FG: So, Margaret. You're mainly a poet and sometimes prose writer, correct? How were you introduced to both forms of writing?

MZ: I owe my indirect introduction to writing to Melody, my childhood best friend. When I still went to church, we two very devoted Christians would scavenge the church for pencils and sheets of paper before the service began so that we could make picture books if we got bored. I would write a sentence or two and hand the page to her, who then drew a corresponding picture. Sometimes, we'd flip through Shel Silverstein's poetry books for inspiration, resulting in goofy poetry with meter and rhyme that didn't make any sense ("Now we all eat friendship heads!").

 

There was a playground right next to the church, and after the service ended, we would head to it and pretend it was full of secret avenues and magical cities and all that fun stuff. We loved the idea of residing in a different world, which sprouted from something far-fetched I said to her one day—“We were kidnapped at birth from another dimension”—and prospered because she played along: “Should we look for our birthplace?” The following years, we ran around the halls of the church during our Saturday evenings, gripping wands we’d made from sticks and colored paper. We mapped out cities, discovered the use of certain colored potions, journeyed into strange caverns. We made hundreds of character sketches of the people (and non-people) we met in that realm. I started writing to record those adventures, whether real or imagined. I was fascinated by the idea of experiencing the lives of others when I'd only been given one.

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FG: That really is adorable. Since then, what has influenced your writing? Who inspires you?

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MZ: Pretty much all of my writing is about the people around me. My writing currently emphasizes human connection, both long term and transient. Prominent but short-lived connections used to feel like a waste to me, but I now realize that connections never disappear definitively. A significant connection, regardless of length or circumstance, can stay with someone for a lifetime. People don't have to be directly present for their presence to affect me.

 

For the same reason, I appreciate complex plots because of what they (usually) reveal about

character motives, insecurities, desires, fears, values, etc. Story-based video games especially

contain large amounts of twists and turns. Shoutout to the beyond well-thought-out plots of

Professor Layton games. Other video games that have inspired me include Undertale, Ib, and The

Last of Us.

 

In terms of writers, I love the work of Ocean Vuong (surprise!), Terrance Hayes, Kelly Link, Karen

Russell, and Frank O'Hara.

 

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FG: Have you and your writing changed since founding Glass Kite Anthology?

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MZ: Glass Kite Anthology hasn't changed my own writing that much, but it has made me more

observant of patterns in the writing community. I'm more aware of how certain notable poets

and publications (such as Ocean Vuong and the Adroit Journal) have influenced and created

frameworks for the work of young adult writers.

 

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FG: Do you have any passions other than writing? Any projects you’re working on?

 

MZ: During my time at the Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop, my friends and I joked about writing a poem onstage for the talent show, if that says anything.

 

I play flute and used to be in my middle school marching band. I loved it, but my high school is unfortunately too small for one (even our concert band is in the single digits). If I attend a big enough university, I definitely want to do marching band again.

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I spend a lot of time thinking about topics related to queer theory (more specifically, how

our notions of romance have developed/evolved over time, how certain types of relationships

are placed on a pedestal, different kinds of relationships, the negative effects of our rigid

notions of romance, etc). Not a concrete activity, but definitely a topic I'm passionate about.

 

Another thing: names! I spend way more time than I should creating lists of names that

often don't even make it into my writing -- I just let them sit there. I used to joke about being

a baby name consultant when I grew up. Maybe I'll do that part time to add to the large sum

of money I'll make from my writing career! Just kidding.

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My life would also be pretty incomplete without the nonstop drone of music in the background. I listen to music 24/7, no exaggeration (yep, even when I'm sleeping). I predominately listen to alternative rock bands (like The Strokes).

 

Other miscellaneous passions: dogs, doges, memes, driving, Pokémon, Professor Layton, reading my embarrassing old bios, Undertale.

 

Current projects include putting together a writing portfolio, prodding through my lengthy summer reading list, and drafting college essays (woot woot!).

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FG: Queer theory and relationships are definitely interesting topics to think and write about, although I really can’t understand why anybody would want to read, much less remember, their old cringeworthy bios. Speaking of Pokémon, how are you liking Pokémon Go?

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MZ: Too real. I take it back. My friends just love teasing me about me being a "deep experiencer of emotions" and a "Holden Caulfield who wants to be an Atticus Finch."

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Pokémon Go is great! I'm sure many people have said this, but it's been a while since I've voluntarily walked outside so much. I'm also discovering a ton of new places in my city that I never knew existed (and I've lived here for 6 years). It's also a nice excuse to get to know people you don't know as well, either from bumping into other Pokémon Goers on the road or Pokémon Going with people you just met.

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FG: If you could travel back in time to any age, what would you tell your past self?

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MZ: Stop posting vague Facebook statuses about your crush. Thanks! Xoxo

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FG: What have you been reading lately? Are there any books, shows or albums that are not well-known that you’d recommend? 

 

MZ: I'm currently reading Cosmicomics (Italo Calvino) and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (Haruki

Murakami).

Recommended Books:

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki by Haruki Murakami
Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link
Night Sky with Exit Wounds by Ocean Vuong

Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell
Hallucinations by Oliver Sacks
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
Open by Andre Agassi
Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut

Most people have heard Stolen Dance by Milky Chance, but not many have listened to the rest of Sadnecessary (the album). I highly recommend "Becoming," "Flashed Junk Mind," "Fairytale," and "Stunner."

 

On a similar note, most people haven't heard Twenty One Pilot's other songs (besides Stressed Out

and Ride). "Holding Onto You," "Fake You Out," "Kitchen Sink," "Ode to Sleep," "Goner," "We

Don't Believe What's On TV," "Semi-Automatic," and "Polarize" are some of my favorites by them.

 

Other Album Recommendations:

 

Comedown Machine - The Strokes

First Impressions of Earth - The Strokes

Angles - The Strokes
 ILIWYSFYASBYSUOI - The 1975
ZABA - Glass Animals

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FG: Lastly, to stay true to our name, do you like sweet or sour food better?

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MZ: Sour. Hot Cheetos and sour candy are too good. SORRY :'(

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Thank you for taking the time to talk to us, Margaret! We’ll be looking into all these album and book recommendations, and we encourage all of you Rascals to check out Margaret’s work online as well.

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Look out for Issue One of Sugar Rascals throughout the next week! Sign up for our newsletter and follow/like our Facebook and Tumblr accounts to stay updated.

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Farah Ghafoor is a sixteen-year-old poet and a founding editor at Sugar Rascals, an online teen literary magazine. Her work is published or forthcoming in Ninth Letter, alien mouth, Words Dance, and Red Paint Hill among other places and has been recognized by the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Farah is the recipient of the 2016 Alexandria Quarterly Emerging Artists and Writers Award. She believes that she deserves a cat. Find her online at fghafoor.tumblr.com.

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