22. "Haunt" Fun Facts

I hope no one thought I wasn’t going to do something fun for National Poetry Month! For this month’s blog posts, I wanted to share some Haunt-related things, so here are some fun facts relating to my first book of poetry, which you should (shameless yet blunt self-promotion incoming) definitely check out if you haven’t already.
 

1. Haunt was birthed as an independent study I took at college; I was able to choose a theme to my collection of work, and my professor believed in (and supported!) my love of horror. I wanted to bridge the gap between genre and literary work, two styles of writing that are often seen as clashing, or on different rungs of the writing ladder. So, thanks to SCSU and Vivian Shipley for the help! 
2. I’ve been asked where I came up with the cover design for Haunt, and that’s an easy answer: PicMonkey! I even credited them in the book, rightfully so. Playing around for hours on end with different layers and backgrounds and fonts eventually became what we now have for the front and back covers. Now I use it all the time for work, and have designs in the works for the next collection of poems.
   
3. “He Looked Like Me” from Haunt is inspired by that weird dark hole in YouTube you fall into after a late night clicking through the “similar videos” sidebar. You know, that one where you end up with videos on how to conjure ghosts in your bedroom. DIY poltergeists, woohoo! 
4. Who took my author photos in the book and here on my website, you ask? Oh, that’s just Nathan. He’s ok. But seriously, we’ve been friends for a while now and he’s a pain in the ass but he’s a talented dude who makes awesome videos and sings for a band called Migrant. You should probably buy their album because it’s pretty sweet.
   
5. Who wrote the blurb on the back of my book, you ask? What’s that—you didn’t ask that question because the writer is listed below the quote? Well I’ll tell you anyway: That’s Jess Rougeau, one of the first artists I’ve ever met who shares my love of horror. And she’s also one of my dearest friends. Her book of poems, Witch Doctor, is a must-read. And check out her website, ThisIsWitchDoctor.com! You won’t be disappointed. Her work is fabulous. 

I hope you enjoyed these behind-the-scenes glances at the making of Haunt. And anyone who knows me knows I’ll talk about this book for hours! Do you have any more questions I should answer, or ideas I should discuss in the next Nothing Peak blog post for National Poetry Month? Let me know in the comments!
 
-Ryan

Buy Haunt here. Preview my books here. Find me on social here. ​​​​​