Tamara Woods is the author of The Shaping of an “Angry” Black Woman. A collection of poetry that discusses relationships, love, and the failures in life. I met her on Facebook and watch her book reviews on YouTube.

Epifania: Describe your writing process. 
Tamara Woods: Writing poetry is different for me. I’m usually hit by an idea or a thought out of the blue and then I write it out, as much as possible. I don’t care where I am: on a bus, driving in traffic (I pull over then), in an elevator. I’m one of those kinds of writers. 

E: A lot of the poems have a male figure as the antagonist. Did you mean to do that?
TA: It wasn’t intentional, but I am a straight CIS female, so I was writing from my perspective. 

E: You discuss the ugly side of the relationships. The dark side which no one discusses in the fairy tales. Did you use your own past or did you gained inspiration from other people’s relationships? 
TA: I used both. I’m lucky in that I have made many friends over the years and people like to talk to me about things. Even strangers to be honest. Some of the stories are composites and some are taken directly from my life.

E: Your poems are quite personal. How was it to write something so personal? Did you have any fears/doubts? What were they?
TA: It feels like a confessional at a church where you’re positive you will be harshly judged for your sins. It feels ultimately personal and makes me feel naked. I was positive people would shun me or hate it-which, in turn, would feel like they hated a piece of me. 

E: One of my favorite poems was “The Child Who Never Was”. What was your mindset while writing that poem? 
TA: I wrote that poem sitting on a bus looking at this little boy. He was peaking over the chair at me. His eyes were a bright and shining brown. He made me think about the child I may never have due to issues with my body and my age. 

E: What inspired you to write “The Greatest Show On Earth”?
TA: When I was in my 20s, it seemed like my group of friends and I were so concerned with changing and doing anything possible to keep the man. Masking ideals, changing our dress, anything. We were circus performers in our relationships.

E: Finally, when you are not writing, YouTubing, being awesome, what do you like to do? 
TA: I’m a pretty simple woman. I read all the things. Paranormal, romance, middle grade, young adult, the sci-fi…the list goes on and on. Mostly fiction and writing books. I’ve had to change my eating habits due to changes in my health, so I’ve been having a great time experimenting with recipes. Occasionally chilling on the beach. (Does thinking about doing yoga count? Probably not, huh?)

And that’s the wonderful Tamara Woods.