Brett Elizabeth Jenkins-Braun and Erica Anderson-Senter: In Conversation

On Poetry, Murder, and Dreams of Teeth

By Erica Anderson-Senter

Brett Elizabeth Jenkins-Braun made me do it. She made me. I never wanted to act on the vibrations under my skin. I gave in and picked up a pen.

If you know me, you know Brett. If you know my work, you already know Brett. If you follow @fartmaster5000 on twitter, you know Brett. She’s a goddamned talent, an ever compassionate friend, and totally, wonderfully weird. Recently, I interviewed her for The Dip, which is hilarious because the interview kind of unraveled and we became two writer friends talking about writing. And sometimes, most times, nothing is better than that.

Here are some excerpts from that conversation — little baby spoilers for the whole conversation that is most definitely forthcoming.

Brett: I love that lipstick by the way.
Erica: Guess what it’s called?
B: What?
E: Slayer.
B: Oh, like Buffy.
E: Yeah, like Buffy — I’m not sure she wore a black lip the entire seven seasons, but oh well.
B: Probably not — she couldn’t pull it off but you can.
E: She — yeah, she could. Yeah… she’s hot as hell.
B: Yeah, but she’s not black lip hot.

E: What was the last poem you’ve written — what was it about?
B: Are we on the record?
E: Girl, we been on the record since we started.
B: I tried to write a poem yesterday; all I got was a blank document. Before that I wrote a poem called BIRDS AND BOYS and I actually really like it… It’s the first thing I’ve written in a couple weeks. It felt good to get something out.
E: You’re known to not revise.
B: I notoriously do not revise poems.

B: Sometimes the first one out of the system in a while is a turd.
E: Not even like a “feels good” turd — like those lumpy ones that’s really hard to get out.
B: Yeah, and it sinks to the bottom and you can’t really see what it looks like.(((Laughs)))
E: Yeah!!

B: I just knew you as the girl with a lot of tattoos and sass.
E: I like that.

B: More than that question when I tell people I’m a writer or poet they ask, “Oh what are your poems about?” I just start saying; Murder. I give them one word answers so that they don’t have any questions.
E: I feel like I … when people ask me I say: my poems are about what all poems are about: LOVE SEX AND DEATH
B: That’s a better answer than MURDER.
B: I only write about MURDER.

B: This poem is called “Take 42.”

This is the one where I’m giving a talk
and they all just fall

out on the podium. It happens the same every
time: the back

ones begin to crumble, and I chew them
slowly like I’m biting

a concrete sandwich. I spit out some molars
while moving on

to my next point and the suit I’m wearing
is always very sharp,

slim pinstripes I can’t afford, but here are these teeth.
What do you know.

E: ((claps))
B: That’s just one of my many anxiety dreams. …I have a lot of poems about my dentists. I don’t know if he’d like … I think he thinks I’m really creepy, if he knew how many poems I have written about him he’d probably ask me to see another dentist.

E: Ew ew ew ew, staying alive, staying alive. So, I bought that and I also bought Jan Beatty’s “Red Sugar” the other day cause I’m like I should own all of her books and I only own one and I don’t understand.
B: I’ve only read one or two of her books.
E: “Mad River” is so goooood. Red Sugar, which I’ve read these, I just haven’t… I don’t know why. I got em from the library. She was in my graduating thesis, you’d think that I’d own them.. anyway. Doesn’t matter. Who are some of your favorites?
B: Generally, my favorite poets?
E: yeah. Tell the people like somebody says to you, “who do you like to read, I’d like to read more poetry, where do I start?” What would you say?

E: I actually have 6 shelves for just poetry books, but one of them is just books that have fucked me up in good ways or bad ways. And Frank O’Hara is on there, Ross Gay, Richard Siken, Jan Beatty…
B: Oh yes, I mentioned him
E: Li-Young Lee and of course, Ed Ochester.

E: She’s so accessible as a woman poet.
B: And… and, she’s sexy as hell.
E: She IS sexy as hell.
B: When you said Ed Ochester it made me think of this book, Miracle Mile, which has my favorite Ed Ochester poem in it.
E: OMG! I don’t have that book!
B: It’s called “Monroeville, PA”
E: Oh yes!
B:

One day a kid yelled
“Hey, Asshole!”
and everybody on the street
turned around!

*****

Sure, these are partial excerpts from a lively conversation. And they’re fun, right? I urge you to wait with baited breath for the audio as to fill in the blanks. We have fun. Poets have fun together. Brett goes on to read ONE more poem from her new book — that alone begs you to wait for the audio.

*****

Erica Anderson-Senter is a landlocked poet in the Midwest. Follow her on Instagram at ericaann.