For the love of Stratford: Local author Carla Coles pens poetry inspired by her city | CBC News

Carla Coles loves her city. The Stratford author has been using the city’s buildings, river and people as her inspiration for the past decade. 

She’s about to publish her 10th book — that’s 10 books in 10 years. 

Coles joined CBC Kitchener-Waterloo’s The Morning Edition with host Craig Norris to talk about her work.

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

Audio of the interview can be found at the bottom of this article.

Craig Norris: In a lot of what you do, Stratford is the star. What is it about that city that inspires you?

Carla Coles: There’s a beauty to it, there’s a magic to it. A lot of it is just being able to sit down and watch, see what goes on around you.

I think my daughter summed it up best for me when she was really young. She said, in Stratford, it’s like no one ever tells you that you can’t because you’re always bumping into people who can, who are doing it.

Norris: What was happening in your life the moment you wrote Stratford Creative?

Coles: My kids were quite young when I wrote that and I spent a lot of time sitting in the cafe and I dropped everybody off for school, went down, had my coffee and just looked out the window and around me and tried to soak it all in.

Norris: What do you hope people get out of your readings?

Coles: A sense of community. When you talk about and when we write about Stratford, it’s very intimate because you bump into those things, you’ve walked those streets, you’ve looked up and saw those gargoyles on the building, you know the cafes.

Even if I’m not saying the name of a person, you’re kind of going, I think I know who that is.

Norris: You started writing later in life, but you’ve already managed 10 books in 10 years, and you have a children’s book on the way. How are you able to do that? How are you able to write as much as you do?

Coles: I’m a quiet person with a lot to say. I journal a lot and from the journal I take out the pieces that have potential and I polish them.

When you write every day and your brain’s set on that mode, if you’re not doing things, you’re not doing things. So I’m always working on something. 

Norris: There are people who say it’s hard to be successful as an artist if you’re not in a big city centre like Toronto or Montreal or Vancouver. Tell me how Stratford nurtures your success as an artist.

Coles: I think Stratford has been amazing. Besides doing poetry, I’m a painter. I’m part of Art in the Park, so the galleries that inspire me, the people that reach out to me, there’s always something going on.

So there’s always people working on things, and once you become part of that community, they’re like, hey, there’s this painting thing going on, Carla, you might be interested. We’re always reaching out to each other and promoting each other and fostering what we want to see, so I think Stratford’s very unique that way.

Norris: So, what is next for Carla Coles?

Coles: I’ve got the children’s book coming out next year. I’ve got another poetry book, I just signed on for another project that I’m hoping to get done next year with the local photographer.

LISTEN | Author Carla Coles on drawing inspiration from Stratford: