Ryhanna Mbakop
 

“To be true to yourself, your beliefs, and your experiences is how you grow as both a writer and an individual.”

The editors of Eucalyptus Lit recently had the privilege and opportunity to speak with Ryhanna Mbakop, poetry winner of Eucalyptus Lit's inaugural summer contest. Her work “African, American-Soiled Immigrants” features in Issue 5, Bequest.

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This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

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How did you start writing?

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I have always loved story-telling since I was a young kid. Growing up, I wasn’t allowed to watch TV on weekdays, so my sisters and I would usually find ourselves in our “Barbie Room” for two hours, making up fantasy stories with our Barbie dolls. After that, my progression into creative writing was quite natural, as my English teacher would always have “Free-Write Fridays,” where we’d write prose every Friday and share. At the age of 12, I really took any opportunity to express myself outside of my academics, so I wrote a different piece every single Friday, usually bouncing between horror and comedy short stories—completely different from what I write now. But we evolve.

From then on, I started writing my debut YA Fantasy novel at around 14. It’s still in the making. I got into poetry, specifically, through a spontaneous writing program I did the summer after my sophomore year of high school. I guess I never stopped, afterward. I fell in love with the form, ambiguity, and freeness of poetry. Since then, I’ve been writing non-stop, and accumulating experience from different creative writing workshops/classes. 

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Why do you write?

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To be honest, I think that my “why” for writing depends on the season. In general, I write to process my emotions and the world around me. But, I also write to express my creativity. Writing gives me a way to be raw and vulnerable, but also curious. In my works of poetry, specifically, I love to write to connect with my culture—I rarely edit without a Thesaurus and a research tab open nearby. When I am tired of doing schoolwork, I write. When I want to take a break from life, I write. When I need a medium to make sense of my thoughts, I write. My “why” isn’t some grand reason, per se—it’s just how I process my life.

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How do you get your inspiration? What is your creative process?

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Oh, fun! I love talking about my creative process. I get my inspiration from music and films. I adore cozying up on my couch and watching a gripping, emotionally wrenching film. Anything that is melodramatic, and has a touch of romance, really. In terms of music, I have been bouncing around between classical music (Barber, Siloti, and Arvo Pärt), Korean Drama soundtracks, and Tinashe’s Tiny Desk Concert. “Nights” by Frank Ocean on a Friday night is truly magical, though.

I keep a small, creative writing notebook on me at all times. So, whenever I feel inspired, I usually write a few lines in that journal. Afterward, I sit down with a cup of tea (I am a tea addict, sorry) and a blank Google Document, and then I write. I put on my favorite songs, and try to immerse myself into a solely creative space. This usually means tuning out the noise around me, and being super in touch with my mind and soul. I almost exclusively write at night, because I think that’s when I am my most “truest self”—raw, vulnerable, and completely unfiltered. It’s beautiful. I do the more heavy “editing,” and researching for my pieces throughout the day. To write, you need to really read. So, I consume a lot of poetry on a weekly basis. I study the form, structure, and overall craft of poetry to grow in technicality. But, I also like to study the poem’s true heart—what the poet is trying to convey through their piece and why.

When I approach a piece that I’m writing, I try to be as raw and vulnerable as possible, as I said before. Vulnerability does not necessarily mean pouring my life story onto a page—as in, what I am talking about in my poetry is a direct reflection of my life—but more so it’s a reflection of my outlook on life and how I process the world around me. I think to do so, is a challenge in itself—a challenge to lay out a part of yourself and your experiences in front of the public, without complete knowledge of how you or your work will be perceived. However, I find that doing so is quite frankly the most rewarding thing you can do for yourself. To be true to yourself, your beliefs, and your experiences is how you grow as both a writer and an individual.

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Can you tell us a little bit about your winning poem, "African, American-Soiled Immigrants"?

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I wrote “African, American-Soiled Immigrants” quite sporadically. Throughout the course of writing this poem, I was dealing with the complex emotions of teenage love while navigating my dual-identity as a young woman of color and a dedicated follower of Christ. I think my identity as an African Catholic (in terms of the Catholic religion, not necessarily the faith) is a prime example of two identities that co-exist but can come into conflict at any time due to external circumstances. In a country that is becoming more and more politically polarized, and as a Black girl attending a predominantly white-led church, I found myself getting conflicted between wanting to love the members of my religion wholly, but not fully identifying with the current ideals of the Church. I suppose it can be best described as struggling to love a person, with whom you do not fully share the same fundamental values. I think having the same fundamental values with another person is the foundation of a relationship, even if you both do not share the same views/opinions beyond that. I can’t say that I’m not still struggling with this, but I guess that’s life. Relationships are complicated because humans are multifaceted.

For this specific piece, I remember watching the film “The Woman King,” a couple of days before I started writing it. I’d been so inspired by the gorgeous representation of African culture, through the soundtrack, the clothes, and ultimately the filming set. More importantly, I loved how the film challenged stereotypes about African women (specifically) during the period of the Trans-Atlantic slavery, and showed how heavily involved African women were in fighting back against slavery and protecting their native lands and culture. So, I tried to emulate that strength in African women, being a young African woman myself, and show how my culture and background affect my experience as a second-generation immigrant, growing up in the United States. 

I think nothing speaks more about my Cameroonian identity than spirits, my ancestry, and wine. So, I would say this poem is ultimately an embrace of my Cameroonian culture (granted that I can never fully assimilate to the culture of the United States), while also simultaneously being a sorrowful goodbye to my motherland. It’s also an acknowledgment that I will always be an outsider in the United States, hence the “well-fed immigrants disguised under the American, Confederate flag.” I’d hate to spoil my own poem, but yeah, the essence of it is juggling my complex identity as a young African girl, living in a predominately white country. 

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On this topic, what kind of role does your culture and heritage play in your writing? Which topics do you find yourself coming back to, if any?

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My culture and heritage plays a significant role in my writing, especially my poetry. Being raised by a Cameroonian mother, who immigrated to the United States in her twenties, definitely shaped my experience living in America, for better or for worse. So, I think that whatever I write, even if it isn’t inherently related to my culture and heritage, is certainly influenced by it. My identity as a Cameroonian-American girl will never change, even as I mature in age. So, I like to let that identity serve as a starting point for whatever I write. After all, all of my identities (even beyond my ethnicity) influence my core values and opinions. On that note, I find myself going back to the topic of just that—my experience as a young, Cameroonian girl living in America. It’s a bit vague in theory, but I reckon that a lot can happen over the span of 17 years. 

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Do you have any advice for young writers?

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If I could give any advice to young writers, though I’d like to say that I’m relatively young myself, I would say to be as raw and authentic as possible. A person can have all the techniques of writing mastered, but without vulnerability, people will never be able to relate to their work. 

Ultimately, having your own unique voice is the key to writing, whether that means drawing from your culture, past relationships, unique experiences, etc. And having a voice doesn’t necessarily mean limiting yourself to one kind of writing. I think the key to finding one’s voice is developing a unique style, that is solely unique to yourself no matter the form or type of poem that you write. 

It is your voice that is going to differentiate you from thousands of other works. The human experience is similar, in that we all experience the same basic emotions (sadness, love, anger, etc.), but we all process these emotions and life itself in different ways. 

We rely on “rawness” in art, because it is how we can find solace in each other during tough times, even if our actual experiences are vastly different. So, I think it’s also important to approach each piece with a different perspective, a willingness to be curious (letting a piece guide itself, and not forcing a piece into something that it's not), and ultimately a willingness to be again, vulnerable. 

Vulnerability is our greatest strength, as it allows us to be fully ourselves without worrying about how we are being perceived. In this way, I think writing is a balance between being cognizant of how you and your work are being perceived, while also being incredibly unapologetic and weird. My favorite poems that I have read are utterly bizarre, but filled with such strong voice.

Besides that, I’d say to believe in yourself. You are your worst critic. Self-doubt is a universal feeling, even in the biggest of writers. So, I’d say to be humble and only compare yourself to yourself. Allow yourself to grow as a writer, and always give yourself room to explore different mediums of writing, and draw inspiration from just about anything, really. 

Lastly, I’m a firm believer that you need to live to write. In order to have something to write about, you need to experience human life first. So, don’t be afraid to explore your other passions, make some wrong turns, and find something or someone that makes life worth living. 

So yeah, get hella weird with your writing. Be so disgustingly bizarre, vulnerable, and you. 

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