Meet Kathryn de Lancellotti | Poet

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kathryn de Lancellotti and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kathryn, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I was born on California’s Central Coast, in a small town just south of Big Sur. My father and mother were the pastors of our local church. My neighborhood backed up to a pine forest, just a few miles from the ocean. I was lucky to live in a very safe area where I could wander about barefoot and free. I loved nature and spent as much time as I could picking wild flowers, climbing trees, hunting abalone shells and arrowheads, and running around with the neighborhood kids until sunset. The first poem I ever read was from the Bible, Psalms 23. I was drawn into the vivid imagery, the metaphors, and the lyricism. I fell in love with language and lyrics. I discovered my voice. I loved to sing, to express myself through language. I felt a connection to a higher power through creative expression. I learned faith. I learned to worship. I was drawn into the mystery, into the unknown. I’m a poet. My work is centered in the body and in nature. I write to understand our place on this planet, in the universe. I write to commune with the divine, the living, and the dead. I explore both the shadow and the light. I write to ask questions, to confess, to seek, and to quench the insatiable thirst for truth and meaning. When I am in “poet” mode, I become that barefoot girl in the forest, full of imagination and free.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Impossible Thirst, my debut poetry chapbook, was published with Moon Tide Press in June 2020. It’s an awakening into both the personal and historical present moment. It questions what it means to possess a body and how we must move through an oppressive landscape. Unapologetic and raw, the poems do not flinch from uncomfortable truths about motherhood, grief, God, womanhood, and our own impermanence. Versed in an earthy yet cosmic sense of place, the poems evoke animalism and intelligence, wildness and serenity, heartache and grace. Releasing the book during the pandemic was not ideal from a marketing/sales perspective. Although I didn’t sell as many books online as I might have in-person, I had a larger, more diverse audience online. People were home and hungry for connection and creativity. Releasing the book during the pandemic made the poems more accessible to more people, and for that, I’m grateful. I’m currently working on a full length collection of poetry. I hope to have it out in the world by 2022. I also work for my family’s nonprofit organization as a grant writer and publicist. Our organization, Estero Bay Kindness Coalition delivers weekly bags of groceries and new and gently used shoes and clothing items to some of the most vulnerable, food-insecure school kids and their families in San Luis Obispo county. I’m proud of the work I do and happy to be using my creative writing degree in both the art and nonprofit world.

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If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
We’d pack fruit, cheese, chocolate, mineral water, and wine, and head north to the redwoods. We’d hike barefoot, swim in the creek, and nap in the sunlight. We’d head to Treebones Resort and check into a yurt with an ocean view. We’d eat dinner at the sushi bar, with panoramic views of the Pacific and savor the highest quality seafood available on the coast. We’d soak in the hot tub, under the stars, and sip Prosecco. We’d wake at sunrise, go on a walk, take a yoga class in the garden, then read a juicy novel with Ascendo coffee and a freshly baked croissant. We’d hike, explore the coast, read, eat, journal, swim, and sunbathe. On our way home we’d stop at Robin’s Restaurant, order a bottle of Tablas Creek Cab, the garden salad with blue cheese dressing, and every appetizer on the menu. We’d order the dark chocolate mouse with fresh whip and chocolate shavings. We’d take our time. We’d savor.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my parents, Bobby and Denise de Lancellotti for giving me life and for their unconditional love and support.

Website: https://www.moontidepress.com/books

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathryn.delancellotti/

Image Credits
Kori Kristine Photography https://www.koriphoto.com