Look and Listen

Biography

David M Pitchford is the writer of numerous poems and publisher of numerous chapbooks. A passionate advocate of poetry and poets, David has been publishing his own and others' poetry and fiction since 1997. Currently shopping around three manuscripts of Fantasy fiction, he is working on two sequels to two series based in the same setting: Kumari Vale. David has been president of the Poets & Writers Literary Forum of Springfield, Illinois from 2000-2005 and is serving again in that capacity since May 2007. Founder and publishing editor since 1998, Pitchford struggles conscientiously to publish Prism Quarterly four times a year. PQ is a professionally edited, published, and manufactured 6x9 perfect bound journal of eclectic poetry and fiction with a section, "Shores of Acheron", devoted to work of a speculative fiction nature (fantasy/science fiction). For more information, see his blog at bitterhermit.wordpress.com

Inspiration

As a writer, I am most influenced by what I read. I've always been a voracious reader. It began in preschool with memorizing Bible verses to earn sundaes. Then it was school books, especially the new ones because I loved the feel and smell of new text books (still do). During the summer I turned eight, maybe nine, I joined a summer program with the Searcy Public Library and read something like 300 books over the summer. I recall mostly a fascination with octopi and undersea adventure. Then in junior high it was CS Lewis leading me into Edgar Rice Burroughs' Martian Tales. From then on I began to borrow my brother's books (he's four years ahead of me). SR Donaldson and the Land led to a school bud turning me onto Shanara and I was hooked. I recall at fifteen being a bit disappointed with endings and thinking that I could write better ones. Now at forty, I'm wishing I had written back then. But I write prolifically. Every day. Clean later. For now, write everything into it. Whatever life tosses at you, bend it, twist it, look at it askance and write about it.