Friday Feature: @istoppedtrying

It’s Friday again. HUZZAH! Of course, this means that we delve into the life of another member of this great writing community of ours. This week we head over to California to meet the very splendid @istoppedtrying

P: What is your given name and your Proser username?

I: My name is William and my Prose name is @istoppedtrying.

P: Where do you live?

I: Palo Alto, California.

P: What is your occupation?

I: I am a middle school student braving math tests, structured essays and the social perils of stereotypes.

Writing, (on Prose), is the highlight of my day.

P: What is your relationship with writing and how has it evolved?

I: My relationship with writing began with reading as it did for many others. I became entranced with the crude honesty of Cowper and the meaning packed poetry of T.S. Eliot.

I've been reading more and more contemporary poetry as the months go on and the poetry I write has reflected what I read.

I have used writing as a coping tool and as a boat for my "literary exploration."

P: What value does reading add to both your personal and professional life?

I: Reading adds another depth to literature that I can't achieve through writing exclusively. Street signs and advertisements have a new importance to me.

The most nondescript parts of our society suddenly have so much meaning to me.

P: Can you describe your current literary ventures?

I: Possibly some more books (collections of poetry, I don't have the stamina to write a full-length book) and similar individual posts to those I write now.

P: What do you love about Prose?

I: Prose is positive. Though many writers (including me) write about sadness and negativity, the overall vibe of Prose is positive.

This level of opposition creates a desire for me to never stop writing.

P: Is there one book that you would recommend everybody should read before they die?

I: The Dream Songs by John Berryman is the most gruesome and vivid anthology of confessional poetry that has ever been written, in my opinion.

P: Do you have an unsung hero who got you into reading and/or writing?

I: I had an English teacher in second grade who saw something "different" in me and allowed me to write a poem instead of a paragraph about The Little Engine that Could.

I've been writing ever since.

P: Describe yourself in three words!

I: Idiosyncratic. Evanescent. Ignorant.

P: Is there one quote, from a writer or otherwise, that sums you up

I: I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. -Winston Churchill

P: What is your favourite music, and do you write or read to it?

I: I am a growing fan of alternative, electronic and folktronica music. I write to the latter daily, simmering in the abstract and strange.

P: You climb out of a time machine into a dystopian future with no books. What do you tell them?

I: Is there a rock and some mud around?

No mud?

My blood will do...

P: Do you have a favourite place to read and write?

I: I find darkness and silence to produce some of my freshest ideas. If silence isn't possible, white noise will do.

P: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you/your work/social media accounts?

I: I have a speech impediment. I practically cannot pronounce the "r" sound. It began when I was five and has continued, unabated to this day.

This is why I prefer writing to public speaking.

A thousand thanks to William for opening up to us and sharing his life. You know what you’ve got to do now. Follow. Like. Love. Interact. Do the Prose thang. Meanwhile, get in touch if you want to nominate someone, even if it’s yourself. 

Do it on paul@theprose.com or info@theprose.com