A Slice of Cake With... Wendy Van Camp

Today I am delighted to have a slice of cake with author Wendy Van Camp.

Wendy is the Poet Laureate for the City of Anaheim, California. Her work is influenced by cutting edge technology, astronomy, and daydreams. A graduate of the Ad Astra Speculative Fiction Workshop, Wendy is a nominated finalist for the Elgin Award, for a Pushcart Prize, and for a Dwarf Stars Award. Her poems, stories, and articles have appeared in: Scifaikuest, The Starlight Scifaiku Review, The Lotus Tree Literary Review, The Junction, and other literary journals. She is the poet and illustrator of The Planets: a scifaiku poetry collection and editor of the annual anthologies Eccentric Orbits: An Anthology of Science Fiction Poetry and Anaheim Poetry Review. She was also a guest editor for the SFPA’s Eye To The Telescope #46: Quests.

What kind of books do you write?

I am a speculative poet. Some authors specialize in writing science fiction and fantasy themes in their books. I do too, but I write in poetry form. My main form is a haiku style known as “scifaiku”, but I also write free verse and other poetry forms. I am the Poet Laureate for the City of Anaheim, California and am one of only four poets laureate in the United States who write speculative poetry. Anaheim features STEM programs in their library system and they felt a poet who wrote about astronomy and the space program would be a good fit for the city.

I am also a novelist and short story writer. I am currently working on an Austen Regency series featuring the characters of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. While it is romantic, I also try to capture the spirit of the Regency era and give the reader a sense of what it was like to be in that era. I have various science fiction trilogies and short stories in different completion stages. Only the start of my Regency series is available for purchase, but I hope to get my science fiction books out in the next few years. However, since I was named a poet laureate, I have been more focused on publishing poetry, public speaking, and the duties to my city.

Can you describe your writing why?

I’ve always been a storyteller. Some of my earliest memories are telling little stories around the campfire as a small child. I started writing my first book when I was four years old, wanting to capture my stories on the page and I dreamed of being a novelist when “I grew up.” I can’t stop telling stories. It is part of my nature. Perhaps I tell too many? There are those who probably think so, but I can’t help being who I am. I suppose I was born to be a writer. The trick was learning the craft to support the inner talent and desire of who I am.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

One of my favorite poems from my twice Elgin Award nominated poetry collection The Planets is from the Pluto section of the book. Pluto once was considered the ninth planet of our solar system, but was downgraded to the status of a dwarf planet. It was quite the controversy in astronomy circles.

Planet Pluto:

in the Kuiper belt

dwarfs mingle with comets

size doesn’t matter

Tell us about your latest project

I am the editor of Eccentric Orbits: an anthology of science fiction poetry published by Dimensionfold Publishing. We put out an issue once a year and recently dropped volume 4 of the series. My anthologies are filled with some of the top names in speculative poetry and I’m honoured to showcase their talents. Each issue also has a poetry offering of my own included. If speculative poetry is new to you or you would like to read a sample of quality work in this specialized poetry niche, I hope you’ll give our latest offering a try.

What is your favourite cake?

Cassata Cake. This is an Italian cake with a sweeten ricotta filling. It was what we served at my wedding, to the delight of my Italian mother-in-law, and it has since become my favorite. We only serve it at special occasions because it is rather expensive to bake, but it always makes the event more delicious and memorable.

You can connect with Wendy here:

Website - wendyvancamp.com

Amazon - amazon.com/author/wendyvancamp

Medium - medium.com/@wvancamp

Twitter - @wvancamp

Instagram - @nowastedink

Free Monthly Newsletter – nowastedink.substack.com

Join me next week when I will be having a slice of cake with Kate Darroch. 

You can support my writing endeavours and buy me virtual tea & cake through Kofi - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find out more about her books on her website clairebuss.co.uk. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. Never miss out on future posts by following me.