RECIPIENT REFLECTION

​Mentorship Recipient:
venus, planet of love

Mentor Commentary:
Ali McLain

On the Revision Process for "venus, planet of love"

by ​Vanessa Maki

​First word that comes to mind in terms of someone else critiquing my work is “apprehension.” I’m quite protective of the work I produce (whether it’s writing or some form of art) and it’s quite rare when I let just anyone be a part of my processes. Especially since my work tends to be highly personal one way or another.

I know for certain I’m not the only one who keeps my work close to the chest. Unless sharing with those close to me. But with that process and security comes cons in the form of making mistakes that go unnoticed and maybe not producing your best work. So when it comes to writing more specifically, sometimes suggestions or critiques can improve a piece massively. I’m still learning how to be okay with that.

With the editorial mentorship I did have some fear that my poem would be changed drastically. That somehow I’d be looking at a poem that had a style that wasn’t my own. I won’t say that there weren’t frustrations or moments of being stumped. But what became clear once the poem had undergone changes was that it needed them. Ali made suggestions about the pacing of the poem and certain descriptions that needed changing. My poem “venus, planet of love,” under Ali’s brief mentorship, became smoother and something I can be more confident about.
​

Vanessa Maki

​Vanessa Maki is a queer writer, artist, and other things. She’s full of black girl magic and has no apologies for that. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in various places like Entropy and others. She’s founder/EIC of rose quartz journal, interview editor for Tiny Flames Press, columnist for terse journal, and regular contributor for Vessel Press. She enjoys self publishing chapbooks. Her experimental chapbook social media isn’t what’s killed me will be released by Vessel Press in 2019. Follow her on Twitter @theblackbuffy.