Interview With Latina Cop and Poet Sarah Cortez

A proud Bostonian, Sarah Cortez is a cop, poet, shortfew poems come together in less than a year.
story writer and editor of the award-winning nonfictionSometimes there will be just one word that isn't
work, Windows Into My World, a collection of shortperfect and it may take years of thinking about it to
memoirs written by young authors. She's also thefind the exact word to fit. I remember poet Olga
editor of the anthology, Hit List: The Best of LatinoBroumas saying for one of her powerful poems that it
Mystery. She was kind enough to take time from herhad taken seven years to find the final verb that
busy schedule to answer my questions about hercompletely and absolutely makes that poem come
work, editing, and the creative process.together.
Thanks for this interview, Sarah. How do you combineWhat about your process editing short fiction?
your personas as cop, poet, freelance writer andI was first published in short fiction because love of it is
editor when you sit down to write?what led me to begin taking creative writing courses. In
When I sit down to write, the leading persona is that ofaddition, my years of experience editing memoir had
poet. By that, I mean that the foremost goal - ingiven me a lot of knowledge dealing with those
whatever genre is at hand - is creating a piece thatmechanics that the two genres have in common:
accomplishes that genre's goal in an economy ofnarrative, pace, tone, dialogue, characterization, moving
language and an elegant style. Added to this, ofback and forth in time. I've had no less an author that
course, are considerations of subject matter and tonethe amazingly prolific and talented, American Book
- which draw heavily on my experiences as a streetAward winner Joseph Bruchac compliment my editing
police officer. I see the world from a blue collarof his short fiction. I consider editing a vehicle for also
perspective. This change has come about eveneducating the beginning writer, so I try to explain my
though I grew up in a white collar environment andchoices so that a beginning writer will also be
worked in the white collar corporate world for fourteensupported in their gaining of additional skills. Typically, an
years before going into policing.editor does not have to explain choices to an
Were you an avid reader as a child?experienced professional writer - they understand
As a child, I absolutely couldn't wait to learn the magicimmediately.
of letters and words. My mother was a classroomLately you have been conducting workshops for
educator and she started teaching me letters andyoung adults based on your book, Windows Into My
words before kindergarten. In fact, I remember withWorld: Latino Youth Write Their Lives. Tell us a bit
great fondness her sewing on her sewing machine theabout this book.
binding for books she made for me using the large,The original idea for creating an anthology of short
beautiful photographs from Life magazine. Both mymemoir written by young (high school and
parents read a story with me every night before bed -college-aged) Latinos came to me because there was
what a treat that was! Once I was older I devoured allnothing on the market. There were plenty of books
the adventure stories in the library.with middle-aged Latinos/as writing about being young,
After reading one of your poems, I can't help feelingbut there was nothing with young Latinos/as writing
that the 'toughness' required to being a police officer isabout being young. (In memoir, this change in
reflected in your tone and imagery. Tell us a little aboutperspective radically affects the writing.) Through my
how your creative process. Do poems flow out of youown teaching of high school Latinos I knew how
in a stream-of-consciousness manner? Do you editdesperately such a resource was needed. One of the
and re-edit a lot?greatest joys as I travel around the country meeting
In terms of creative process, this is how I work onwith teachers, librarians, community educators, and
poems. The first line will come to me, usually when I'mgraduate students teaching composition is that they all
doing some mundane, repetitive task like driving. Isay, "Thank you! We need this book to help us reach
always write it down immediately. It's a gift from theour students."
subconscious. This first line establishes the rhythm ofWhat's on the horizon for you?
the poem. I call it "the music of the first line." Later,Thank you for asking about my current projects. I am
when I have time I continue writing the poem, from thatcollecting writing from police officers to create an
first line. As I write, I experiment in the usual way anyanthology of voices to tell America who we are. Most
good poet does, e.g. I change line length, stanza length,of the next several months will be spent traveling to
vocabulary, sentence structure, punctuation, etc. Duringbook launch events around the U.S. for HIT LIST: THE
this period I am also looking at what the poem is tryingBEST OF LATINO MYSTERY. We have events in
to become, i.e. the main focus of the poem. AfterNew York City, Denver, Texas, California, etc. The
many edits and experiments - maybe, at least tenpositive response to the book is overwhelming. I am
version of the poem - I'll get to what I consider a "firstalso still participating in events to help people learn
draft." This is the version I will type on the computerabout WINDOWS INTO MY WORLD: LATINO
and print. (I do all the previous work by hand.) From thisYOUTH WRITE THEIR LIVES.
"first draft," I will continue revising the poem. A veryThank you, Sarah!