Interview: Tyler Mortensen-Hayes
I’ve known Tyler Mortensen-Hayes for over a decade now. He’s a big part of some of my most treasured memories—like that one time we almost died in the back of a Uhaul truck with our BFFs Matt and Josh in Kansas in the middle of the night when we were set upon by not one but TWO tornadoes (I wish I was making this up). The four of us even share the same Smashing Pumpkins tattoo on our wrists.
Tyler’s poetry and short fiction are exceptional—he’s got a great sense of style and a voice all his own, and I find his writing immensely deep, thoughtful, and emotional in the best of ways. He’s currently completing grad school while teaching at the University of New Mexico. Tyler is passionate about insight meditation and mindfulness-based stress reduction and plans to get his certification in both once he’s completed his graduate degree. He’s graciously taken time from his busy schedule to answer the following questions:
What is your personal writing process like?
I almost always start with longhand freewriting. I don't like to have many ideas in mind before I write; they rarely "take off" for me. At best, I will locate a vague starting point as I sit at the desk—a small thought, image, memory, emotion, glimpse out the window, remembered bit of overheard conversation, a phrase from a news article I’ve recently read, etc. I'll start with this small thing and I'll freewrite on it, doing my best to let a wildness take over. Or, I'll start with nothing, simply opening to a blank page and beginning with whatever comes to mind first. I write quickly, without stopping (so as not to let the internal editor catch up), until my hand cramps. After this begins the slow work of carving, re-writing, adding, shaping, polishing…which can take a few hours or a few months.
Of course, this freewriting process doesn’t always result in fodder for poems or stories, but it's always useful. It's an exercise, like any other, and it strengthens the creative muscles, regardless of another outcome. Additionally, it reveals to me my obsessions—the things that come up organically in my writing again and again, the things that matter to me. Writing is a way of gaining insight into one’s nature, but I think it only works when we are diligent about stepping out of the way and letting the process work through us.
How big a part does reading play in your writing life?
Reading is a part of the process, as integral as the pen or keyboard. I had a professor during my undergrad who really drove home the point that reading and writing are simultaneous acts—one strengthens insofar as the other is diligently practiced. We read to discover what’s possible, what the world needs from us, what a human mind can do. We write to explore the same questions in ourselves.
Aside from that, reading is deeply enjoyable and rewarding in itself. I think, largely, we become writers because we love to read. I distrust any writer who says they don’t read, or don’t read much. What are you in it for, then? What are your motives, and why should I involve myself in them?
How do you cultivate your ideas?
As I’ve said, I tend not to have them before sitting down to write. However, that doesn’t mean they don’t arise here and there in everyday life. I buy packs of little notebooks, small enough to fit in my back pocket. I carry them everywhere, along with a wood pencil that I have snapped in half and re-sharpened to also fit snugly in my pocket. When something comes up, I write it down, as succinctly as I can. These snippets sometimes become starting points for freewriting. But it only works when I don’t linger on an idea for too long after jotting it down. It has to maintain its initial vitality and spontaneity, or else it becomes too complicated and no longer interesting to write about.
How do you get "unstuck" creatively?
If I’ve hit a wall and can’t seem to get a piece of writing to breathe on its own, the best thing I can do is to step away for a while. I can work on something else, read, grade my students’ assignments, make dinner with my wife, do the dishes, take a walk, etc. In my experience, mysterious things happen unconsciously when we begin to puzzle something out and then distance ourselves from it for a while. I often return to a piece of writing after stepping away to find a hundred new possible avenues that have sprung up in my absence. But, again, it only works if I don’t linger on the piece too much beyond the writing desk. It needs to be left alone, to start to learn itself, before it will have anything to say to me.
If I’m experiencing an outright block where I can’t write at all, it’s usually because I’ve set my expectations too high and can’t hope to meet them. In such a case, I try to remember the wisdom of my favorite poet, William Stafford. He once wrote, “If I am to keep on writing, I cannot bother to insist on high standards.” The best I can do when faced with a block is to lower my standards and keep going.
What's your "go-to" piece of writing advice?
Other than the above, there’s another piece that I alluded to earlier. The poet Heather Christle was once asked in an interview, “Do you have any advice for writers/poets working on their craft?” Her response: “Cultivate a wildness.” Trying to define that for myself is inspiring, and endlessly useful.
What story or book or poem inspired you to become a writer?
I’ve been writing poems and short stories since I was very young, but I didn’t take writing seriously until my freshman year of college. I had changed my major ten times or so by my second semester, and was feeling disillusioned with the whole thing. Then, I took an Intro to Poetry course as an elective, because I thought it might be kinda fun. It ended up changing the course of my life. The professor was a brilliant poet named C. Wade Bentley. One of the texts he assigned was Mary Oliver’s A Poetry Handbook. I loved that book so much that I sought out more of Oliver’s work, chancing upon her New and Selected Poems Volume One in a local bookstore. Those two books, along with Bentley’s humble but formidable passion for the art, sealed the deal. I changed my major to creative writing, and haven’t looked back.
Where can people find you and your work online?
I have a few things published online, which I think you can find just by Googling my name. Beyond that, I’m working on a website, which should be up in the next month or two. I’m also on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
