Meet a Staff Member: Anna Leonard
Yellow Arrow Publishing recently hired several new readers for our chapbook submissions (round 1 reading is currently taking place!) and would like to introduce each of them in a blog series over the weekend: Anna Leonard, Jillian Tremblay, and Natalie Wollenzien. Spring publications intern, Mel Silberger, also decided to stay on staff and has joined our new readers during our first-round selections; we’ll reintroduce Mel later in the year.
We are excited to have fresh eyes on this year’s chapbook submissions and to hear what they have to say about the beautiful voices shared with us. Thank you Anna, Jillian, Natalie, and Mel, for taking the time to join us this summer.
First, we would like to present Anna Leonard. Anna (she/her) is a poet, musician, and artist based in Richmond, Virginia. She is entering an MFA program to study creative writing (poetry) at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and got her BA in theater with a minor in creative writing from VCU in 2019. Writing serves as a vulnerable exercise in her dedication to sincerity and peace-seeking. Her poems can be read in Emerge Literary Journal, Anti-Heroin Chic, Ghost City Press, Eunoia Review, and The Rising Phoenix Review. She has songs available to stream on all streaming platforms.
Anna says, “I am obsessed with the contemporary. I want to be in the here and now of literature as much as possible, so getting the inside scoop as to what people are moved to create and share to publications right here and now is thrilling. In line with that, I feel lucky to be playing a part in advocating for other female-identifying writers and helping to build a space where we all can explore, create, play, and share our voices with the world. We deserve it.”
Tell us a little something about yourself:
Writing has always been about connecting with others, so I’m honored to have a handful of poetry publications and songs available to stream. Throughout my life, I have fervently pursued performance and creation in many forms: classical opera, producing music, ballet, acting, stand-up, sketch comedy, film studies, woodworking, film, etc. Aside from creating, I am deeply moved by spending time outdoors, enjoy playing video games, and love my two rambunctious cats, Cricket and Cherry.
What do you love most about Richmond, Virginia?
I love Richmond because it feels like everything is at my fingertips. It’s a small enough city that I run into someone I know wherever I go, but it’s big enough to connect with every type of person or niche interest I could possibly be seeking. It hosts a uniquely friendly and authentic community of creators. I didn’t expect to like it so much!
How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?
I first heard of Yellow Arrow when I was looking for creative nonfiction classes. I stumbled upon a Yellow Arrow Write Here, Write Now one-off workshop taught by Kerry Graham, and I knew it was a welcoming community I would be lucky to be part of! When I saw Yellow Arrow was looking for readers, I remembered the quality of the conversations I got to take part in during that workshop and immediately reached out.
What are you working on currently?
I am currently working toward my goal of being better at video games (Fortnite at the moment). In August of 2024, I am beginning my MFA journey to study poetry, so I’m hoping to throw myself into academia shortly!
What genre do you write or read the most and why?
I write poetry and songs the most. I think of short form writing as an invitation with a generally low commitment level, and it’s amazing what you can accomplish in such little time. Short form writing like this gives me the chance to explore so many different perspectives and lives in a short amount of time. Don’t get me wrong, I very much so labor over these pieces and, at the same time, still love writing long scripts/working on chunks of novels. However, that’s the big draw. We can work hard to change the world in only a few words.
What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?
For weeks, I have been reading about four different books at the same time, rotating through them at random, picking them up and putting them down, constantly moving through others. In my current repertoire [in April/May 2024], I am working my way through Sarah J. Maas’ Throne of Glass series, I have both Beautiful World, Where Are You and Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney checked out from the library, and I am soon to start A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki.
Who is your favorite writer and why?
If I had to choose just one person, it would be Danez Smith . . . or Ocean Vuong or Naomi Shihab-Nye or Rainbow Rowell or Michelle Zauner or even John Green. I think there’s a powerful story to be written in everyone, but of course, the superpower of writers is craft. Danez Smith sticks out the most for the way they can manipulate a page. Their poetry collection, Don’t Call Us Dead, is what first showed me the scope of poetry. It can be accessible, heartbreaking, an act of protest, a stand-up set draft, and everything in between. Danez is so graceful yet hilarious and challenges biases just by writing about their life and experiences. I recommend that collection to anyone looking to get into poetry. It is a bridge, a connection point to a life that I can never call my own, which is the best thing writing can be.
Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?
My professors, workshop leaders, mentors, family, friends. . . . They have all supported me. I am lucky that I haven’t been met by those around me with anything but love on my ever-changing career goals and interests, but my biggest motivator has always been my mom. Even now, after losing her to cancer, I am continually thinking about what she would think of me. She always made me believe that I was meant to live a unique and wonderful life. And she is always right!
What do you love most about writing?
In each of us lives an entire world, a rich life that often feels peerless. Writing serves as my connection point to those worlds, splinters into foreign skin. It provides an incredible opportunity for reacquaintance with my sense of self, other people, and the natural world, three pieces of life that feel growingly alien with age. Writing about grief, religion, queerness, femininity, and the search for joy beyond what has been given, beyond humanity’s both isolated and shared tribulations, has become my passionate and personal protest to suffering.
What advice do you have for new writers?
In preparation for applying to MFA programs this past cycle, I was having a dramatic number of meetings with people who I was sure would crack the “how to be a good writer” code for me. Turns out, there’s not a real answer to that. I know. It’s terrible. I’m a really analytical person who is also passionate about creating, and it makes things wildly challenging and evil at times. But this is to say: stop looking for an answer. Write in earnest and do it often. Recognize that you are always learning. Right or wrong, good or bad: these things don’t have room here. The people who are meant to see you and connect with your words will fall in line. Keep working.
What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work)?
My emotional support water bottle. That phrase is a bit tired now, but it’s so true. I started studying opera when I was nine years old and found out that our vocal folds are not a hydration priority for our bodies. I always stay dramatically hydrated in fear of something vague and terrible happening to my voice. Don’t worry; I’m in therapy.
What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?
The word “amplify” invokes a sense of pride. Each year, it seems that different aspects of advocacy and community have been part of the Yellow Arrow yearly values, and I am excited to be joining the team in its season of loud, proud, and undeniably here. I envision a year of increased accessibility to workshops and other resources because behind this value is a greater push to reach an even wider scope of female-identifying writers. What an exciting part of Yellow Arrow history to take part in!
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Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women-identifying writers through publication and access to the literary arts. You can support us as we AMPLIFY women-identifying creatives this year by purchasing one of our publications or a workshop from the Yellow Arrow bookstore, for yourself or as a gift, joining our newsletter, following us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, or subscribing to our YouTube channel. Donations are appreciated via PayPal (staff@yellowarrowpublishing.com), Venmo (@yellowarrowpublishing), or US mail (PO Box 65185, Baltimore, Maryland 21209). More than anything, messages of support through any one of our channels are greatly appreciated.