London poet’s success with mental health poetry collection
Added: (Thu Nov 05 2020)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
A dog-walker from London has used networking site Instagram to lead her on the path to becoming a published poet.
For more than a decade Olivia Clifford has used couplets and stanzas as a release from her daily struggles with depression and other mental health issues.
After noticing a new wave of poets making an impact on Instagram she decided to go public with her own compositions on the social media site.
And now the 28-year-old has just released her first anthology, Overflow, which has just reached the top five in Amazon’s British Poetry chart.
Olivia, who lives in south-east London, said: “I’ve always wanted to publish a book, I just never thought it would be poetry.
“Once I started to see how popular poetry has become on Instagram in recent years, I realised what I have been writing since I was a teenager could potentially be released into the big wide world.
“The poetry I have read on Instagram from other poets has helped me to feel less alone and I am hoping to do the same for others.
“I started my own Instagram page to see if anyone was interested in my work - I don’t have a huge following but the numbers are slowly but surely rising.”
Overflow is a deeply honest anthology of heart-felt poems charting Olivia’s struggles as a young adult all the way through to an acceptance of herself.
Using various poetic techniques, she explores her own melancholy and depression as well as heartache, loss and acceptance.
Olivia’s debut anthology has already won her a super fan – her mum.
She explained: “My mum read Overflow and she honestly loved it - not just because she is my mum but because my poetry resonated with her.
“This collection of poetry is for anyone who has struggled with their mind, their sense of self, experienced heartbreak and felt like they don’t quite fit in.”
Olivia lists poets such as L E Bowman and Rupi Kaur amongst her influences for writing.
Since the release of Overflow, it has received a string of five-star reviews by moved readers.
Olivia’s anthology has so far been described as ‘a delight to read’, ‘beautifully written’ and ‘deeply touching’.
Reviewer Laura Harrison added: “Overflow is definitely a collection to treasure and come back to time and time again.”
For more details, visit Amazon and search for Olivia Clifford, where the paperback and Kindle formats of Overflow are both available.
Notes to the editor
PublishNation was formed in London in 2011 to provide high quality services to writers at affordable prices.
Since its launch, the company has assisted in the publication of around 2,000 books in a variety of genres for clients throughout the world.
For more details on PublishNation, visit their website at www.publishnation.co.uk