HMMM ... WHAT RHYMES WITH ROCK? Poet Alexis Amenson just published a book, All Weird Here.

As a recent North High School graduate, Alexis Amenson is hot off the presses in more ways than one. She just published a collection of poems this May that cover a wide array of topics. She says she started writing at the ripe old age of eight, “as soon as I figured out Microsoft Word.” She started out writing short stories mostly, which are all still on file on some computer. She recalls this with a bashful laugh, saying that she’s a bit embarrassed about most of her earlier stories. But stories are stories, and what Amenson wrote as a young’n led to what she’s writing now.

Currently, Amenson focuses her writing energies mostly on poetry and journals, dabbling a bit in blogging as well, preferring those genres to short stories. Amenson’s book All Weird Here, which was published in late May, features poetry she wrote during her high school years as well as a single short story.

For Amenson, the urge to write started pretty early in life. She says as a young kid, she “had a lot of things in (her) head,” such as stories, and she wanted to get them out in some way. But her junior year of high school changed everything: That’s when she started to really get into poetry. That year Amenson took a class called Writing with Style, where she says she was first introduced to real poetry by Andrew Patrie, a North High School teacher who also happens to be a longtime Volume One contributor.

Those who had inspirational teachers in the past know the difference they can make – and that difference is certainly apparent for Amenson. She says the writing class with Patrie was the first time someone had really praised her poetry. It started with a poem of hers called “Pink Floyd,” which Patrie really enjoyed. Amenson says she felt more confident in class with Patrie because “he didn’t try to put his own touch on your stuff” like many other teachers had. Amenson says Patrie gave the students the opportunity to be creative by giving them options, rather than stifling their creativity, as she felt other teachers had in the past.

Amenson is looking forward to attending UW-Milwaukee in the fall. She’s not sure what she’ll end up choosing for a major, but she is excited to meet new and different people and experience a different type of city and culture. She plans to continue writing during college. Amenson is unsure where the future will take her in her writing, but she says, “It will always be a big part of my life.” She always writes when she has a lot on her mind, she explains, but she’s not sure if that will actually materialize into a career or not. Regardless of what happens professionally, Amenson says she’ll never stops writing poetry, whether it gets published or not. Her favorite traits of poetry are that it is nice, short, sweet, and to the point, and it doesn’t necessarily require explanations for everything.

For other budding writers out there, Amenson encourages you to “take pride in your work,” even if someone else doesn’t appreciate it because someone is bound to like what you do.

Alexis Amenson’s book, All Weird Here, is available at The Local Store at Volume One World Headquarters, 205 N. Dewey St.