Artist Profile: Caleb Parker

Caleb A.P. Parker is a poet, amateur cartoonist and musician from the industrial Texas Gulf Coast. His poetry has appeared or is forthcoming from Prairie Schooner, the Colorado Review, Hayden's Ferry Review, Quarterly West and elsewhere. He is currently the Renk Distinguished Graduate Fellow in Poetry at UW–Madison's M.F.A. program.

1) Share a few details about the writing goals you've set for yourself this year.

In a lot of ways, my goal-setting itself has been evolving.

When I was younger—and writing fiction—I felt obligated to try to write every day, or I would try to write X number of pages/words by X date, and all it did was make me avoid writing. Now I try to follow the energy as it comes. I do still have goals, but I tend to keep them vague. I know I’m working toward a book of poems about my father’s death. And I know that the MFA thesis-version of it is due this month.

But day-to-day? I’m just trying to listen. To what? I dunno. The planet? God? My dad? The ducks? The ducks are reliable. But it’s feeling more pressing to listen to living humans.

For example: I’m from Texas, and many of my dear ones in Texas are women, queer and/or trans. Texas lawmakers are currently pursuing anti-trans and anti-woman legislation with frightening zeal. This has all gotten me thinking about the place my writing could (or could not) have in efforts toward liberation.

This feels risky to say, but if it’s true that all hatred originates from self-hatred—conscious, semi-conscious, or unconscious—then a decent path forward (for my writing) might be to focus on helping cisgender men like myself heal. Last year, sort of out of deep despair, I wrote a persona-poem-lipogram in which a Cistercian monk addresses men who identify as involuntary celibates (or “incels”).

2) Is there one contemporary poet, fiction or nonfiction writer you have been particularly affected or influenced by?

I’ve heard many poets speak of influences in terms of epiphany. They’ll read a book and think something along the lines of, “I didn’t know language could do THAT!” The most recent such moment I’ve had was in reading Chessy Normile’s debut poetry collection Great Exodus, Great Party, Great Wall (selected by Li-Young Lee—another influence of mine—for the APR/Honickman First Book Prize). After reading that book, a lot of the restraints I had been putting on myself evaporated. I’m thrilled that I’m now able to call Chessy a friend. Her book is both funny and devastating. Go get your hands on a copy!

3) Do you think being creatively fulfilled is an attainable goal?

I can’t imagine a world in which I feel creatively fulfilled and then continue to be creative. But maybe this will change once I’m out of my twenties. I feel very aware that I’m still constructing my selfhood—and I’m looking forward to the years when it becomes time to tear it back down.

Certainly, having time to devote to creativity is often a privilege of the wealthy. I don’t frequently hear writers talk about the material advantages that they have had, but it’s such a real factor. For example, I was in a position—due to my late father’s life insurance policy and my late grandfather’s annuity—that I could quit my job a month early in order to focus on applying to fully-funded MFA programs. And I was then able to move to Philadelphia with my band (without a job lined up).

In any case, I tend to look for fulfillment in places outside of creative work such as in my communities and in my spiritual life. In fact, too closely identifying myself with my art is what often leads me to dissatisfaction.

4) Share 2 to 3 exhibitions, concerts, books, spoken word events and/or films you're hoping to check out this spring or summer.

I’m looking forward to the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing Fellow’s Reading on May 2. It will feature two luminous poets (Chessy Normile and Steven Espada Dawson) and three fiction writers (whom I’m sure are also luminous, but whose work I’m less familiar with: Amanda Rizkalla, Taymour Soomro and Yalitza Ferreras). I’m also hoping to catch Big Thief at The Sylvee on July 22nd.