YANA ZGURSKAYA: Elysia, first I would like to know a little bit of background. Where were you born? What kind of child were you?  What kind of childhood did you have?

ELYSIA SMITH: Hi Yana! I was born in Southern California as a surprise to my as yet to be married parents along with my twin sister Savannah. We have one younger brother. As a child I was precocious and read a lot. I lived often in an imaginary world opting to believe that what I read in books was real--seeing fairies and magic all over the place. My parents were both detached from their families and had rougher backgrounds, so we were a tight knit group. Most of my extended family growing up were my dad’s friends from his twenties, a group of artsy weirdos who call themselves the Loosedogs. We were always going on camp-outs, and watching adults day drink. Mostly I have been responsible for myself from an early age and in a supportive artistic environment both of which have helped me tremendously. 

YZ: Did you enjoy school much growing up? When did you discover poetry? Was there always a need to write in you from an early age, or did it develop at some point as you got older?

ES: I began writing poetry in response to 9/11 as a 10 year old. I wrote a few poems about war and then began focusing mostly on the natural world. I left poetry as a teenager and began writing fiction, mostly historical thrillers and fantasy.

I always enjoyed school because I enjoy rules and structure to a certain extent, but I tended to feel more advanced than my peers, especially after moving from Southern California to Indiana as a teenager. Mostly due the reading and experiences of childhood, I think. I have never been good at math, but I’ve always been good at compartmentalizing so I let subjects like Math and Science go early on and accepted I’d have a liberal arts career. 

YZ: What are some of the things—themes, issues, emotions, questions—you find yourself trying to address or pursue in your poetry? What are some of the challenges of this process?

ES: My poems often center on sexual themes, the body, grief, motherhood, and trust. It can be challenging to feel so charged with telling the truth in my poems. I undress myself so to speak and become very confessional and vulnerable as a poet. 

YZ: Who are some enduring poetic influences for you? What about them inspires or challenges you as an artist?

ES: Kathy Acker, Rita Dove, Sylvia Plath, Diane Seuss, Diane Wakowski, Monica Youn, and Ariana Reines. Each of these writers taught me how beauty can exist in the ordinary, the grotesque, the quiet. They each use their personal lives and experiences to articulate very difficult topics and they do it so well. 

YZ: You are the owner of the independent book and vinyl store Irvington Vinyl & Books, in Indianapolis, Indiana, in the United States. I checked your book and vinyl store on the Internet— the place looks so welcoming and home-like. How did the idea of the shop originate and how did it come to life? How do you identify first—as a poet or a businesswoman? Is an independent business like this stressful? What are some things you needed to learn or adjust to in this role of shop owner?

ES: I identify as a business person and/or a teacher first. I spend too much time working for and with the community to call myself a poet full time. The shop was a complete surprise for me. I’d never seen myself doing retail in this manner, but then blammo. After going on a date to the previous iteration—a book store and vinyl store owned by separate people in a shared space—I fell in love! When I tried to go back, I learned both owners had decided to retire and were closing. In what felt like a manic plunge I wrote a business plan and secured an investor to reopen the space. My friends and I took 2 months to clean and redecorate and then I launched. It has only recently become what I envisioned in my head upon first opening. That being said, it’s very stressful and lots of work. Still, I love doing it--and it helps that I’m a very work focused person. Mostly I’ve had to learn to take better care of myself individually and reel in my private life so I can do a better job spinning all the plates a business owner has to spin. 

YZ: I understand that Irvington Vinyl & Books serves not only as a place to acquire books and records, but also as a community artspace for various talents. How did that happen? There seem to be many organizations or programs affiliated with the shop, including Caliban Co-Op and Queery book club. Could you describe some of these projects for us? Do you take part in any other community work outside of Irvington, or can you recommend some other great independent businesses/community spots in Indianapolis or in the U.S. to recommend to visitors?

ES: I worked in event coordinating before I bought the shop and attended undergrad at a nearby university so I was fortunate enough to have the right background to build into the arts scene here. I do lots more community organizing specifically around poetry, food insecurity, racial justice, and anti-gentrification work. Before the pandemic I was helping launch a musical media archive for Indianapolis called Vital Records, scheduling and organizing the Indy Poetry Fest, among others. Those are on hold—though I’m building out storage for Vital covertly. I’ve shifted to work on a fund for BIPOC performing artists as emergency bill pay. This is called The R/Evolution Fund inspired by Assata Shakur. Hopefully this will launch in the New Year. Everything going on in America right now is slow slow slow with the election cycle madness. 

YZ: What are some upcoming ideas for future plans—either in terms of your own writing or your business and Indianapolis community? 

ES: I’d like to get Caliban moving along more formally, continue working on Vital Records, host events to promote The R/Evolution Fund. I’m always scheming about something. As far as my own work goes, I think I’ve finally committed to finishing a television script I’ve been working on. I’m also doing short typewriter poems a few times a week, going draft by draft and hand editing so I can see each revision in a schematic rather than just the final piece. 

YZ: What are your top three books? What are your top three musical albums to listen to on vinyl?

ES: Books: Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis, Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino, and Madness Rack, and Honey, by Mary Rueffle. Records: Dry by PJ Harvey, Maggot Brains by Funkadelic, and Dummy by Portishead.