issue two, round one Q&A: catch those worms
it's that time again, folks--we asked our contributors a few questions to learn a little more about them. sink your teeth into round one of our infamous Q&A sessions, in which everyone seems to contradict the very nature of time.
featuring Carrie Hilgert, Harpreet Kaur, Mar Cuervo, Chrysanthe Tan, and Molly Kaplan.
are you an early bird or a night owl? what is your favorite time of day?
CH: early bird all the way. I was born an old lady, apparently, and can rarely stay up past 10. it's so quiet in the morning and small people don't need anything from me, so this is obvs my favorite time of the day.
HK: I am both. my darling Dog gets me up like clockwork every morning and I tend to fall asleep at midnight, but I will consider myself lucky if I fall off at 1030 like Dog does.
MC: I am definitely an early bird. I love those hours when I feel the world belongs to just a few of us, when I can do things in silence and when a cup of coffee tastes better. my favorite time of day is when my feet feel the softness of my bed sheets and when I can fully immerse in the odor I left the night before in my bed…so it can practically be any time of the day; whenever I feel like having a “siesta.”
CT: both, unfortunately. and sunrise is my favorite part of the day, before the other humans are awake, and before there’s time for anything to start going wrong.
MK: I am a closeted early bird. I used to pride myself on my ability to sleep through long stretches of daylight--and I can still sleep practically anywhere, anytime--but in the last few years I've discovered the glorious potential and productivity of the antemeridian. the "being an adult" hours.
where are you/what are you doing when your creative ideas usually strike?
CH: my best, most genius world-dominating-ideas come right when I'm about to fall asleep. without fail. which of course, makes me hella cranky because who can get back to sleep after that?!
HK: my work is in no doubt a reaction to events in my life and my surroundings in response to who I am and where I am and what I affects me personally. (it's Selfish i guess.) ideas don't strike as much as collide brutally into me. I rarely find myself immersed in illustrations of hearts, daisies, rainbows and unicorns/magical creatures - but I am longing for the day that I do. it is my end goal.
MC: I’m usually by myself in a very quiet state and fully aware of my surroundings. it can be in a noisy environment or in a very quiet one--it always depends on the balance of chaos and order I’m into.
CT: running or getting a massage.
MK: inspiration strikes me whenever it goddamn feels like it. it pimp-slaps me in line at the grocery store, bull-whips me while I'm sleeping, bludgeons me while tying my shoes...creativity has even pummeled me at the gynecologist's office, stirrups and all. I am entirely at its mercy. to carry out those inspirations into writing and other expressions however, I have a very controlled ritual that involves lots of cleaning and candles, and very few clothes.
are you a creature of habit/routine or are you comfortable kept on your toes?
CH: I think I am a walking contradiction. in bed by 10, up by 6 almost like clockwork, but try to get me to keep a schedule for work or take my vitamins at the same time every day and I rebel. I like a loose framework wherein I eat regularly, but other than that, flying by the seat of my pants is how I roll.
HK: I go with the flow but deadlines are my thing and routines keep me accessible to juggle non-art work and creativity.
MC: my life has never allowed me to be a creature of routines, but it feels like I’ve always been a hamster on a wheel aiming for that “habit” or “routine” everyone is always talking about…it seems like a very nice state to be…but I guess I haven’t experienced it too much.
CT: don’t even think about asking me to hang out without scheduling that one week in advance.
MK: I thrive on routine and structure in my daily life. my google calendar looks like a Mondrian. If I were (and we all are, metaphorically speaking) a cow heading to the slaughter, scheduling would be my Hug Machine. It gives me the illusion of control when I need it the most, and I practice letting go of that control when I sit down to write.
what is your most helpful flaw?
CH: my most helpful flaw is that I have very little energy.,because it forces me to rest regularly, keeps me from expending my creative energy on the wrong people, and makes me oh-so-careful about all my choices otherwise. I'm still trying to figure out why I've always been more tired, but for sure I take way better care of myself because of it.
HK: shamelessness, politeness and thoughtfulness. even when confronted with absolute awfulness I don't react with meanness or spite or cruelty. I wish I was more a fighter but I'm a Lover which often makes it look like I am a room full of stupidity and cowardice - I just don't have it in me to knowingly cause hurt and my ego is fucked up because of it. I often feel like I am perceived as stupid, timid, without dignity and naïve.
MC: I always think I’m inconsistent and I’m messy…and by having such a misguided perception of myself I think I have made the life of the people around me way easier.
CT: I really wanted to spin the “deliberate procrastinator” flaw into a helpful one, but then I stared at this question for an hour and lost that privilege.
MK: perhaps it's just standard neurosis, but I think I am very superstitious. not in the black-cats-and-broken-mirrors sort of way, but in the way of pattern recognition. for example, if I catch the clock at the same time three days in a row, that number then becomes auspicious. if I see a word or phrase multiple times in one day, those words have some esoteric relevance to my own inevitability. on the one hand, it helps me sculpt the details in my writing, and on the other it lands me in existential crises more often than my therapist would deem rational. so it goes.