Meet Alexis Sears | Poet

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alexis Sears and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alexis, how has your background shaped the person you are today?

I’m from Palos Verdes, an LA suburb by the beach. It’s a breathtaking place and I’m beyond fortunate to have grown up there, but it was one of those (probably pretty common) situations where I didn’t realize just how lucky I was until I left. I went to college on the east coast, graduate school in the midwest, and spent a year abroad teaching English in Spain. Every place made me happy, but I’m a California girl for sure. Friends I’ve met in other states love to joke about how Californians are super quick to tell you they’re from California. Guilty!

If you’ve read any of my poetry, you know that I’m biracial and was raised by a single mother in a predominately white environment. In school I was an overachiever, but I was also a bit unsure about finding my identity. (In hindsight, though, what high schooler isn’t?) Being an emotional, dramatic teenager came in handy– in a plot twist that surprised nobody but me, I became a writer. Poetry wasn’t really even on my radar until college (except, of course, the handful of poems I read in school), but it became a life-saving outlet. In my poems, I write about my background: the California lifestyle, my mixed-race experience, childhood memories that really impacted me, and honestly, the amount of joy I’ve had in life in general.

My upbringing made me who I am today because it gave me sensitivity and perspective. I’ve been thinking a lot about appearances; people hear “Palos Verdes” and picture wealthy white kids on horseback without a care in the world. Oftentimes, they’re right. But life is a little complicated. It took me a while to realize you can absolutely appreciate your blessed, privileged life while acknowledging your traumas and obstacles. Something I like about myself is my ability to be open and vulnerable about my challenges and encourage others to do the same.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

My art just sort of. . . happened. Growing up, I didn’t know anyone who wrote poetry, so I definitely wasn’t expecting anything life-changing when I enrolled in a creative writing course my freshman year at Johns Hopkins. But poetry just felt right. Less than a month into the semester, I was already thinking constantly about poems I’d read, poems I wanted to write and how to make time to write them. It’s been a decade since I took that first class, and I’m still learning, obsessing, and surprising myself with my work.

My goal when I write poetry is to combine formal technique and casual, modern language. When I say “formal,” I mean poems that follow the strict rules of rhyme and meter: sonnets, villanelles, ballads, etc. I want to show that poets can write in classic forms without being outdated or, well, boring. There are a ton of pop culture references in my poetry (Prince shows up in several, and I definitely mention a few of my favorite 90s grunge heartthrobs), I drop the occasional f-bomb, and I throw in some slang words (like “Stans,” those people who are super hardcore fans of certain celebrities). Apparently I’m doing this pretty well– someone recently said to me, “I had no idea that a sonnet could be fun like this!” It was my favorite compliment I’d gotten in weeks!

I’ve said before that writing my book was the easiest and hardest thing I’ve ever done, and I still feel that way. My poems are personal, and although I’m not afraid of sharing my story with the world, the actual writing process can be emotionally draining. It’s absolutely worth it, though– I get a lot of feedback from readers (even strangers) saying things like, “thank you for writing this” and “Wow, you put into words what I’ve been trying to say.” And that blows my mind! To me, this just feels like telling my story, but I’m always amazed that my writing actually impacts people. That means everything to me.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

If my best friend came to visit and I didn’t take her to the Rose Bowl Flea Market, I would fail the friendship test! I always heard people raving about it, but I doubted that it could be *that* great. This is one of those times I’m glad I was wrong. It’s easy to get overwhelmed in a massive space full of things to buy (I couldn’t believe how randomly stressed I became in Ikea recently), but the flea market manages to be expansive in the least annoying way possible. Some of my favorite things I own come from here, mostly records. I’ve also decided that an ultimate test of my maturity is how long I can keep plants alive, so I buy plants here too (and I’m happy to report that they are all still thriving!).

I have to stay true to my South Bay roots, so the next step would be a night on Pier Ave in Hermosa Beach. What’s weird about Pier Ave is that I’ve been going to some of the same spots since I turned 21 but I still have fun every time. I like to start with dinner at somewhere classy like Palmilla Cocina y Tequila (the short rib enchiladas are God-tier) and then throw all class out the window and hit up American Junkie or Baja Sharkeez. Trust me: you’re bound to have one of those peculiar, fantastic nights that leave you smiling for a week.

This might sound basic, but Amoeba Music is a must. Yes, it’s the largest record store in the world, but it also feels like sort of a sanctuary. I can’t quite articulate it, but you’ll know when you walk in. My favorite posters and band t-shirts I have come from Amoeba. I’ve also met some pretty spectacular people.

Walk on the trail at the Palos Verdes Interpretive Center. Laugh hysterically at the Comedy Store in West Hollywood. (The comic Susan Ware made me laugh so hard my contacts fell out.)

Oh, and go to the beach. Any beach. Venice, Redondo, Torrance… you can’t go wrong.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

Hopefully this doesn’t come off as a wannabe Oscars acceptance speech, but I have so many people to thank. First, I want to give a shoutout to the Writing Seminars program at Johns Hopkins. Seriously, I can’t emphasize enough how much I love and appreciate the faculty I got to work with– there is zero chance I’d be a published poet without their above-and-beyond support. I also want to shout out my friends, who are so cool that I can’t believe they’re real. And my mom (duh), who’s basically just an older, cooler version of me. But I’ve barely scratched the surface. There are so, so many more.

Website: alexissears.com

Instagram: omgisthatalexissears

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexis-sears-2763571b3/

Twitter: alexissearspoet

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexis.sears.35