Arena Glow received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Angela Chaidez Vincent.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Arena Glow | Tourane Poetry Press | June 4, 2024
What’s the book’s first line?
“One night years before I was born, / my father shivered by the highway / with a pistol in his coat.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
Arena Glow is a collection of poems that swirl about the shin-guard-clad women of the arena. The arena takes many forms: the rodeo arena, the cockpit of a small plane, the boys’ club of engineering, the confines of a murderous board game, the Colosseum in which women also desired to fight as gladiators, the traditional marriage. Exploring themes of danger versus security, belonging and not, the limits of moxie, power that grows across time and experience, and coming out in mid-life and mid-marriage, the poems range in tone from unflinching grit to awed sweetness as they trace the trajectories and life spans of women born with a daredevil oblique.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
Years ago I came across a deeply snotty passage by the Roman satirist Juvenal in which he makes fun of the daughters and nieces of Roman senators who crept out of their rooms at night to learn how to fight as gladiators. He took it upon himself to espouse his views on the proper place of women and to make fun of them for wearing shin-guards and embarrassing their families. But my mom wore shin guards (as a barrel racer in the rodeo). And it was her shin guards that I loved to try on in her closet as a child. Someone needed to take Juvenal down a notch. Political events since the book came out have underscored the need for pushback on the idea that women should be subject to suppression and/or control.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
This book will appeal to readers who enjoy stories of adventurous women, ranging from rodeo competitors to the women of the board game Clue to Natasha from the cartoon Rocky and Bullwinkle. As in life, the women of these poems swerve through violence, sweetness, uncertainty, fear, and ultimately, triumph. Readers of poetry will find formal elements embedded in the pieces to enjoy, while readers who are newer to poetry will find them accessible and welcoming.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I have wanted to add a book spine with my name on it to the world’s shelves for as long as I can remember.
Is this the first book you’ve written?
This is my debut poetry collection, yes.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
My undergraduate and early work years were in engineering and the sciences. For several years I designed what I would call “building guts”: the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and exhaust systems that, if they work well, should never cross anyone’s mind. I later transitioned to teaching science-related subjects: trigonometry, computer programming, and AutoCad drafting. People often scratch their heads at a poet with this background, but I find that the observational skills of the sciences, along with the unique language and syntax of physics and code-writing makes for a strange and memorable slant to the lyricism of the written word.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
I aim for 50 hours per month. I keep a rather elaborate spreadsheet full of summations and formulas for tracking categories of writing as “deeps” and “shallows” to make sure I’m not just futzing around with answering emails instead of generating new work. I bribe myself with points based on time spent and difficulty level of the session, which I redeem for lottery scratchers at the end of each month. I encourage everyone to find the silly bribes that work for them.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
Best: Final say on book decisions and editorial choices. I was able to offer an alternative cover design that fit the vibe of the book when the first option didn’t seem quite right. The book I wrote was deeply true to the vision I had for it and I was able to concertina the timeline a bit to make this happen.
Hardest: I do sometimes get FOMO when I compare the publicity and marketing resources that often (but not always) come with a traditional publishing contract.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
Like many writers, I’m definitely more of an introvert. Publicity / marketing was initially not my favorite subject, but a fellow poet reframed it for me: think of it as an extension of your world-building, a way to invite people into that world with you.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
I would definitely welcome the professional resources, contacts, and know-how that a traditional publisher is more likely to have. I would be nervous, though, about losing final decision-making privileges in terms of cover design, etc.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
I deeply admire Karen Russell, who writes with strangeness, joy, imagination, and incredible depth of feeling. Her short story “Tornado Auction” from her collection Orange World is one of my all-time favorites for its bizarre premise (a rancher who raises not livestock but tornados tries one more time for a return to his glory days). It is sensitive to the humans in the story who are in understandable conflict about the dangers often inherent in living out one’s purpose, while simultaneously touching on climate anxiety and a world that is changing faster than our comprehension of it. Russell’s stories have a sweet sentience that is both observant and wild.