Meet Obsession TheWriter (Chicago, Illinois)

Jaded

Worn and faded

Brain's dark and nappy

It's hard to comb through the kinks of my mentality

Life's shabby

It's neither generous nor fair

You either freeze or you burn

Had a stroke in the brain

A migraine... leaving my thoughts slurred

I just wanna... receive the word

Receive two spotless wings, a halo...everything

Once Judge Jesus says court's adjourned

You gotta have faith... on faith... on faith

Cause this world is cruel... a cold, cold place

Have you with a round the clock shiver

My soul... I had to insulate

There's no warmth in evil

Satan will try to excavate

And break down barriers built on prayer

I've got many layers

About the same amount of failures

My tongue has various behaviors

Assorted words...

They come in many flavors

I've got obscenities for my enemies

Truism for my familia

Illusory for my frenemies

Wisdom for the wounded

I'm a soldier still healing

Chi-raq is what they call my city

Battles and wars

Were on both sides of my door

I was born with everything I needed

Food, water, shelter and clothes

Still I grew up poor

my emotions are sore

I pick at the scabs

I poke at the past

Still trying to conquer pain's allure

I can't help returning

It's enticing

I keep coming back for more

That's why I'm so tired and wired

Trying to light a fire under happiness

Instead I create sparks of bitter hopelessness

Deceptively dull my soul is

Like black and white

It looks unflattering

But one touch from strife

It cries in color

A cascading rainbow forming puddles in my core

My existence is too loud to ignore

My history is too intriguing not to explore

Pain... I can't overcome its allure

I'm jaded

Worn and faded

But I keep coming back for more

About the Poet

Growing up on the west side of Chicago, Obsession began writing at the age of 7. Winning countless awards in her youth, it was plain to see that she was indeed gifted. Upon graduation from a young Chicago author's program, she published two poetry books by the age of 17. Obsession is currently working on her third novel and fourth poetry piece! She now resides on the north side of Chicago, where she teaches transitional kindergarten.

UBAWA: When did you first realize your attraction to poetry?

Obsession: In the second grade

UBAWA: Tell us about the very first poem you have ever written

Obsession: I wrote my first poem when I was seven years old. I was in the second grade and my teacher asked us to write a poem about an animal. So I wrote a poem called, "To whom it may concern.”  It was about a dog trying to find his way home.

UBAWA: Do you have a favorite poet? If so, who is he/she?

Obsession: No. I am a fan of the dead poets society. You know, Edgar Allan Poe, Emily Dickinson, Langston Hughes, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, etc.

UBAWA: When you’re writing poetry, do you think in terms of genre?

Obsession: Not at all.

UBAWA: Some people say writing poetry is like writing a rap or love song. Do you agree? Why/why not?

Obsession: Yes and no. Poetry and songs can both be influential and inspirational. Poetry can be written in so many different ways/styles. All rap/songs have a rhyme scheme, but poetry can be written in prose, rhyme, free verse (free style) etc.

UBAWA: Are there certain styles/techniques/rules of poetry you adhere to in your writing? Tell us about your writing style.

Obsession: My writing style is raw, dramatic, bold and real. If it's not chaos within, then I cannot write.

UBAWA: What poetry books have you written?

Obsession: My first poetry book is entitled, "Poetic Pictures;" the second book is entitled, "Gifted but Not Perfect;" and the third and latest book which is available on amazon.com in ebook and paperback is entitled, "Memory Box: A Replay of the mind"

UBAWA: Have you performed any of your poetry pieces on stage? If so, please share your experience(s) with us.

Obsession: I used to perform in my college days, but not anymore. Spoken word really helped me open up more. I was pretty much and still a notebook poet. I'd write then pack it away, but watching other poets and poetess express their thoughts and feelings in front of a crowd inspired me to give it a try. It was nerve racking but I'm glad that I experienced that.

UBAWA: What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of love?

Obsession: Elusive

UBAWA: Are you currently dating someone, married, or single?

Obsession: *Eye roll* I'm single

UBAWA: Do you think success is a matter of chance or a matter of choice?

Obsession: Both. Some people get far in life off of their looks and their family's money for example. Others like myself woke up one day and said, "I'm tired of living pay check to pay check. I'm ready to get to work!"

UBAWA: Inspiration for a new poem can come from the strangest places. What inspired you to write your most recent poem?

Obsession: I can see a word or hear a phrase or see a picture and will be inspired to write. So I can't pin point the particular thing or person that inspired Jaded.

UBAWA: If you could go back and “right” any past wrong in your life, which one would it be and why?

Obsession: I wouldn't have given up on finding my father. I probably would've found him while he was alive and got the chance to get to know him. I found him four years too late. I wrote a poem about it called, "Daddy." I just wanted the chance to be loved by a father figure and not abused by one.

UBAWA: When you’re not writing, what are you doing?

Obsession: Cooking, listening to music, catching up on my favorite television shows, brainstorming, dreaming, working.

UBAWA: There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes of a poet’s life, fill us in on what one typical day for you is like.

Obsession: A typical day consists of me working, writing something, cooking, and trying to control my temper.

UBAWA: If you could create the “perfect day,” what would it be like?

Obsession: The perfect day WILL BE me signing a big contract with a publishing company, Lifetime movies, you know any day that I will be able to give my job a two weeks’ notice because I'll be living my dreams full-time. That will be the perfect day.

UBAWA: What do you do on the weekends?

Obsession: Try to get my life in order.

UBAWA: Do you hang out or go to clubs?

Obsession: I don't do clubs. I'm more of a sporting event, bowling, restaurant, museum, art gallery, movie theater type of girl.

UBAWA: If you could visit any other country in the world and take one other person with you, where would you go and who would you take?

Obsession: Greece and I would take the love of my life... If I had one.

UBAWA: Tell us about one challenge in life that you had to overcome. What was the challenge and how did you get through it?

Obsession: I had to work hard at not becoming a product of my environment. I managed to dodge the teen pregnancy, gang banging, not going to college, staying at home until I moved out with a guy cycle. And I thank Jesus that I didn't fall victim to any of that.

UBAWA: Before you leave, tell us one thing about yourself that we may not know.

Obsession: I count my food. With fruit candies, I eat one color at a time. I don't drink anything red or blue. When I eat potato chips, I eat all of the folded ones first, then the burnt ones, then all of the rest.

UBAWA: Do you host contests or giveaways?

Obsession: Yes I have in the past for my first novelette, "Climatic Successions." The reader that left the best review for climatic would find their review on the back cover of Climatic's sequel, "Catch 22: Love's Paradox" along with a $25 gift card.

UBAWA: Any upcoming events that we should know about?

Obsession: I'm doing an interview on Slick Talk Blog Radio March 19th @ 5:30 pm CST. March 16th I'll be doing spoken word at an adult party (That should be fun). I am also doing an interview on Tiffany Byers show, “A Day in Early Publishing,” sometime in April. The date and time hasn't been decided yet.

Reach out to Obsession:

Website: http://yjaneilw.wix.com/iamobsession

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Obsessionthewriter

Twitter: twitter.com/IamObsession