Name You Write Under
Nicole Lyons

In what part of the world do you live?
I live in BC Canada in a little city called Kamloops. The word Kamloops comes from the Secwepemc word Tk’emlúps, meaning “where the rivers meet” and refers to the convergence of the North and South Thompson rivers. Not only is Kamloops rich in culture and heritage, especially that of The Tk‘emlúpsemc ‘the people of the confluence’, now known as the Tk’emlúps te Secwe̓pemc, but we are also the Tournament Capital of Canada and home to the CFL’s own BC Lions’ training camps. For decades our city has hosted hundreds of tournaments a year at our many world class sporting facilities. We’re gunning for a preforming arts facility as well, but it’s a vote the city can’t seem to pass.

Tell us a little about yourself.
I hate talking about myself. Although I often give the impression that I enjoy being the center of attention, I really don’t, like, not at all. I don’t know how to explain myself in words other than “mother” “poet” “bipolar disorder”, and that’s not saying I don’t see myself as anything other than those things, I just lack the ability to express anything else. Ha! Ironic, I guess you could call me ironic. Look, I write poetry and if you are seriously interested in getting to know me a little bit better, read my work, you’ll get a deeper understanding of who I am that way.

Tell us about your journey as a writer.
I started sharing little blips of the moments I spent pacing the halls of the psych wards I found myself in, or the thoughts that danced in my head when I opened my eyes to a ceiling that wasn’t familiar and tried to swallow the coke burn in my throat. My journey has always been a write or die situation.

Is your Indie Blu(e) title your first time in print?
No, All of my previously published work (Hush, I Am A World Of Uncertainties Disguised As A Girl, and Blossom and Bone) is now out of print, but Indie Blu(e) showcases the best of the best of my work in The Lithium Chronicles Volume One and Volume Two.

Who are your literary influences?
You’d be surprised and disgusted if I told you the truth, so instead all go with the safety of Plath, Bukowski, Downy, Poe, and too many modern poets to name.

What inspires/motivates you to keep writing?
My illness and my sanity demand it of me. I wish it was prettier than that, but it is what it is.

Tell us about The Lithium Chronicles
The chronicles are a little peek into my personal battles with mental illness, addiction, love, and longing. They are ultimately my healing.

What are your personal favorites from the books?
From The Lithium Chronicles: Volume One

Under Red Skies
The Night A Blue Moon Burst
Gutting The Apartment Upstairs
Have Your Muse, I’ll Have My Whiskey

From The Lithium Chronicles: Volume Two

Fine On The Outside
I Wrote It All Down
Sunday Brunch
The Good Girls Are Always Found
The Mmm of Her

What are your future goals?
To never fade away. I hope to go out in a spectacular crash, one that keeps me and my work fresh in the heads of all the other glorious messes who have taken a moment to read me.

Where can we read more of your writing?
Nicole Lyons
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Excerpt from The Lithium Chronicles: Volume Two

FINE ON THE OUTSIDE

I look fine on the outside, until fine meets perfect
when it rolls in, and over
the knapweeds taking over my drive at precisely 7:15 a.m., shouting good
morning from behind foggy windows.
I kiss the little one on her head and exchange
fleeting glances full of cynicism and love
with the oldest, before I nod and wave,
smiling at the unkindness
of ravens that circle the tips of my mountain
ash and torment my old cat.
Monday morning weaves its way fluidly
around my parked car and into traffic, muffling
for a moment, the violence of the murder
of old crows gathering once again, boorishly
upon the gutters left barely hanging above my door.
I pull myself back in to the familiar warmth
of my quiet, yellow kitchen, and I can’t help
but chuckle a little when I slide, and feel
the ball of my left foot meeting last night’s dinner.
I pour another quick one, and I raise my mug before
the gulp of swallows preening and swooping, and I look
fine on the outside.