City College Alumna writes from the soul

By Kwame Opoku-Duku IIIContributing Writer

Former City  College student April Martin Chartrand decided she needed to leave a  legacy in April 2009.

She had been sharing her poetry among  friends and co-workers and getting positive responses, a feat that  surprised her considering she’d never taken an English class beyond what  was required for the B.A. she received in Creative Arts from San  Francisco State University. Her dyslexia adds to her challenges with  writing.

A self-described “perfectionist to a fault,” she decided  to use all of her talents to complete a project that was 20 years in  the making. She used over 70 poems she had written over the years as  well as her own illustrations. The finished product is “Angel’s  Destiny,” a book of poems written in the style of a novel with the end  of each chapter leading to a new step in a spiritual journey.

The  four chapters of poetry — Illusions, Anger, Awareness, and Love — press  forward to an eventual state of healing, a state Chartrand hopes each  reader will find within themselves.

The subject matter was born  from an abusive marriage that Chartrand left in 1993. The poems she  wrote helped her own healing process.

Her poetry is influenced by  Eastern philosophies as well as the violence she experienced in her  life and the lives of those she has helped along the way.

“Of  course it was cathartic,” Chartrand said. “And of course it was painful.  When you’re writing about your life and illusions and anger, you think  about it a lot.”

When it came time to publish her finished work  Chartrand took conventional steps, sending out queries and manuscripts,  but in her mind she knew she was going to self-publish so she could  maintain  artistic control.

“Poetry is the step-child of the  publishing world and does not sell well unless you are a big name like  Alice Walker or a newly selected poet laureate,” she said.

Also, a  writer who includes their own original illustrations can often hurt  marketing a new author.

In the end, she chose to self-publish her  book through the website CreateSpace; a decision she has not regretted.

“I  basically am a quick learner,” Chartrand said. “I did all the  formatting, designed the cover, everything.”

Chartrand relished  the underdog role. It gave her a chance to learn for herself. She took  classes on web design and even “dated some ‘techie’ guys” to help her  out. She put on her own book reading at the San Francisco Main Library  in April and sent out over 100 press releases. Her goals are to be a  guest on a few shows and hopefully get some good reviews.

She  took a chance  publishing her own work, “to bypass the gatekeepers,” she  said. Although she has many influences, her real inspiration comes from  within.

“I want to be what my experience has taught me,” she  said. “I want to explore who I am, where I come from. New stories need  to be told. People need to be able to tell them.”