Life as Amber knows it

One thing I love about being an Indie Author is the fact that I can do whatever the hell I want. I want to write and publish a poetry collection followed by an erotica collection? I do it. I want to write a short story and put it out there for free? My choice, and I go for it. So I’m very thrilled to tell you I’m going to be releasing a new collection of short stories called Interpretations in the next few weeks.

If you’ve been a reader of mine for awhile, you know poetry is the genre I’m most prolific in. And if you’re new to reading me, then run on by my Amazon Author’s Page and you’ll see that more than half of what I have published is in the poetry genre.

I’ve often gotten comments and questions about my work. And where as there are some pieces that are obvious in the source of their inspiration (“To My Child” and “She” are prime examples), there are others that tend to have an air of mystery about them. And when asked, I sometimes answer directly. Other times? The source of the inspiration is private, and out of respect for the person that inspired the poem, or out of the need to not go into details about something that’s mine and mine alone, I’ll give generalized answers.

And still other poems? Those are interpreted by readers and friends in the way they perceive them. “With You” was seen as a poem based on a passionate love affair, and several people have told me that it accurately sums up how they feel about their life partner. But “With You” was written about a gay male friend, and while there was love between us, it wasn’t born out of passion, but instead out of genuine affection.

Several months ago, an idea began rattling around in my head after I was asked about the inspiration for the poem “Fuck You.” And while I’ve never answered directly, and never will answer directly about that poem, still, the question kicked off an idea in my mind.  Why not write a collection of short stories inspired by the poetry and prose that has had the most impact on either myself or my readers?

Some short stories in Interpretations will be based on the actual inspiration of the poem. Others will be based on what readers have told me their interpretation of the poem is. And still others will be based on what that inspiration could have been.

And feel free to ask me which is which. But I can tell you already that I’m going to quote Charity Parkerson when giving my answer: “I’ll never tell!”

Amber Jerome~Norrgard