Galya Varna

1, Tell us about you, and your writing (themes, influences etc.)

I was born in Varna, the summer capital of Bulgaria, on the Black Sea Coast, but currently live in Greece, on the coast of the Aegean Sea.

I hold a MA in English literature and linguistics and language acquisition is another passion of mine. For years I have been writing poetry, short stories and plays but only recently have started thinking about sharing my poems and “Dreams You Thought Were Lost” is my first published poetry book, released in February 2018 on Amazon.

When talking about influences I think that reading poetry in different languages has influenced my writing. I read poetry in 3 languages – Bulgarian, English and Russian. I admire the art of translation. Actually some of the poems in “Dreams You Thought Were Lost” were originally written in Bulgarian and I translated them into English.

2, What are some of the ways in which you promote your work, and do you find these add, or eat into, your time writing?

Well, I am trying to promote my work on Twitter, FB and LinkedIn as well as through my blog. I am also open to participating in different co-writing projects or contributing to anthologies. To be honest, I am better at promoting other people’s work than my own.

3, What projects are you working on at present?

One creative project I currently work on is WeArtFriends (www.we-art-friends.com) and the bimonthly online magazine Doorway to Art (https://we-art-friends.com/magazine/). We have just finished work on the 3nd issue where poets and artists are featured.

WeArtFriends has also launched a poetry competition (closes on 21st May 2018) aiming to put together an anthology. More information about the competition can be found at https://we-art-friends.com/initiative/

4, What does poetry mean to you?

Poetry is like breathing – comes naturally to me and I don’t need prompts to write, don’t need to plan or force myself in any way. It helps me see beauty in sometimes not very nice situations. Poetry helps me find beauty in nature, in human thought, in relationships, in sadness and loss.
It’s also a great source of connecting with everything in our world. For many many years in my poems I have been using nature-related imagery when I wanted to express an emotion or look at a situation from a different or unexpected angle. In the last years I have been reading more about Bulgarian history, our origins and the beliefs our ancestors shared before accepting Christianity in 9th century AD and was surprised to discover that most of the imagery I use in my poems is part of that pre-Christian pagan tradition. So I guess, poetry is also a way to connect to my roots.

Debut poetry collection “Dreams You Thought Were Lost” of author Galya Varna weaves unexpected stories belonging to the realms of aether and the present day.

The poems, organized into 8 sections, tell tales of love and endless wonders, voice fears and hopes, take the reader on happy and sad journeys, paint visions of special times and stormy days, share beauty, sadness and moments of joy, hoping for better tides.

If you ever had dreams you thought were lost, this voyage is for you!