Aries Franklin-Ortiz AKA ThePoetSmiley in conversation with Sophia Stopper
Published: June 1, 2024
SS: Hi Smiley, it’s wonderful to have you with us at The Neighbors News! I saw you perform at the 10th Annual Poet Laureate of Berks County competition. You were fabulous! Tell us about how you prepare to perform. What gets you centered? How do you channel the energy to make an impact with spoken word?
AFO: Hey there! Thank you so much for having me. I’m truly humbled. My preparation process is very strategic I read my poems over and over again. I try them in different tones and different cadences. I edit until it sounds perfect to me and then read and read and read some more. I center the best in quiet space, then I’ll add one person to listen to me, then two and so on, until I feel comfortable reading my art in front of a crowd. I have to be in a total “meditative” mindset. My poetry is my therapy. Everything I’m feeling or anything I felt, goes straight into my work. I always laugh and say Poets should come with a warning label. We’ll write about you if we can’t stand you, we’ll write about you if we love you.
SS: The main crowd pleaser at the competition was Candy Girl. Tell us about this poem. It’s rhythm and form. How do you bring it to life off the page? What love poems would you leave in the mirror? I love that line.
AFO: Ha!ha!ha! I still can’t believe that reaction! I was SO surprised myself. Candy Girl, comes from a place of intense love. I’ve met a beautiful person, whom supports me in ways I’ve never experienced & shows me a love I could write infinite books about. In love would be an understatement & I just so happen to love chocolate. Love & Chocolate just fit well. This poem brought itself to life. When writing from a place of love, everything just flows, on and off the pages.
If I would write a love poem on the mirror; I think it would go something like this:
“Every drip of water that gets to run itself down your flawless curves, leaves me jealous. Let me water you...”
SS: Candy Girl is very cleverly written. Was it difficult to play on words so much? Or did it just flow from pen to paper? Tell us about your process of including candy bar names throughout the poem. There’s a sweet tongue in cheek nature about it that I love.
AFO: It was very difficult to write actually. I played with that poem for months. Even when I originally submitted it to the Poet Laureate competition, I didn’t feel it was “done.” Full disclaimer, I only added the candy bars the morning of the competition. It was like something finally clicked on the direction I wanted everything to go.
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SS: Tell us about your sticker! Where can we get them and where can we see them posted? Who designed the drawing? Can you provide a picture of the sticker for our audience? What about the sticker makes you so excited?
AFO: My little sticker is my favorite. I hand them out at open mic nights and different events. I’ve seen them everywhere haha! From WaWa gas pumps, to hotel doors in Hawaii. I always tell people, Don’t get me in trouble! I designed her using different computer programs, there were probably 100 different versions before I finally picked her. What gets me excited about this sticker is when people send me random messages with pictures of places they seen it. I want to reach everyone! There’s so many people that didn’t/don’t know this “type of poetry” exists.
The new sticker that will be released that day of my book launch is going to be a really cool one too!
SS: Can you please provide images of your sticker posted places? We'd like to see them in action! Which spottings stick out to you the most and why?
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AFO: Every time I see them on a college campuses or gas pumps I get super excited because there are SO MANY people that need gas and there are sooo many students on campus and they come from everywhere!! I currently have a couple of people I’ve spoken with from the UK and I think that’s absolutely incredible.
SS: Tell us about the book you're planning to release. What's the title and genre? When do you plan to release it? Will there be an event?
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AFO: My book’s title is November 444 and this is the remastered edition. It’s poetry, it’s love, it’s queer friendly, it’s heartbreak, it’s erotic , it’s everything.. the release will be the end of June beginning of July. There will absolutely be an event! Follow me on instagram for event updates.
SS: Well thank you for taking the time to talk to us at The Neighbors news, Aries! Do you have any last thoughts? Causes you’re passionate about you would like to share? What’re your last thoughts before you fall asleep?
AFO: I’m really hoping to push to get teens more involved in the poetry world. I feel like a lot of teenagers don’t have a way to really unleash whatever is building up inside of them. Poetry is a way to get whatever rage, anger, sadness, happiness, excitement, etc... on paper. Not everyone has that outlet and alot of them are INCREDIBLE writers. There’s alot of big big things that will be happening soon!
My last thoughts before I fall asleep? Chocolate is the best candy, and nobody can convince me otherwise! Lol I’m kidding. I’ll leave you with this:
“You deserve a lover who takes away the lies and brings you hope, coffee, and poetry.” - Frida Kahlo
AFO: Hey there! Thank you so much for having me. I’m truly humbled. My preparation process is very strategic I read my poems over and over again. I try them in different tones and different cadences. I edit until it sounds perfect to me and then read and read and read some more. I center the best in quiet space, then I’ll add one person to listen to me, then two and so on, until I feel comfortable reading my art in front of a crowd. I have to be in a total “meditative” mindset. My poetry is my therapy. Everything I’m feeling or anything I felt, goes straight into my work. I always laugh and say Poets should come with a warning label. We’ll write about you if we can’t stand you, we’ll write about you if we love you.
SS: The main crowd pleaser at the competition was Candy Girl. Tell us about this poem. It’s rhythm and form. How do you bring it to life off the page? What love poems would you leave in the mirror? I love that line.
AFO: Ha!ha!ha! I still can’t believe that reaction! I was SO surprised myself. Candy Girl, comes from a place of intense love. I’ve met a beautiful person, whom supports me in ways I’ve never experienced & shows me a love I could write infinite books about. In love would be an understatement & I just so happen to love chocolate. Love & Chocolate just fit well. This poem brought itself to life. When writing from a place of love, everything just flows, on and off the pages.
If I would write a love poem on the mirror; I think it would go something like this:
“Every drip of water that gets to run itself down your flawless curves, leaves me jealous. Let me water you...”
SS: Candy Girl is very cleverly written. Was it difficult to play on words so much? Or did it just flow from pen to paper? Tell us about your process of including candy bar names throughout the poem. There’s a sweet tongue in cheek nature about it that I love.
AFO: It was very difficult to write actually. I played with that poem for months. Even when I originally submitted it to the Poet Laureate competition, I didn’t feel it was “done.” Full disclaimer, I only added the candy bars the morning of the competition. It was like something finally clicked on the direction I wanted everything to go.
SS: Tell us about your sticker! Where can we get them and where can we see them posted? Who designed the drawing? Can you provide a picture of the sticker for our audience? What about the sticker makes you so excited?
AFO: My little sticker is my favorite. I hand them out at open mic nights and different events. I’ve seen them everywhere haha! From WaWa gas pumps, to hotel doors in Hawaii. I always tell people, Don’t get me in trouble! I designed her using different computer programs, there were probably 100 different versions before I finally picked her. What gets me excited about this sticker is when people send me random messages with pictures of places they seen it. I want to reach everyone! There’s so many people that didn’t/don’t know this “type of poetry” exists.
The new sticker that will be released that day of my book launch is going to be a really cool one too!
SS: Can you please provide images of your sticker posted places? We'd like to see them in action! Which spottings stick out to you the most and why?
AFO: Every time I see them on a college campuses or gas pumps I get super excited because there are SO MANY people that need gas and there are sooo many students on campus and they come from everywhere!! I currently have a couple of people I’ve spoken with from the UK and I think that’s absolutely incredible.
SS: Tell us about the book you're planning to release. What's the title and genre? When do you plan to release it? Will there be an event?
AFO: My book’s title is November 444 and this is the remastered edition. It’s poetry, it’s love, it’s queer friendly, it’s heartbreak, it’s erotic , it’s everything.. the release will be the end of June beginning of July. There will absolutely be an event! Follow me on instagram for event updates.
SS: Well thank you for taking the time to talk to us at The Neighbors news, Aries! Do you have any last thoughts? Causes you’re passionate about you would like to share? What’re your last thoughts before you fall asleep?
AFO: I’m really hoping to push to get teens more involved in the poetry world. I feel like a lot of teenagers don’t have a way to really unleash whatever is building up inside of them. Poetry is a way to get whatever rage, anger, sadness, happiness, excitement, etc... on paper. Not everyone has that outlet and alot of them are INCREDIBLE writers. There’s alot of big big things that will be happening soon!
My last thoughts before I fall asleep? Chocolate is the best candy, and nobody can convince me otherwise! Lol I’m kidding. I’ll leave you with this:
“You deserve a lover who takes away the lies and brings you hope, coffee, and poetry.” - Frida Kahlo
Aries Franklin-Ortiz, also known as ThePoetSmiley, was born and raised in Reading, PA. Since she was young, she has always been a wordsmith and dreamer with a passion for storytelling
through poems. In 2005, she was on West Chester University’s Spoken Word team, competing against other incredible poets across the country. Her debut book, November 444, is a collection of poems written through life experiences and things she’s seen or felt throughout her journey. She’s super thrilled for
you all to enjoy her 2.0 version! You can follow Aries on Instagram under ThePoetSmiley.
@ThePoetSmiley
Sophia Stopper is a visual artist, poet, and curator. They received their MFA in Performance from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and their BFA in Studio Art from New York University. Sophia has held positions as Curator at the Bridgeport Art Center (Chicago, US) and Exhibitions Coordinator at GoggleWorks Center for the Arts (Reading, US). Traveling by bookstore, Sophia has lived on four continents and cherishes flying in a hot air balloon above a field of poppies in the Turkish countryside as one of their fondest memories.