In the world of literary scholarship, we’re always focused on the other guy. We place our opinions, our thoughts, our most cutting critiques onto the works of other writers, and work under an established discourse of criticism and praise. But, we very seldom dare to dabble in creation. Many of us feel that it isn’t our job, that creation is for the artists, the poets, the writers, and we exist only to analyze. There is a notion that to attempt to become the artist is blasphemous, or somehow debasing of one’s intellectualism. Many scholars that do create keep their academic and creative careers separate, or downplay their whimsical pursuits amongst colleagues.

I think this is misguided.

In engaging in the creative, we awaken an empathetic part of our minds, a part more attune to wonder and originality. As literary critics—as cultural caretakers—it is an incredibly helpful exercise to engage in creation. It illuminates a part of our field that we aren’t always in sync with: its origin. It’s easy to criticize something from fifty feet away. It remains opaque, foreign. It’s much harder to dismiss something when you know how much effort went into it, to have attempted the same forms or methods yourself. Working creatively is not just an exercise in becoming a better scholar, it’s an exercise in being a better human.

Today we are mixing things up on the Relevate podcast, and instead of focusing on a scholar’s attempt to analyze another person’s work, we are going right to the source.

Autumn Kepley and Brooke Burris are alumni of UNCW, Autumn graduated last Spring with her MA in English, and Brooke finished the year before with a BA in Business. Together, they have co-authored a collection of poetry titled In a Field of Flowers, which came out earlier this year. Their journey through creation, collaboration, and publication is one that I think we all could learn something from, and their ability to transcend the hierarchy of artist, scholar, and student is nothing short of courageous.

Today we’re going to dive into the creative process, the tumultuous world of traditional publishing, the benefits of self publishing, and where on earth these two found the time to write a book while in college.