Today, we’d like to introduce you to KJ Powell.
Hi KJ, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My name is KJ and I am known as Author KJ Dunn or by my poet name OhMyWerd. I have been writing and doing poetry since I was 9 years old. Poetry is an expressive art.
It’s the easiest, simplest form to get out what I feel. I recently published my first book “My Mother’s Daughter” in 2020, shortly after the Covid pandemic. It was scary releasing my art to the world for the first time. I have written many short stories, plays, poems, and books, but I had a fear of sharing that side of me with the world.
There’s always the thought of what if people miss the message, what if they don’t like it. My book became such a huge controversy because so many people were looking at it as if, “OMG, this is her life?” “Her mom did what??!” or thinking it was just such a sad story. When in reality, it’s not my life story. I wrote it in a way where it should be relatable to any reader.
If you read with an open mind, I guarantee you will find some parts of yourself in the pages. Something should move you to reach out to someone you love, who possibly hurt you, with a new understanding and bridge the gap. That was my purpose for writing the book. I wanted families to find healing, peace, and restoration.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has definitely not been smooth. It’s been scary. There were moments when I completely stopped promoting. I stopped writing, I completely just shut down creatively.
It seemed like my book was creating more of a buzz for chaos, and I felt like everyone was missing the message and purpose of my book. I dived back into poetry and allowed myself to express everything that I felt through poetry and spoken word. Ever so often. I will get an interview, a request for a book, or pop-up shop invitations, and I’ll go.
I’ve slowly gotten back to promoting and writing. I just finally came to the understanding that I will reach the people the books that I write are meant to reach. These are the people I refuse to fail. They are why I create, why I write, and why I want to release my content to the world. Also, there will be challenges with anything in life.
We just have to be able to recognize challenges and find probable solutions and not let them deter us from what we know we are supposed to be doing.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I love the fact that I get to share my imagination with the world. I write stories that provoke every emotion possible. If you don’t FEEL anything from reading something I have written, then I feel like I didn’t do my job. I write about relationships from the mother-daughter relationship, friendships, spousal relationships, siblings, etc.
I’m really big on promoting HEALTHY relationships. I am known mostly for being “the girl with the words,” or people will say, “You sure have a way with words.” When I released “My Mother’s Daughter,” I was able to get a group of creatives together and host my first book fair locally in my city. I was even honored to have the grandmother of Juneteenth herself come and be a part of it.
It was a beautiful experience to be able to give away books to youth and talk to different people about strengthening the mother daughter relationship specifically and just conversations about life in general. I also cohosted an event called Mask Off with my mother for the last 2 years where we encourage people from all walks of life to authentically be themselves. It was great fellowship and I can’t wait to host my next event.
I’m mostly proud of the fact that I conquered my fear and allowed the world into my little bubble. I’m proud that I didn’t allow the negativity that I received t0 keep me from noticing the positives. Above everything and through everything I honor God for being who He is in my life and just keeping me grounded. Trying to navigate life from a HEALED perspective has been a journey but I thank God that I still believe and I never lost my worship.
I can’t say that there is something that distinctively sets me apart from other creatives. I simply hone in on who I am, find my lane, and perfect it. I don’t desire to be anyone other than me, but I know there are others who have the same mindset. As a creative, I want others to see the beauty in the broken pieces. I successfully do this by piecing together words in a way that allows your imagination to expand and affords you the opportunity to believe in various perspectives.
That is basically what my next book, “Matters of the Heart,” will be centered around. It is a collection of poems from a wide range of experiences. I hope that it resonates with my readers and they continue to push me to release great material. I have also started a TikTok. I have received great feedback on my “big mouth” videos.
I try to make videos that I want to see, that make me think, or make me laugh. My goal is to spread love and positivity in a light and fun way, even if the topics are serious. I’m hoping that one day, I will fight my fear and go live.
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Can you share something that might surprise us?
The most surprising thing I think is when people find out how old I am. I think my youthful appearance confuses people when I say I’m in my 30s. Most do not believe I am as old as I am.
Pricing:
- Free on Kindle Unlimited.
- $9.99 kindle
- $20.00 paperback
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/Poetohmywerd
