[Today, we sit down for Five Questions with poet and frequent EHS contributor, Kim Malinowski. Here, she discusses her upcoming collection, Lilith: Weaving Mountains Into Canyons, and her future projects.]

Forests Haunted By Holiness: Your new poetry collection Lilith: Weaving Mountains Into Canyons focuses on Goddesses, female anger, sacred myths, and the retelling of those myths. First, congratulations! Second, how did this collection come about? Why these myths and Goddesses?

Kim Malinowski: I grew up learning only about Adam and Eve. I never liked the idea that women were made from one of Adam’s ribs, so that they were subservient to him. I found Lilith as a lark when a fellow student compared Lilith to Medusa. I knew who Medusa was, but when I read that Lilith was made of the same clay as Adam, everything changed. There was no need to be an Eve when one could be a Lilith and be their true selves.

At the same time, I was exploring a journal that had a painting of the Maiden, Mother, and Crone on it. Ultimately, this created the structure of the book. I felt that if I could explain the transitions of life, I could explain my own shame, my own grief, and my own rage. As I researched, I found the Warrior, Father, and Sage. I did not vilify them, but compared Adam’s fall to theirs. In my version, the Fall belongs to Adam as much or more than Eve.

FHBH: Which poem was the most difficult, but ultimately the most satisfying, to write?

KM: “The Apple’s Knowledge” was probably the hardest to physically write. It has simple language and a simple structure, but when I read it, I see the grandmothers that I collect. I’m up to four grandmothers and am now working on adopted parents. All four grandmothers have died (two biological). Two have died in my arms and two have died shortly after a visit. I feel that grief boil up as I read it and I know each time that the simplicity hits harder than if I had complicated the structure. My original drafts were denser and had too much weight.

FHBH: What sort of research went into the collection? Long walks? Fruitful discussions with scholars and other poets?

KM: I read scholarly texts on Mesopotamia and Biblical history — not many, but enough to get the taste of the passion that I wanted Lilith to have. I learned about how mountains become canyons and how mountains are eventually broken down into sand or small particles. I had just been on a tour of The Grand Canyon, and I could not help to think that the river was a woman. Originally, the word I used was “wearing,” but it became “weaving” after visiting Native American stores and learning about traditional weaving practices. I have heard “weaving” for many cultures and thought that it was much more creative than destructive.

FHBH: Was there any particular mythic retelling that did not make it into this collection? Or a particular myth that you would love to explore more fully in the future?

KM: I would love to write a full-on Lilith poem. Just an origin poem. I allude to her power and to the lore surrounding her, but I would love to see her fight Adam for sexual dominance. It didn’t fit as a single poem here — but elsewhere, I think it could be very fun and bring everything from domestic violence to BDSM to finding oneself not in love to the conversation.

FHBH: What other projects are you working on?

KM: I am working on Self-Portrait as Alexander Hamilton and two archeological poem collections. I find that I am as short on time and have the need to write until the end as Alexander Hamilton and make no mistake, I see my flaws in his as well.

My two archeological collections differ by straight narrative and using only the archeological nomenclature to create metaphors. I’ve just been accepted into the University of Maryland Cultural History Management (archeology) Graduate Certificate program and, fingers crossed, next year into their master’s program. I want to have a degree to back up my writing, but also have it allow me to participate and study more places to write about.