Poetry collection celebrates the small ‘moments’ of life

Date: 7/11/2014

WESTFIELD – Many people view life in its entirety, but in reality life is a series of moments – snapshots – that make up the whole of one’s life experience. One local author has taken the time to savor those moments, one by one, by writing poems dedicated to each segment of time.
   
Pioneer Valley native and Westfield resident David Walker, 24, will celebrate the release of his first chapbook, “Pause: A collection of moment poems,” this fall.
   
This is his first published collection, as individual pieces have been published in a variety of online and literary magazines such as the “Paper Nautilus” and “Misfit’s Miscellany.”
   
Walker said, “Moments are the opposite of what we think about our life as – the large scale, overall picture. [It’s] not just significance of a life in general. It’s one concrete unit.”
   
Walker wrote short stories as a child and began writing poetry in high school because like other teenagers, he “needed creative outlet.”
   
He said that he didn’t become serious about his craft until he started college at Westfield State University (WSU), where his professors encouraged him and helped him refine his writing skills.
   
One WSU instructor described Walker as the “who knew kid” because she never expected he would be so dedicated and passionate in his poetry.
   
“I began writing because I was extremely shy as a kid,” Walker said, explaining that the written word gave him a way to communicate with others. He was inspired by the “A Series of Unfortunate Events” book series that he read as a child. “I thought the stories were funny, clever and had a lot of heart,” Walker said.
   
As for his writing, Walker said, “I don’t write as well [as I should]. My practice, my discipline is not as good as it should be.” His writing process involves mental planning of his poetry where he “sits with his thoughts and the lines.”
   
Walker commented, “I’m pretty satisfied where I am right now.” His goal is to keep writing and he would like to publish a full-length collection of poems in the future.
   
This fall, Walker will begin teaching full-time at Central High School in Springfield, the city where he grew up. He is also an adjunct faculty member who teaches English composition at WSU.
   
In addition to his employment opportunities, Walker is engaged to Caitlin Norton – the first person he told about his chapbook when he received the approval letter from Finishing Line Press.
   
To learn more about Walker, to read some of his work, or listen to his literary podcast, log on to  www.facebook.com/davidwalkerauthor, http://dwalker8508.wix.com/davidwalker or http://goldwalkmag.wordpress.com.