UP CLOSE: Atherstone StoneFest poet, who was reviewed in The Guardian, will take the Coventry City of Culture by storm

Poet and performer Emilie Lauren Jones, who ran and performed at the open mic night Atherstone StoneFest, is participating in the launch of the Coventry City of Culture on September 24.

The poet will take part in the BBC CSL: Twilight Poetry Walk, alongside poet Liz Berry.

Emilie will guide participants through the London Road Cemetery: Paxton's Arboretum - one of the best-kept examples of a Victorian Cemetery - and she will recite the poems that she has written about the place.

In an interview, Emilie explained how in January 2021 she was commissioned by the Historic Coventry Trust to create poetry that was inspired by the Paxton's Arboretum.

Being a Coventry-born poet, Emilie welcomed the commission with open arms and she soon started delving into the history of the cemetery. Emilie really enjoyed her research as she describes herself as a "history geek".

Between the research and the writing, Emilie explained how the Trust picked a grave for her to write about. When she started looking up and googling the name on the Grave she soon realised that it was her Godfather.

Emilie said, "He was the minister of the Church and I had no idea he was buried there."

She proceeded to get in contact with her Godfather's wife, now living in Scotland, who gave her consent for the poem to be written.

Talking about writing for the cemetery, Emilie emphasises how it was important for her to still be respectful because the people resting on that ground all have back-stories.

"It was really important to be respectful, because many of the people buried there still have relatives around, and you never know who is going to read your work."

Her poems - which have been featured on the Historic Coventry Trust Podcast - touch on the subject of death, but as a Christian, Emilie also wanted to bring a hopeful tone to her work.

"A lot of people put themselves into their poems, and you cannot help that. When you are put into the situation it is really hard to not put yourself in it. I am not specifically a Christian poet, but it is a strong part of who I am so obviously it comes out in my writing style. It wasn't sad writing about the dead. It was more like oh these people have had their lives and their stories. It's fascinating."

Talking about writing and being a poet, Emilie hopes that she can help future poets thrive in the field. She started running workshops around the West Midlands for all types of writers who have a passion for poetry.

She described herself as "very fortunate" because she ran into the right people at the right time, who gave her plenty of opportunities.

When asked about advice for future poets, Emilie makes a very important point: "Writing is not an isolated activity, and you should involve yourself in a community. It's communal work. There is a group in Coventry called Stanzas and they look at your work and so on. Always look around locally."

Emilie continued to say that before submitting a piece of writing, she always gets it checked out by a few people that she trusts. She also prompts new writers to never give up, saying that one publisher once told her that, "The good poets are the average poets who didn't give up."

For any of Atherstone's writers, the Middleway Words Book Festival taking place this September is the perfect opportunity to connect with other local writers and build the very precious network that creatives rely on.