I got in touch with fellow Mile-High MFA alum Ashley Howell Bunn via email ahead of their book launch for Burning, Breaking, Building(South Broadway Press, 2026) which will be held at Strawberry Mountain, April 23rd, at 6PM to ask a few questions about the book and the event. In this article, Ashley tells us about some lessons learned in writing this new set of poems. She shares how the burning haibun plays into the work and why it was the perfect form for a collection that explores “cycles of parenthood, recovery, and grief.” She also shared some poems for us to take a sneak peak before the event.
About Ashley Howell Bunn:
Ashley Howell Bunn (she/they) completed her MFA in poetry through Regis University and holds a MA in Literature from Northwestern University. Their first chapbook, in coming light, was published in 2022 by Middle Creek Publishing and their second chapbook, Living Amends, is forthcoming through Galileo Press. Her first full-length collection, burning, breaking, building was published by South Broadway Press. Their work has been supported by Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and Sundress Publications. She is an adjunct instructor of English at the Community College of Denver and the Youth Program Manager at Lighthouse Writers Workshop. When she isn’t writing, she is practicing yoga, running in the sunshine, playing with her kids, or daydreaming and staring off into space.
“The readers for this launch are some of my dearest friends and they are wonderful poets and artists!”
The first hour of the event will be for mingling and shopping! Strawberry Mountain is a buy-sell-trade fashion resale store that buys and sells clothes, shoes, and accessories from all eras with a focus on self-expression. Come join the celebration!
Starting at 7:00 pm there will be music from Flint Datino, readings by Violet Mitchell, Alexander Shalom Joseph, and Marissa Forbes. There will also be artwork for sale inspired by Ashley’s book by Marissa Morrow.
This is a free event.
TLC: Can you talk a little about the inspiration for this book?
Ashley: I wrote this book over the first few years of my sobriety journey. I took a while to find the form to support the themes of this book, but then I came across the burning haibun. The way that form reuses narrative and imagery to create something new matched perfectly to what I wanted to portray in this collection. This collection investigates the connection of the universal and the temporal as we see it in fractals — repetitions in our lives and ourselves and in the collective. The poems in this collection address how, with each cycle, we can reform, reframe, and be reborn. Through playing with the structure of the burning haibun, I explore my own cycles of parenthood, recovery, and grief. How what is no longer seen still resonates within us, getting to the heart of tenderness that connects us all.
TLC: Are there some lessons you want to share that came through as you were preparing this book?
Ashley: The process is what heals. As I was writing and rewriting and reforming this collection, I found healing each time I reworked a poem. After I had my second child, I was struck by how so much of new motherhood was similar, yet entirely different. During my journey of recovery from substance abuse, the cycles of resentments, amends, pain and healing repeated, and with each cycle, brought a new birth. The circle of grief that surrounded me after the passing of my father brought a destruction and a renewal of self. I hope I offer a glimpse into my own process in these poems.
TLC: What else would you like us to know?
Ashley: I have my first in a series of book launches at Strawberry Mountain on April 23rd from 6-8 pm. I also have a few other readings and events coming up during spring and early summer. You can sign up for my newsletter via my website howellandheal.com to find out more, or follow me on Instagram @howellandheal
Below Follows a Sampling from Ashley Howell Bunn’s new book Breaking, Burning, Building.
