Monday, January 15, 2024

The 40 But 10 Interview Series: Lynne Schmidt

 


I had decided to retire the literary Would You Rather series, but didn't want to stop interviews on the site all together. Instead, I've pulled together 40ish questions - some bookish, some silly - and have asked authors to limit themselves to answering only 10 of them. That way, it keeps the interviews fresh and connectable for all of us!


Lynne Schmidt is the grandchild of a Holocaust survivor. They were a semi-finalist for the 2022 Button Poetry Chapbook Contest, and the winner of the 2021 The Poetry Question Chapbook Contest, and 2020 New Women's Voices Contest. Lynne is the author of the chapbooks, SexyTime (TPQ 2022), Dead Dog Poems (Finishing Line Press, 2021), Gravity (Nightingale and Sparrow Press, 2019), and On Becoming a Role Model (Thirty West, 2020). In 2012 they started the project, AbortionChat, which aims to lessen the stigma around abortion. When given the choice, Lynne prefers her pack of dogs and one cat to humans.





What’s the most useless skill you possess?

I can juggle! Sometimes I can even do some tricks (but they’re a little more unreliable)

 

What’s something that’s true about you but no one believes?

I’m not sure if no one believes it, but I got to meet Michelle Obama once, when she was First Lady!


What’s the best money you’ve ever spent as a writer?

Workshops. Hands down. The things I learned in workshops with Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley was invaluable. Generally – I recommend to “invest in yourself” – submission fees, conferences, and workshops.


What is your favorite book from childhood?

Omg – I grew up on Pony Pals. I remember BEGGING my mom to take me to the bookstore whenever a new book dropped.


Do you read the reviews of your books or do you stay far far away from them, and why?

I tend to read reviews – so far they’ve been mostly positive. The ones that aren’t I try to take with a grain of salt.


If you were on death row, what would your last meal be?

As morbid as this sounds, I’ve thought about this A LOT. In so far as I have a deep appreciation for the time we have on this earth, and how genuinely, the last thing we eat MIGHT be our last meal. To that end, I try really hard to not eat things I don’t enjoy. If it’s going to be my last meal – I want it to bring me some happiness, you know?


What’s the weirdest thing you’ve given/received as a gift?

I once gave a guy a spoon. For folks who don’t get it, it’s weird.


What’s the one thing you wish you knew when you were younger?

Omg – I wish for the sake of undergrad debt, I had really understood what student loans meant and how to better manage my money. And also to advocate for higher wages. Ugh.


What scares you the most?

Any time my pets get sick I become a neurotic, sobby, catastrophic thinking mess.


Are you a book hoarder or a book unhauler?

I currently have a storage unit which is 90% books. ::eek::


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Dead Dog Poems is a collection about pet love and pet loss. It is the small joys each pet parent goes through - from naptime, to walks around the block, to the horrific moment of being at the emergency vet and hearing that your beloved companion may have cancer. This collection brings you front and center for a terminal diagnosis, and the aftermath of such a substantial loss. If you have ever loved a pet, this collection is for you. The poem, Baxter, was awarded the Editor's Choice Award from Frost Meadow Review, and was nominated for a 2019 Best of the Net, while Road Maps was nominated for Best of the Net, and Blood Pleas and Library Books was a finalist for the Pacific Northwest Writer's Association (PNWA) Poetry Contest.


buy a copy

Dead Dog Poems: Winner of the 2020 New Women's Voices Prize in Poetry by Lynne Schmidt, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

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