinated me, and I loved to pick one out and read through all the stories. In some ways, I still do this to fuel my own writing. I seek out stories I find fascinating and then write poems about them.
Why do you write?
Frankly, I get cranky and dysregulated if I don’t write or have a project on the go. I find it helpful to process big feelings and changes in my life in my writing. That’s the big reason. But the smaller, day-to-day reasons could be as simple as seeing a woman framed in a window with flowers surrounding her and wanting to capture that moment.
What authors influenced you the most, and why?
It likely depends on what book project I’m working on. When I was writing my first book, House of Mystery, I was most influenced by other fairy tale writers, including Hans Christian Andersen, The Brothers Grimm, Angela Carter, Kate Bernheimer, and Anne Sexton.
With my second book, I’ve been more influenced by books like The Anatomical Venus by Joanna Ebenstein, Pain Woman Takes Your Keys and Other Essays from a Nervous System by Sonya Huber, Detailing Trauma: A Poetic Anatomy by Arianne Zwartjes, and Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability, and Making Space by Amanda Leduc.
I have many favourite poets who have influenced my writing over time that include Anne Simpson, Lorna Crozier, Rachel Rose, Amber Dawn, Sina Queyras, Rayanne Haines, and Domenica Martinello.
What is the most important part of your creative process?
Whatever part I’m in at the moment. When I’m researching, that’s the most important part; when I’m writing, that’s the most important; when I’m editing, that’s the most important. You can’t have a finished piece of writing without all three, so I don’t place more value on one phase than another. I think I enjoy the research and writing parts the most. I love getting absorbed by a new interest and finding out all I can about 17th century anatomical models or death rituals or Mothra from Godzilla.
How do you want your writing to affect people?
At best, I’d like my writing to make people feel something. I don’t think of poems as puzzles to be solved, I think of them as an experience to be shared.
I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about how readers will receive a poem when I’m writing though; mostly, I’m trying to work something out for myself. I find the process to be therapeutic, and it can be nerve wracking for me to share something so personal with the public.
What does authenticity mean to you in the context of community?
I write from personal experience most of the time, but I also fully recognize that my writing is inspired by books I’ve read, stories I’ve heard, history I’ve read about. When I was writing the fairy tale poems, I was putting my own spin on these many-told stories. I think it’s possible to be authentic and unique while telling stories that people are familiar with. People enjoy reading stories that feel familiar but also surprise them with something new. Books come from books, and you can’t write without also reading. It’s nearly impossible to write without either reading or interacting with the broader writing community.
Do you think building a connection between the writers of Saskatchewan's past and present writers is helpful to build the writer community?
I would say that it’s important to know Saskatchewan’s writing history in order to know what has been written about already and where your work might fit (or break the mold). But it’s also important to make connections with local writers who are currently writing. No one knows your struggles more than other writers, and it’s invaluable to have their feedback and support along the way.
How would you describe Saskatchewan’s or Regina’s writing community?
It’s a very supportive community. Everyone knows everyone here. I’m grateful to have my small writers’ group—shout out to The Pain Poets! I think it’s changed a lot even since I graduated from university. The poets that I graduated with have published books and made their contributions to the writing community here. It’s become more diverse, both in terms of who is writing and what they’re writing.
You use a lot of fairy tale motifs in your poetry, is that where you draw a lot of your inspiration from?
Yes, especially for my first book, although I’ve noticed them creeping into my second book as well. It’s not as obvious as the first one but I think the forms of fairy tales have fundamentally shaped my writing.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to aspiring poets/writers?
Try to find a job that gives you enough time and energy to write at the end of the day. Most writers can’t afford to write full-time anymore, so the best thing you can do is find a job that doesn’t take over your entire brain. Keep some of that creative energy for yourself. Write when you can, where you can, and don’t be too precious about it, just get it out on paper.
What can you tell us about your next book?
My second book is titled Anatomical Venus and it will be coming out in Spring 2024 from Radiant Press. The title comes from a 17th century wax anatomical model that was created by Clemente Susini for the purpose of studying anatomy. An anatomical venus is a wax figure of a woman whose stomach can be lifted to reveal the organs beneath. They are often depicted as beautiful women with long, flowing hair, a pearl necklace, and an ecstatic expression.
The book includes poems about these wax models, a lady anatomist, my experience working at a funeral home when I was 15, and tell a larger story about my car accidents and coming to terms with my disability and queerness. There is a love story at its center as well.
What are you working on now?
Right now, I’m in the research phase for my next collection of poetry. I’m reading a lot of queer history, particularly lesbian history and the history of LGBTQIA2S+ people in the prairie provinces. I’d like to focus on queer joy in this next collection and celebrate queer love in all the places it appears.