Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Mendez.
Alexis, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I can’t remember what exactly made me want to start writing my own poetry. It could have been the posts I saw occasionally on Pinterest when searching for quotes to go with photographs I had taken (because I used to be really into photography at one point). It also could have been the poetry I began to start seeing on Instagram. Ultimately the inspiration didn’t matter, what did was the way poetry helped me understand my emotions and process them as well. Specifically, poetry helped me calm myself when faced with depression and anxiety. It was and still is my therapy. I decided when I was 14 to start sharing my poetry on Instagram and even found a poetry community. Once I had been writing for a year or two, I remembered how much I wanted to publish a book of my own. I had always thought my first book would be a fiction book since that’s all I ever used to write, but it’s funny how things happen not how you think they will but how they should. So, I decided that it would be amazing to share my poetry in a physical and tangible form. I started to dream of what it would be like to see my poetry laid out across pages of a book like I had seen in all my newfound favorite poetry books. At the time I didn’t even know self-publishing was a thing, but one day in college I happened to find a self-publishing website by the name of createspace (they don’t exist anymore because of Amazon). I realized that my dream could finally become a reality. Thus “Sometimes Sad Things are Beautiful” was born. That was the very first book I published and it’s still so close to my heart because it’s a collection of some of my favorite pieces that I wrote while discovering poetry while learning how I liked to write, and while implanting raw emotion into times new roman font. A year later I published my second book on Amazon KDP, then another year later my third on Amazon kdp again, and my fourth on Ingramspark 2 years after the third. The whole journey has been a learning process and a growing process. I’m really thankful to anyone who cares to take a glimpse at my words. Now I’m still writing but getting more into content creation and hoping to start writing another book (possibly fiction) soon!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Honestly, I can’t complain about any of my journey, but there are the occasional times when negative emotions arise. There’s also imposter syndrome. If you create anything in your life you may know what I mean. Sometimes it’s hard to feel like something you’ve made is actually great even when other people are telling you so. Sometimes I’ll have to go back and reread my poetry just to remind myself that I wrote it for a reason and published it for a reason. Someone might need the words I’ve written or relate or get inspired from my work. When the negative feelings arrive, I can just write about it. That’s the great thing about poetry. It’s shown me how important it is to be in tune with yourself. Because when you are, you can know what you need in order to get from under the raincloud eventually.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I consider myself a content creator who is also a poet and a makeup lover among other things. My content has really changed with each year, much like how my poetry has evolved over the years. I’m learning how to create better quality content and trying to incorporate more editing because that is another passion of mine that started even before the poetry. I hope in the future I can work with more brands because I love creating creative content for the brands I already work with and I love sharing the things I come to love with others! Though it isn’t always easy creating content with a full-time job, I still am working toward making it my future full-time job by staying as consistent as possible. All the things I’m passionate about and have shared make me really proud of my ability to get uncomfortable. Having your art or content out there for all the world to see is not easy. Even the process isn’t completely easy. I’m proud that I’ve been able to really put my work out there and myself as well because a lot of my work is very personal and very much a relation to what I’ve been through or am going through. I think it’s important to acknowledge that part of growth, the part that you would want to do without but just can’t help carrying with you because for some reason it’s what you need.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Not everyone stays and that’s okay. I’ve learned that some people are only meant to be in your life for a moment and some for many moments. In any absence, it’s important to acknowledge the symbolism that comes with it and what it teaches you. I had to learn that you can’t fault people for not being in your life 100% because sometimes lives just take different paths. I’ve found it to be helpful to look back at the time spent and think about what the person taught me, whether good or bad. There’s really a lesson to be learned in everything, whether you choose to learn from it is all up to you.
Contact Info:
- Email: abm@alexisbmendez.com
- Website: alexisbmendez.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/a.b.m
