Congratulations on making the shortlist. Tell us a bit
about your book.
Thanks, guys! I'm really excited. I don't want to repeat myself
too much but it's really quite brilliant that two poetry books are
on the shortlist. My book Modern Love is a collection of poetry
that looks at how we live, love and ultimately have sex in the
digital age. It also looks at how that can effect relationships,
how a young person might see the world through that lens.
Ultimately it looks at doomed love and how Facebook can wrap you
into knots.
Are you a fan of social networking - Twitter, Facebook,
etc? Do you have a Twitter account?
Ha, a bit too much I suppose. I spent my younger years on MSN and
my teenage years on MySpace and then Facebook. I'm a bit too
attached to the ability to instantly communicate with anyone around
the world. I think that's really important these days and something
I wish the elder generation could also embrace. My grandfather is
ill at the moment and it would be lovely to be able to send him
emails and photos instantly. My twitter is @maxrobertwallis
How do you think texting, Facebook and Twitter have
changed the ways we think about and express romantic
love?
I think we are much quicker these days to tell people how we feel,
but also maybe we stalk a bit more too. I remember my mum and dad
telling me how they wouldn't always know how to actually get in
contact with each other when they were younger because there were
no mobile phones and they didn't have a landline. They just had to
make decisions and stick to them. I think we suffer from FOMO a lot
(fear of missing out) and if we see partners having a good night
out we can easily not necessarily get jealous, but there'll be that
feeling that you've missed out on things. It doesn't help that
people are literally a three-second pling of a text away from you
at all times. It's frustrating as well as freeing.
Is there one text or message you've read or written that
you think is particularly memorable?
I think it's those small ones you cling onto after a break up -
text messages as simple as 'Can you meet me after work?' or 'I had
a lovely night.' or 'Can you put the washing on?' and so on become
huge representations of a relationship that's failed. I think
people in this age are more susceptible to wallowing in themselves
because, perhaps, they're surrounded by the waste of relationships,
the fallout, more obviously than before.
Which writers/poets working now do you most
admire?
Sam Rivière, Jacob Sam-la Rose, Lavinia Greenlaw, Helen Ivory and
Jo Bell
What are you working on now?
I'm finishing a children's book of poetry and writing my debut
novel. They're both paticularly hard projects to wrap my head
around.
What would you do with the £1000 if you win the
prize?
Ask for it all in £5 notes and smother it all over my body. No. In
all honesty I'm not going to win, the rest of the shortlist is so
strong. I think if some mystic wizard decrees me the winner then
I'd probably use it to have a great night out and then save the
rest, or spend it on something big. I'm not sure!
Modern Love by Max Wallis (Flap) has been shortlisted for
the Polari First Book Prize. The winner will be announced 26th
November.
Modern Love is out now and available to buy on Amazon.
For further information on the Polari First Book Prize, visit facebook
