Anastasia Lindsey graduated from Eastern back in 2015 with a degree in technology. But just because you graduate with something does not always mean that it’s your passion.

Lindsey says that her passion is poetry. 

Her true love for writing poetry was at 7th Street Underground here on campus. Her poems and her stories truly helped her evolve into the person she is today, and it all started with her taking a chance at open mic night. 

“I could still do my poetry on the side, and it was like… it brought a whole new meaning to the term underground. It was a whole new meaning for me because I live as a technology major in the day and then in the evening, I’m a poet, and I’m up here performing poetry.” 

Inspired by the workings of Rupi Kaur and Courtney Peppernell, Lindsey finally has something to not only share with the world, but also call her own. 

Her new book titled OCEAN is a collection of poetry that speaks to a healing heart. 

The book has four sections, each set with a different intention. 

The first section is titled Deep Waters, which dives into different sources of trauma and the start of the healing process. 

The second section is called Wading, which represents how life can sometimes move up and down, and how healing is never just a straight line. It shows moments of life being okay, to moments where it’s not as okay, but slowly getting better.

Lindsey says that she really connected to this third section titled Shore. It’s for all things love, including self-love and love for others. 

“It’s actually the longest part of my book… And it was done purposefully so that after people went through the trauma, they could spend a lot of time basking in poems that dealt with love so that they could feel that love frequency, and not have to dwell so much on the traumatic events that they were just presented with.”

The last section is called Sandcastles, which is actually a teaser for her next book that she is currently working on. 

“Ocean was obviously a book of healing. My next book is going to be a book of passion, but I haven’t come up with a title just yet. It’s going to be very passion filled, whether its passion for yourself or for others or like, your desires for what you want in the world. So it’s going to embody all of those!” 

What makes this book different from others is how it is worked. It has little breaks in between the sections of work to allow the reader to take a mental break from what they are reading and have the ability to check in with themselves to see how they are doing. 

Lindsey does understand that, as a writer, it can be intimidating to produce your work in such an overflowing market. But she encourages individuals to remember that no one will ever write like you, and it’s important to keep showing up for yourself, even when it gets difficult. 

“Someone’s going to find you and like you for you. And sure, someone might go and buy another book, but they’re still going to like you as an author. There is room for you to be an author and there is room for you to be a poet, you just have to believe in yourself.”