Interview with Barbara Marie Minney

Monika: I am very excited by the fact that Barbara Marie Minney has accepted my invitation and she is my guest today. Barbara is a transgender woman, award-winning poet, writer, speaker, and quiet activist. She is a retired attorney and a seventh-generation Appalachian. Now based in Tallmadge, Ohio, her first collection of poetry entitled “If There’s No Heaven” was the winner of the 2020 Poetry Is Life Book Award and the Akron Beacon Journal Best Northeast Ohio Books 2020. She is also the author of the "Poetic Memoir Chapbook Challenge" (2021). Hello Barbara!

Barbara: Hello, Monika! Thank you so very much for this opportunity to be interviewed by you. I have been looking forward to it since you first contacted me.

Monika: Is it difficult to be a poet in the 21st century?

Barbara: Being a poet in today’s world can be very difficult and frustrating, but it can also be very rewarding. Unless you are one of the top echelon poets like Rita Dove or Joy Harjo, you are pretty much on your own insofar as publication, promotion, and obtaining recognition is concerned. This time last year, I felt that maybe I was on the verge of a major breakthrough when I signed a publishing contract with a company located in Chicago. However, those hopes were dashed when the contract was canceled about a month and a half before the manuscript was due to be delivered. That was devastating. I was left with a manuscript but no publisher.

Interview with Ella Baker

Monika: Today I have invited Ella Baker, a Korean-American model, poet, Zen student in the Kwan Um School of Zen, and transgender woman that documents her transition on social media. Hello Ella!

Ella: 안녕! Hi! Thanks so much for having me!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Ella: I’m a second-generation Korean American and a queer transgender woman of faith. I manage college programs for high schools throughout California and am finishing my Doctorate in Education at the University of Southern California this year. My research specialty is in belonging and how a sense of belonging impacts academic, psychological, and social outcomes. My dissertation specifically focuses on transgender college students and I’m hoping to provide colleges with student-centered data to improve their climates and policies.

Interview with Ashley-Marie Eden

Monika: Today I am meeting Ashley-Marie Eden, an Australian illustrator, writer, musician, engineer, poet, and thinker. Hello Ashley-Marie!

Ashley-Marie: Hi Monika!

Monika: How are you holding up in the crazy pandemic times?

Ashley-Marie: Fairly well all things considered. I work for a fantastic company in the defense and aerospace industry, and in an 'essential services role' so they looked after us very well and made arrangements for us all to work from home over a secure network. 

Personally, at first, I found the sudden change from a busy city office working life to one of almost total isolation quite difficult, especially because I live alone as well, but we adapt and move forward as best we can I guess.

Monika: Ashley-Marie is not a common name. Why did you choose it?

Ashley-Marie: Hmmm, to be honest, I can't really tell you. Everyone just calls me Ash of course but as to why or where it came from I don't recall.

Interview with Bobbi Dare

Monika: Today it is my honor and pleasure to interview Bobbi Dare, a Canadian poet, writer, and transgender activist that documents her transition on Reddit.com. We are going to chat about her amazing journey to womanhood and other related topics. Hello Bobbi! 

Bobbi: Hi Monika, good to be here thank you for inviting me.

Monika: Could you introduce yourself to the readers of my blog?

Bobbi: First of all I want to say that Bobbi Dare is a pen name that I have used for about 20 years. I am an out trans woman so I will share that my real name is Roberta Jane Heggie. I am 56 years old and I live in Toronto, Canada.

Professionally, I work in technology as a senior project/ program manager for diverse companies and I am a member of PMI - The Project Management Institute. I do volunteer work for PMI, being a past president of the Toronto Chapter, currently, I am the Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for PMI Toronto and the Executive Director for the Chapter.

Interview with Griffin Rae Birdsong

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Griffin Rae Birdsong, an American poet, writer, official blogger, and contributor to the Death Rattle Writer's Festival, and member of Idaho's 2015 National Poetry Slam Team, the author of the biographical book titled “A Pansexual Adventure Through Time: A Transition Autobiography” (2016). Hello Griffin Rae!

Griffin Rae: Howdy! And thank you so much for interviewing me! I feel so special! 

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Griffin Rae: Oh, I’m just your average 26-year-old trans woman looking for a purpose in life. I’m a chronically unemployed college dropout. I was born in Idaho Falls, Idaho and I currently live in Boise, Idaho. Lucky for me there is an excellent artistic community that has accepted me for who I am and allowed me to flourish as a fledgling performance poet.

Monika: Is there anything like transgender literature?

Griffin Rae: Yes and no. On one hand, the transition autobiography genre is a fairly new and emerging trend in literature. On the other hand, I think it’s important to remember that transgender literature is human literature. While trans narratives seem new and exciting to most people, I’m certainly not the first to feel this way and I’m sure that anyone who has ever set out to find themselves could relate.

Interview with Alice Denny

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honour to interview Alice Denny, a British poet, and transgender activist from Brighton, England. Hello Alice!

Alice: Hello Monika, it’s a pleasure to meet you - so to speak.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Alice: Well I came out and transitioned later in life than most, after bringing up a family. As such transition has given me a new lease in life, a new energy. It has presented some interesting issues with relationships. I Identify primarily as a woman, parent, poet etc. and trans is more coincidental, a reference to my development that has little current relevance. Although in practice it has a big impact on the way I interact in the world and the world treats me.

Monika: Some time ago you attended a meeting in Prague, the Czech Republic. How important is networking for transgender activism?
Alice: I did Monika but I don’t think of myself as an activist as such; there are some fabulous activists and advocates out there. Meeting people from other areas and countries – from the next street even- is so important because it reminds us we are not alone, helps share experience and work to fight prejudice – which is considerable around the world.

Interview with Venus de Mars

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honour to interview Venus de Mars, a transgender artist from Minnesota, poet, singer, songwriter, painter, and leader of the punk-glam band All the Pretty Horses. Hello Venus!

Venus: Hey Monika ;)

Monika: When did you decide that music will be your profession?

Venus: Ha! OK... well Hmm. I guess it started as a desire way back when I was a kid... you know. The glamour... seeing the portrayals, lifestyles, etc. in media from back then. That kind of attracted me to it all...but I was way too shy to sing... I didn't think I could really, so I just concentrated on playing the guitar. Started on acoustic when I was like 10 years old... and did basic lessons, but I branched out on my own and tried to learn classical, and flamenco... all that stuff, but rock still called to me.

Interview with Antonette Rea

Monika: Today it is my pleasure and honor to interview Antonette Alexandra Rea, an inspirational transgender poet, and activist from Canada. Hello Antonette!

Antonette: Hi Monika, thank you for your interest.

Monika: We are having this interview at the time when you are recuperating from the car accident. How is your health, Antonette?

Antonette: I am in a far better mental space than I had been due to the pain and limited mobility while I heal. I was hit by a car and dislocated a shoulder and my other hand remains numb though the feeling returned in my shoulder and sciatica has settled down at the moment.

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?
Antonette: I was a street surviving Queen of the night. My street poet handle used to be “Miss Understood.” My poetry was a coping mechanism when working the stroll and then it became a useful healing vehicle for processing so much adversity. The adversity that I didn't think had affected me until I had stopped using drugs and escaped from a life of prostitution. Sex and drugs go hand in hand it seems in some form or another.
My writing has allowed me to process so much negativity, where family and friends were nowhere to be found. Performing these difficult poems in front of an audience is like taking the bandage off a wound because It’s almost healed. There will always be the scars, but I can now let the past go and live more at the moment.