CREATIVE: SHPRESA YMERAJ. PUBLISHED AUTHOR

By Ciana Bowers

Shpresa Ymeraj is a Senior English and Creative Writing major. Shpresa got into writing at a young age; it was her way to express how she felt. To her, it was easier than talking to people. As she got older, sometime in 2018 when Shpresa was a communications major, she thought about pursuing a career in writing more seriously. Shpresa started sharing her poetry throughout social media, and now some of her poetry is housed in a few literary journals.  

            Shpresa was born in Albania and in the last five years she has naturally started to write creatively in English. Shpresa describes her writing in English as continuous learning, practicing, making mistakes, learning to find my errors, and finding out the why behind the errors so I can avoid repeating them. 

            The book Dashuria dhe Dhoma e Errët is written in Albanian, the title translates to Love and the darkroom in english. This collection of poetry houses work she has done throughout the years. Some can be dated back to when she was fourteen years old. Poems in Love and the darkroom are of different themes, growing up, family and society, losing a loved one, relocation and belonging, motherhood, etc. Shpresa was inspired to publish her book by many poetry collections of authors of various backgrounds. Different authors inspired her to find her voice, when she was younger felt that what she wrote was too personal to share. But Shpresa overcame that. The feedback that she received after sharing her poetry inspired her to publish her book.  

Originally, Shpresa wanted to publish her book in Albania, but publishing in the United States gave her more control over her book. She switched to a self publishing press, outskirts press, and finished the final format of her manuscript after two years. The title of her book was inspired by “I am a camera with its shutter open, quite passive, recording, not thinking,” the beginning of “Goodbye to Berlin,” a reading in Dr. Utell’s English class. It made sense since the poems represent snapshots through time”. Like many writers, Shpresa felt insecure about the purpose of her book after overcoming insecurity to share the poems that reflected vulnerability. You can find Love and the Darkroom on amazon, outskirts press, Barnes & Noble, and many other websites.  

            Now Shpresa is working on a poetry chapbook that is written in English. Even with a published book, Shpresa still finds time to write at times by waking up early in the morning, taking a few notes while working or recording ideas that are worth saving.   

            To anyone who is looking to write and publish a book of their own, Shpresa recommends taking some creative writing courses, practicing and sharing work in workshops. Shpresa believes in the constructive feedback, and the confidence workshops provide can help you succeed in your writing career.