Today we’d like to introduce you to Jade Lascelles
Hi Jade, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I recently moved to Denver after 15 years in Boulder. I came to Colorado to get my MFA in Writing and Poetics from Naropa University’s Jack Kerouac School. What was supposed to be a quick 2-year stop turned into my finding a longer term home and community in ways I never expected. Since finishing grad school, I have published two books of poetry, collaborated with some incredible visual artists, and played the drums in several musical projects around the Front Range, all while working as an editor at Sounds True, a locally based multimedia publisher.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Of course there have been some struggles—I don’t know any meaningful endeavor without any. I’ve seen my fair share of rejection letters and band breakups and bouts of the worst writer’s block. And a lot of my art has been made in response to the grief, heartbreak, and loss I’ve experienced along the way, both personally and as a general being in this intense world. But I also feel incredibly lucky for the opportunities I’ve found my way into. I am grateful for the invitations I’ve received from fellow creators, and I am grateful for all the ways I’ve been able to say yes to them. Maybe I’m seeing the retrospect as being smoother than it was because I survived and have creative work to show for it. I think in the times we’re living in, anyone who is working towards something meaningful is having to struggle to get there—some far more than others, of course. But we keep at it because there just isn’t another choice. I think that’s particularly true for artists. To continue to make art within a culture that does not support its artists is going to be damn hard and utterly essential.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I primarily identify as a writer, though in recent years I’ve allowed my love affair with music to grow more and more, to the point that I *maybe* feel confident enough to call myself a musician too. I’m currently working on a new musical project with some rad folks that, in addition to the songs, will have a performance and visual aspect, bringing together several of the strands that I work within. I think these kind of collaborative projects are what I am most excited about. I’ve worked with visual artists, musicians, and other writers in ways that stretch me so far further than I would get to on my own.
What makes you happy?
Curiosity, without a doubt. When I have the energy and space in my life to be truly open and curious, I think I am at my happiest. I believe that is the primary way into the biggest and most beautiful iterations of our lives. It is what keeps us engaged and growing, no matter what age we are. But on a more tangible level, I am also incredibly happy when: the writing just flows through me with an almost-manic ease; playing the drums hard and fast and wild; lying on my living room floor, head by my speakers, listening to a record I love; full-bodied dancing; catching a vibrant sunrise; eating a croissant in Paris; finding a killer piece of vintage clothing that fits me perfectly; driving aimlessly with the perfect soundtrack playing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.essaypress.org/lascelles/
- Other: https://www.gesturepressandjournal.com/press/p/theinevitable
