Interview with

Writer Leif Gregersen

What's your name?

Leif Gregersen.

Where are you from?

St. Albert, Alberta, Canada.

Who are you today?

Middle-aged body with a young man's sense of adventure.

What do you do?

I write poetry, short stories, fiction, and non-fiction.

What's your story?

I don't live far from where I was born, but I have been to places like Denmark, Hawaii, England, California, Toronto and Niagara Falls. I got here because I loved my family and stayed here because I love my friends as well.

Why is creativity important to you?

Because I am on the cusp of writing something lasting, something good, and I think achieving creativity is the last step I need to take to go all the way into immortality in my writing.

When/how did you realize you had a creative dream or calling to fulfill?

When I was in grade school and stayed home sick and learned that I loved to write poems.

How did you embrace it?

I worked hard in school and chose courses like English, Psychology — and even typing — to benefit further efforts to write.

How did that feel?

It gave me a false sense that I was doing something more meaningful than friends who only wanted to be sports, movie or rock stars.

Where has your journey taken you?

All over the world.

What challenges have you faced?

My biggest challenge is that I have Bipolar Disorder, but I took the suffering and pain of being ill and being shunned and turned it into two memoirs which I think have the potential to mean a lot to people, especially those who also suffer from Bipolar Disorder.

What worked for you?

Saying to myself that no matter how bad I felt, no matter what happened, each day I had to better myself in some way, be it by reading a short story to writing a full page in my journal.

What didn't work for you?

Denying that I had an illness, trying to blame a bad upbringing for my sickness, and not taking my medications.

What three tips can you share to help others starting on a similar path?

1. Explore the artistic side of you. I didn't take drama in school, I regret that. I did take a lot of courses like Sociology and Law which was beneficial but not so much in my writing life.
2. If you want to write, write. Don't look for approval in others, look for how writing makes you feel.
3. Make the library your favorite hangout.

What are you working on now?

I am taking a writing course and a Spanish course and I am thinking I would like to complete them and perhaps travel to Cuba after reading all the Hemingway I can. I am also trying to get a number of finished works conventionally published. I recently self-published four books.

What's coming up for you in the next year?

More travel, more hard work, more efforts at finding my muse. I suppose it will also mean more courses because I love to learn new things and usually that goes along well with travel.

What else do you desire/dream to do?

Go and see London at a leisurely pace, maybe even travel all over the UK over the course of a year.

How will you make that happen?

By striving to be the best writer I can and saving up as much as I can from work and book signings and other sources, and also most likely working while I am there.

What one question would you like to answer that hasn't been asked?

What is your favorite book?

"Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" By Robert M. Pirsig. I chose this book because there is so much in it from incredible depictions of the places one sees travelling and camping to deep philosophical discussions of the very nature of mankind. I have read this book five times and plan to read it more.

Where can people find you online?

I publish my poetry to my Facebook page under Leif Gregersen, Valhalla Books My writing, including a memoir of life with Bipolar, a collection of fiction and two poetry books are available in ebook and paperback at: Leif Gregersen’s Works on Amazon.

Also, I am a member of Wattpad, where writers can upload their work and get feedback at: wattpad.com/user/LeifGregersen

6/7/14