with Z.D. Dicks

Q1: When did you start writing and first influences?

Z.D.: I really started to get into poetry in my teens. The main influences at the time were Ted Hughes, John Donne and Edgar Allan Poe.

Q2: Who are your biggest influences today?

Z.D.: My biggest influence today is Seamus Heaney and many other contemporary poets.

Q3: Where did you grow up and how did that influence your writing/art? Have any travels away from home influenced work/describe?

Z.D.: I grew up in Gloucester, this has had a profound influence on me. It has influenced me because the countryside has open space and places to get lost without bricks. This has influenced my writing because I can spend time away from people to think and work. My travels have had an impact as well because any new experience adds collateral to the sensory bank so my writing always gains…