David Alec Knight reads “Under Domineering Blue” & “Deconstruction” from his book 𝘓𝘌𝘗𝘌𝘙 𝘔𝘖𝘚𝘏. Coming soon on September 20th from Cajun Mutt Press. This collection is an ode to music, movies, comics, and growing up. Peppered with poems that read like album cover descriptions, song lyrics, and memories of wild youth.
“David Alec Knight’s ‘𝘓𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘩’ is an amalgamation of beauty and darkness. From waxing nostalgic about a youth of heavy metal, horror films, and comics to turning mirrors into windows of a woman’s soul, this book hits with full-throttle force. Even at its more bittersweet or softer moments, there is an underlying edge that runs the gamut of this book. With lines like: “Outside, distant sirens prowl. We reach for the first dark and our desires make light,” Knight’s repertoire of emotive language makes ‘𝘓𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘩’ a poignant read and a definite keeper. Any fan of poetry will love this book.”
—Heath Brougher, editor-in-chief of 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴
“The secret Knight is letting the reader in on… Well you already know, but you hide from it, you ignore it, you bury it. But, there is no getting past Knight’s willingness to dive into the morose, the malaise and the madness of life. This collection of poems is filled with gems and insight, and an unflinching look at a life unfurled.”
—Rob Azevado (𝘋𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘖𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘪, 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘢𝘴𝘱)
Author Bio:
While in high school in Chatham, Ontario, David Alec Knight and his parents were told by a teacher there that he would be lucky to finish high school, and certainly wouldn’t make it through university. One of David’s English teachers, Bernard Cameron, saw something in his poems though and encouraged him to pursue his writing. He also attended workshops led by the poet, Ted Plantos, when he was writer-in-residence at the Chatham library.
David ended the ’90s studying Creative Writing at the University of Windsor (B.A. Hon.). While there, his poems appeared in Wayzegoose, People’s Poetry Letter, and Canadian Writers Journal. Anthology appearances include, The Sandwich Mill Anthology (1997), $10.00 Cash Value: An Anthology of Assets (2000), Ellipsis… (2008), By The Wishing Tree (2021), Poets For Ukraine – Volume 1 (2022), Muse (2022),and Love Lies Bleeding (2022). Recent poems have appeared in Verse Afire, Cajun Mutt Press and The Lothlorien Poetry Journal.
David’s work journeys honestly through darkness before there is any light, so it is well earned and substantial when there is reprieve. He speaks with his own voice, but he acknowledges as inspiration and influence, Edgar Lee Masters, Carl Sandburg, Gregory Corso, Charles Bukowski, Irving Layton, Ted Plantos, E. J. Pratt, and Paul-Marie Lapointe. Margaret Atwood’s Journals of Susanna Moodie and Irving Layton’s A Wild And Peculiar Joy are most reread in his library.
Since graduating from St. Clair College in 2014/15, David has worked in healthcare as a Personal Support Worker. In 2021, he was recipient of The Ted Plantos memorial Award for Poetry. The Heart Is A Hollow Organ, David’s first book, soon followed.
𝘓𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘰𝘴𝘩 is David’s second collection of poems.