Interview with Cynthia Robinson Young, Author of Migration
Cynthia Robinson Young is a native of Newark, New Jersey. After spending 30 years in California, she moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee with her family in 2004 working as an Exceptional Education Inclusion teacher, and adjunct professor at Covenant College in nearby Georgia.
Her work has appeared in magazines and journals including The Amistad, Freedom Fiction, Grist journal, and The Writer's Chronicle. In addition to Migration (Finishing Line Press, 2018), an excerpt from her novel appears in the anthology, Dreams for A Broken World (Essential Dreams Press, 2022).
Cynthia Robinson Young’s debut chapbook, Migration, was released in 2018 by Finishing Line Press. She sat down to answer questions on her work, ghosts, and accessibility in poetry.
Jacquelyn Scott: Thinking back on the publication process of Migration, what was that like for you?
Cynthia Robinson Young: I entered a chapbook contest with Finishing Line Press, and although I didn’t win, they did write back to say they still wanted to publish my chapbook. They were really easy to work with. I was able to choose my own cover, which was a photo one of my daughters took while driving up Lookout Mountain, Georgia. Little editing was done by them, just the layout of the book. It was a very easy process in that respect.
Scott: What surprised you the most about putting Migration out into the world?
Young: What surprised me the most was how long it takes for a book to go from acceptance to actually getting it published and into the hands of readers. I remember being awed by realizing that something I had written was now an actual product that people could read. Getting a book published has been described as a “birthing” of sorts, and that’s pretty much what it feels like! A part of you is now released into the world.
Scott: Your work bears unflinching witness to the atrocities committed against Black people throughout generations. Why is the inclusion of that brutality important?
Young: The history of Black people in the world is a history of generational trauma. The simple act of telling the stories of my family meant sharing their trauma, why they left Africa when they didn't want to, and why they left the South when they did want to. If my children tell my story, they will have to include those same types of stories. I hope they won’t sound as brutal, but the stories will still be hard ones to tell.
Scott: How do ghosts (that of your family and your past) play a role in your work?
Young: Black folklore is filled with magic, the supernatural, and the spiritual. I’ve been hearing ghost stories and supernatural stories since forever. Ghosts have always seemed to play an important part in the history of storytelling in the Black community, and everyone seems to have a story about a ghost or someone who knew someone who saw a ghost. It’s almost like we want to convey the idea that, with all Black folks have gone through, there is little rest even after death. I don’t really believe in ghosts, but I kind of do...especially in Savannah, Georgia!
Scott: What do you want the biggest takeaway to be for your readers?
Young: I think the biggest takeaway for readers of Migration would be to know that, even in the midst of hardship and trauma, Black people have the resilience to keep believing in change, believing that we can migrate to better. That’s a very strong belief that even slaves held onto within their Christian faith, and it’s reflected in spirituals like “How I Got Over,” which I quote in the ending poem.
Scott: What is something you’d like to try in your work that you’ve never done before?
Young: I don’t know what I’d like to try in my work besides seeing if I can get a novel I’ve been working on for years done!
Scott: Do you think someone should have to work to “solve” a poem?
Young: I think it’s fun to figure out the layers in a poem, to appreciate the metaphors, and even why the poet chose the poetic form, but that whole idea of “solving a poem” drives me crazy. I think it’s why people hate poetry–they don’t have that kind of time.
I don’t think it’s a crime for a poem to be accessible. I want to be read; I want to have my poems enjoyed. I don’t want them to feel like they have to diagram it and read a guide on how to read a poem before they can enjoy it.
Poetry should convey some sort of truth, delight readers, and create some sort of emotion in them without spending an hour trying to figure it out.
Scott: How has your writing changed since your first publication?
Young: I hope my writing has gotten stronger. I think the more I write, the more I can hear my own voice within my work, and the more courage I get to express the world as I see it.
Scott: What are you currently reading or working on?
Young: I’ve read a lot of novels recently, as well as a lot of poetry books. I used to shy away from reading a lot of works by other poets because I thought I would copy them, but I’ve realized it’s the same as reading a lot of novels. What most likely happens is, the best of what the poets write is internalized, but I still retain my voice. So, I’m seeking a home for a full-length poetry book and continuing to work on my novel.
Scott: What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
Young: The best piece of writing advice I’ve ever received is that there’s no right way to write, no rules that must be followed to be successful, other than to make sure I’m actually writing, versus thinking about it!
That, and boldly telling people, I’m a writer!
From Finishing Line Press:
Migration by Cynthia Robinson Young
“Will I be free enough to reclaim / what was good in their lives here, and brave enough / to confront the ghosts that chased them away?” Young’s collection, Migration, explores family history through legend, lore, and fact to discover past generations of women: “When you say my name, you tell my story.” These rich, dense poems balance observation and exploration, “no one to ask but a website of strangers,” as Young traverses her personal history through poetry. From the chains of Southern slaves to the turmoil of the North and back to new freedom in the South, Young boldly declares: “I want a different eulogy when I die.” And she will have it.
–KB Ballentine, Author of Almost Everything, Almost Nothing and The Perfume of Leaving
Cynthia Young’s poignant poems about her family range from slavery to the present day. She mesmerizes the reader with her inherent talent for storytelling. Her history is America’s history of disregard for human life. This is a collection of heartbreak and hope in redemption.
–Helga Kidder, author of three books of poems, most recently Blackberry Winter
Get your copy from Finishing Line Press.
Do you have suggestions on who I should interview next, or would you like to be featured? Send me a message or find me on social media.
