.Writers.on.Writing.
Get to know our authors, the foundation and heart of Yellow Arrow Journal, and what writing means to them through our monthly series.
W.o.W. #72
Emily Decker
Describe an early experience where you learned that language has power.
I grew up as a preacher’s kid, so from my earliest years, I witnessed the very powerful—and often physical—responses words from the pulpit could elicit within the context of a spiritual practice. It was a formative experience, and although I’m not religious anymore, it did imprint on me an early awareness of the influence of narrative on our beliefs and the chemistry of words and faith.
What word do you find yourself using most often in your writing?
And. It’s probably a byproduct of my theater background, and it’s certainly a word I have to keep an editing eye on. But I love what it does for creating a cadence of continuity and rhythm within a phrase. I also love how it adds more breath and allows for the start a line or phrase in the middle of a thought.
What is a good writing habit you have picked up?
When starting a poem, I usually free-write in a narrative form. Narrative gives me a way into the poem that’s grounding and prevents me from falling into writing that’s too abstract or misses the higher calling of metaphor. I’ve also gotten better at cutting lines I’m attached to but don’t serve the poem—particularly at the ends of my poems. Sometimes, it’s just better to let the poem have its say.
What does your inner writing voice tell you?
Breathe deeper and be in the moment longer.
A former high school teacher turned communications professional, Emily Decker is a Virginia native who spent her childhood in Ghana and her growing-up years in Atlanta, Georgia. She now calls Baltimore home where, in addition to writing, she enjoys dabbling in the community theater scene, singing with the Cathedral Choral Society in D.C., and getting out on the water as much as possible. She holds a master’s degree in secondary education from Georgia State University, and her poetry has appeared in Yellow Arrow Journal, Full Bleed, Hole in the Head Review, 2023’s Bay to Ocean Journal, and Campfire Stories: Chesapeake Bay. Her first chapbook, Homing, will be released by Yellow Arrow Publishing in July 2025.
Yellow Arrow published Emily Decker’s piece “Boxing Day” in Yellow Arrow Journal, Vol. VIII, No. 1, KINDLING. You can find her on Instagram @emadeck. We are excited to release Homing and are enjoying the publication process with Emily.