KPU alumni releases debut poetry collection

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Family, community relationships, the immigrant experience, and identity are just a few of the topics revolving around Kwantlen Polytechnic University alumni Nina Mosall’s debut collection of poetry, Bebakhshid. 

Mosall, a daughter of refugees from the Middle East, wrote the majority of the book during her time at KPU. Being in a university setting helped sharpen her skills as a writer and allowed her to experiment with different styles of poetry. Mosall’s work has also been published in KPU’s literature and visual arts magazine, PulpMAG. 

“I think it allowed me to really explore my identity as a Middle Eastern woman in Canada,” Mosall says. 

Bebakhshid, a Persian word, essentially means to excuse, pardon, or forgive. Mosall says the word depicts the various angles she is trying to convey through her poetry, whether it’s the immigrant experience, misrepresentation, family, or romantic relations. 

Learning about the history of poetry in her classes helped Mosall develop the foundational groundwork necessary to create high quality poetry. It also allowed her to understand her place in the writing community as a budding writer.

Mosall was inspired to write about the Middle East in her poems at a time when she was grappling with the issues of identity in her personal life. Understanding the history of her family, how the world viewed her parents, and how she viewed herself influenced her poetry.  

“When I came in … I only wrote about certain demographics that I didn’t even identify as and so when I entered into the writing program and went to all these classes, I started to feel more comfortable to explore my own,” she says. 

Due to a lack of community while growing up, Mosall’s curiosity for exploration and its value inspired her to write about family and relationships in her poetry. 

“There were issues with isolation just because of discrimination or having to integrate yourself into areas that were unknown or maybe you weren’t always welcome,” she says.  

Going into her process of writing poetry, Mosall says she does not care much about the quality when she begins to write. Even if it’s a word or a comment, she keeps up with the practice of writing every day. She usually writes at times when she gets an image or a line in her head.  

“Magic happens when you’re revising poetry. So, when you’re looking at your poems again and editing, making it cleaner [and] changing it up a bit, [that’s] where it all comes together,” Mosall says. 

During her last year at KPU, with a large collection of poems at hand, Mosall’s creative writing instructor Jen Currin encouraged her to send her work out to publish. 

“So, I thought ‘You know, why not? I have nothing to lose … it might be a pleasant surprise if I get someone to pick it up and publish it,’ so I just decided to go for it,” she says. 

“There’s always a line or two or a phrase in the poem that can just grab your heartstrings … and it touches you on a really innate level and I think that’s why I am in poetry because I strive to be able to do that for other people and for myself.”

For the cover of her book, Mosall was encouraged to use ancient Persian miniature art to represent her roots in addition to a personal anecdote where her mother often compared her to one of the girls from the painting. 

“I think poetry allows us to really be in the present moment, especially if it [is] a challenging poem. So, I think that’s a great way to live, to be present.”