Meet a Staff Member: Claire Taylor
Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to introduce Claire Taylor, chapbook prose editor. Claire writes for both adults and children. She is the author of a children’s literature collection, Little Thoughts, as well as multiple chapbooks, including Mother Nature and One Good Thing. Her debut picture book, Benjamin’s Sad Day, is forthcoming from Golden Fleece Press. Claire is the founder and editor-in-chief of Little Thoughts Press, a literary magazine for young readers. She lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with her family and pets in an old stone house where birds love to roost. You can find her online at clairemtaylor.com.
Claire says, “I am looking forward to working closely with authors on their chapbooks and discovering new-to-me writers. Editing and revision have always been my favorite parts of the writing process because you get to take what is already strong and beautiful and polish it up to really make it shine. Writing can be lonely work and getting the opportunity to collaborate with both other Yellow Arrow editors and team members, as well as with individual authors to help finetune their chapbooks will be a lovely counterbalance to the isolation that so often accompanies writing. I’m excited to have an early peek into the books that Yellow Arrow will be publishing so that when they officially launch, I’ll be able to loudly shout about how great they are and encourage readers to check them out!”
Tell us a little something about yourself:
I am a mother of two and a recently retired licensed massage therapist. I spent over a decade operating my own practice specializing in integrative bodywork to help treat chronic pain and tension, relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression, and assist in the management of prenatal and postpartum wellness. I recently shifted my focus to working full time on writing projects and publishing my children’s literature magazine, Little Thoughts Press. Much of my writing centers on themes of mental health, motherhood, and the intersection of these two experiences. I write fiction, poetry, and a bit of creative nonfiction.
What do you love most about Baltimore?
I have lived in Baltimore for nearly 20 years, in several different neighborhoods, but am still struck by how many new-to-me corners of this city there are to explore. There is so much unique history and culture throughout the city and every neighborhood has its own vibe and style. In my neighborhood specifically, I love how many different things are within walking distance. I’m sandwiched between Druid Hill Park and Stony Run, so I’m surrounded by nature and can easily escape into the quiet of the trees, but I can also walk to shops and restaurants, to my son’s school, to an art museum, to the library. There’s so much to do and I don’t even have to get into my car to do it!
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?
My initial involvement with Yellow Arrow was as a contributor to the journal. I had a poem published in the RESILIENCE issue and was lucky enough to take part in a reading at the Yellow Arrow House shortly before the pandemic hit and everything shut down. Since then, I have had additional pieces published in the EMERGE zine and as part of the Vignette online series. I also run a workshop, The Written Womb, with Yellow Arrow which explores writing on the themes of pregnancy, parenthood, and the postpartum experience. I am excited to now serve as the chapbook prose editor!
My poem in RESILIENCE was one of my first published pieces. That early experience working with Yellow Arrow and the support I received was foundational in building my confidence and motivation to continue pursuing publication for my poetry and other writing. I am so thankful to Yellow Arrow for that early boost, and I am excited to be able to play a role in providing that same level of support and encouragement to other Yellow Arrow writers.
What are you working on currently?
I am currently working on two novels, one is a middle-grade story about a boy who is gifted a journal that holds the surprising ability to turn his stories into reality, and the other is an adult novel about a group of women brought together by a shared grief experience.
I work on poems whenever the spirit moves me and throughout the year you’ll find me reading submissions for, or editing and designing, the latest issue of my kid-lit magazine Little Thoughts Press.
What genre do you write or read?
I write fiction the most because I like making up stories and I like how the genre has the flexibility to contain many other genres within it. You can infuse fiction with elements of nonfiction, history, and personal experience, and you can add aspects of poetry and poetic writing. It lets me dip a little into all the types of writing I like to do, but it also challenges me to piece together a full, complete narrative. There are so many elements that need to be managed and corralled. It’s fun.
What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?
I really want to read Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. I started it in the past but had to stop because I kept falling asleep every time I picked it up, but that’s just because I was pregnant at the time and constantly exhausted and is not a reflection on the book. I’m looking forward to returning to it now that I am better rested and have more free time during the day to read.
Who is your favorite writer and why?
I don’t really have a favorite writer, but I do have books that I return to whenever I need to feel inspired by the way really good writing pulls you in. I’ve read Ann Patchett’s Commonwealth a bunch of times. I love Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes.
I read a lot with my kids and though I’ve been disappointed to find that many of the books I loved as a child don’t really hold up when I read them again now, I recently read Charlotte’s Web with my son and I think it may be the most wonderful, perfect book ever written.
Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?
I am very lucky to have a nice, big web of support. My husband reads early drafts of everything, and I can always tell if I’m on the right path by whether he says, “This is good,” (No) or “Oooh, this is good,” (Yep). Every time I send my friend Judy a new piece to read she tells me she thinks it’s her favorite one yet, and I think every writer needs a friend who is just your ultimate cheerleader and fangirl. My friend, Vic, who is a fellow writer I met online, is always open to exchanging drafts in any genre and offers great feedback and insights. My mom and my sister read all of my published work and pass it along to people they know.
As for inspiration, growing up, everywhere we went, my dad brought a book along with him, and he always had a notebook and a pencil in his pocket so that he could jot down his ideas and thoughts no matter where we were. I’ve never met anyone who spends as much time reading and writing as he does, and I think that constant visual example had a big influence on me.
What do you love most about writing?
I love it when a piece of writing you’re working on reveals itself to you. You can start with one idea or a specific direction, but when the writing is going well, it feels like the piece eventually takes over and leads you where it needs to go. It’s a great feeling.
What advice do you have for new writers?
If you’re able, volunteer as a submissions reader for a journal. It exposes you to so many different kinds of writing styles and voices and the experience provides invaluable insight into what makes writing stand out in both good and bad ways. Reading submissions and discovering what really sets good writing apart will make your own writing so much stronger and sharper. It also helps you recognize that not every good piece of writing will make it through to publication, and that’s a helpful perspective when dealing with rejections of your own work.
What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work?
A cup of coffee and pen and paper. I drink too much coffee and I like to go back and forth between writing by hand and writing on my computer. I will switch forms whenever I get stuck while working.
What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?
I would love to see Yellow Arrow itself amplified! Small presses are so important to the literary ecosystem, but it is difficult for them to sustain and thrive. Yellow Arrow has really grown in the few years since I first published a piece in the journal and that growth has been exciting to observe. I would love to see even more of it and to see more recognition for the work the Yellow Arrow team is doing to support its authors and contributors.
And I am always looking to elevate work from parents, chronically ill writers, and those with mental health struggles. Anyone whose creative pursuits must be squeezed into the small pockets of free time and well-being that exist in their lives, those for whom “write every day” is an impossibility, but who are out there making the time when they can, these are the writers I especially want to support.
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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.