Gloria Umwali is a passionate poet and writer. She recently released her first digital book ‘Tiny Steps to Healing- Tome 1’ that can be downloaded for free. She studied psychology and is currently a teacher and these two, along with art, are some of her main interests in life. She had a chat with Sunday Magazine’s Sharon Kantengwa about the book and her love for poetry.

What sparked your love for poetry and how long have you been writing poems?

I started writing poetry at the age of 9. However, it wasn’t until I was a teenager that I started expanding in my art form. When I was 16 years old, I created a page on Facebook called "On Ecrit!” with the desire to meet more poets, story tellers or just poetry lovers; and I did.

year later, I created a group called "J’ART Donc Je Vis” and some of the group members were people I had met through "On Ecrit!” The group was composed of different kinds of artists: dancers, singers, spoken word artists, comedians, painters, etc. We had our first successful show in 2011.

It was at that period of my life, that I understood that art and poetry in particular were going to be part of my life for a very long time. To me, poetry has always rhymed with therapy. It has always helped me express myself better. I always seem to understand myself better and deeper when I write and that is the foundation to understanding life and others better. Poetry is my compass in life. What is the book’ Tiny Steps to Healing’ about and why did you chose poetry to express yourself?

"Tiny Steps to Healing -Tome 1” is a digital book I released online about a month ago. It explores the theme of healing – healing different sorts of pain. I talk about my humble understanding of what causes the pain in the first place, the work that needs to get done or the healing process and then the transformation resulting from the work.

Like I said earlier, poetry to me rhymes with therapy. It is the tool I use to talk about the untold. Therefore, it was the perfect art form for me to use to be able to talk about topics that are not so popular in our communities yet, like mental health.

Why did you choose to give the book for free?

I wanted my first book to be a reminder of why I write: for the love and the fun of it. It is my passion, always has been. I don’t ever want praises or money to influence how I see, feel about and live my passion. This book shall always be a reminder of the importance of authenticity as an artist, to me and whoever who is inspired. How do you want the book and your poetry to impact people?

I honestly want TSTH (Tiny Steps to Healing) to help readers in their different healing journeys. I hope my words have the power to resonate with their pain and awaken the healer within every one of them. I want people to remember a quote by me when it gets tough and another one when the storm has passed. What kind of creative patterns, routines or rituals do you have?

I enjoy writing in the morning before I start my day. When I am not writing, I am reading something that is more likely to inspire me to write later on. I try to take 10 to 15 minutes every day, mostly in the morning, to write my thoughts down. It is also a way of assessing my emotions and making a conscious decision of being in control of them for the rest of the day. Who are some of your favourite poets/ authors and why?

I enjoy reading works by: Rupi Kaur, Malanda Jean Claude and Ijeoma Umebinyuo. These three in particular have been my favorite authors for the past few years now and have even influenced me in my writing journey. I like to call them ‘modern poets’. None of them ever really follows what have always been known as poetry rules like rhymes, punctuations, etc.

I might be wrong but I see it as a rebellious act aiming at keeping all the attention on the content. This allows these modern poets to explore heavy themes in a raw manner. This concept has inspired me to write even more fearlessly and freely.

Is there a second book in the works? What do you find most informs your current writing?

Yes, I intend to release "Tiny Steps to healing – tome 2” in a year or so. I will explore the same themes with different insights, some of which were inspired by all the feedback I have been getting from tome.

At this period of my life, I am inspired by how people, especially young people, see and relate to concepts such as self love, self care and self acceptance. Today, these are trending topics but how deeply do we really understand their meanings and how well do we incorporate them in our daily lives? My main topic of writing today is well being, in all its forms.