David T. Applegate (author of the series The Empire of Elves) is a good friend of mine on X (formerly Twitter).
On the two-year anniversary of my interview with David, I posted about it on X, as this had been a very positive, enjoyable, and validating experience for me as an indie author and poet.
The posts on X generated considerable interest and traffic to the interview on YouTube, and people left postive comments on X. David and I agreed to do a second interview on 27 October and begin where we left off in 2023.
I am always honoured to be asked for an interview, do a video, or join a podcast with fellow authors. Besides the interview with David in 2023, another highlight for me has been the video I did in 2022 for Author’s Week at a middle school in Long Island (Reaching out to the next generation).
Where to begin?
Even though two years is not a long time, I realised that a lot had happened since the first interview, and I needed to collect my thoughts and prepare. At work and as a person, I like to be well-prepared before important meetings. A live interview is a unique opportunity for an author, and I wanted to do justice to David and his viewers. As with the first interview back in 2023, I felt quite nervous. I have seen live interviews with other authors, so I know how important it is to come across well and not just ramble on!
I thought about the highlights of my journey the past two years – publishing my first four books in paperback and releasing my fifth book, Friends, in 2024.
In 2024, I had believed that I would publish a sixth volume in 2025, but Fate had other plans for me. 2025 has been very difficult for me and my family, with my mother’s sudden and unexpected passing in January, followed by serious health concerns in my closest family. All very painful and stressful developments, leaving no energy, capacity, or desire to publish poetry. In 2025, simply showing up and functioning every day has felt like a great achievement.
I’ve now slowly started working on a new volume, which I hope to publish sometime in 2026.
A sign from the Universe
Preparing for this interview with the daily stress at work and at home felt challenging at times, but I felt that this was a sign from the Universe that I needed to keep moving forward and not abandon my poetry. My mission is to make the voice of my younger self heard. I feel I owe it to her and myself to get my poems out there.
And indeed, as in 2023, I felt validated and happy while doing the interview with David Applegate. Marketing and selling poetry, not least as an indie author, is not easy. I am grateful to David for giving me the opportunity to talk about my poetry, and I hope his viewers will visit my blog and read my poems. They might even feel like buying one of my books!
Like, share, and subscribe!
I invite you, my dear Reader, to watch this interview and learn more about my journey as a poet. My links are in the description box, do check them out!
If you enjoy this interview, please like and share it, and subscribe to David’s channel. I also invite you to visit my Author Page on Amazon, Goodreads, and BookBub. All my books are available in paperback and free on KindleUnlimited. Please do leave a review if you read them.
Much love and blessings to all of you!
Vanita Shukla Hork, October 2025