Blog Archives
Hidden Meanings
Fists in the Eye that Blinks on a Pin is a collection of poetry that feels both raw and surreal, and moves between moments of tenderness and moments of violence, exploring themes of memory, loss, and fractured identity. What inspired you to write this particular collection of poems?
This collection of poems was actually inspired by a very specific event. I was gearing up to see Billy Corgan perform at the Good Things festival when there was a sudden announcement that he would be performing an intimate acoustic set at a small venue called The Gem. The Gem is a tiny bar in a suburb called Collingwood in Melbourne, Australia. I managed to secure tickets and was huddled in this room of maybe 100 people, watching the legend Billy Corgan perform this unbelievable, stripped-back acoustic set. Truly a dream come true.
He opened up the floor to questions, and I asked how he manages to separate the emotional connection to his songs from the need to view them objectively for release to the world. His answer mesmerised me, as he talked about themes of going back to the freedom of creativity you have in childhood… reminiscing on how we have this creative flare that lets us do anything, we draw rabbits that are red with blue feet, we colour outside the lines; and it’s only once people start telling us that we’re wrong and that our drawing is terrible, that we focus on how we perceive things should be… he advocated for returning to the freedom of creativity before someone told us it was wrong. And so that’s what I tried to do with this book – just write with freedom and creativity, without concern for anything else.
How did you decide on the themes that run throughout your poetry book?
Following on from question one, there really were no preconceived themes or concepts. I didn’t set out to write the book with a particular arc or angle; nor did I know where it was going to go. Everything that was written was just written organically with a kind of spur-of-the-moment enthusiasm for creating something with freedom and enjoyment.
How do you strike a balance between clarity and ambiguity in your poetry?
It’s a good question, but probably not one I can answer. I think each reader would have a different perception of the balance between clarity and ambiguity in the book. For me, I like the idea of poetry that is more on the ambiguous side; that demands a bit of curiosity and a willingness to look for hidden meanings. But I don’t think the wider audiences like to unpack poetry anymore; people don’t want to sit down and read something that doesn’t make sense, and that they have to unravel like a code… but to me that’s what poetry is supposed to be – it’s supposed to be ambiguous, decoded…it’s supposed to challenge the reader to look deeper than merely reading the words. So who knows?
How has this poetry book changed you as a writer, or what did you learn about yourself through writing it?
I enjoyed the freedom of writing for myself first. I think my other poetry works have all been written with somewhat of a plan, a structure, a sense of narrative, and thematic linking points; I had fun writing as a homage to an experience, for the mere outcome of creating something. That was fun.
Author Links: GoodReads | Amazon
This is a rabbit painted red, with colour outside the lines; a blue foot, an orange ear – creative bliss and a child’s mind
Fists in the Eye that Blinks on a Pin
Dyson Russell’s Fists in the Eye that Blinks on a Pin is a collection of poetry that feels both raw and surreal, like wandering through a dream where images refuse to sit still. The book moves between moments of tenderness and moments of violence, never giving the reader a chance to feel completely safe. Themes of memory, loss, and fractured identity recur throughout, tied together by vivid and sometimes startling metaphors. It’s the kind of collection where one poem can feel like a quiet confession and the next like a scream across a darkened room.
I found myself both unsettled and deeply moved. Russell writes with a kind of reckless honesty that doesn’t apologize for being strange or uncomfortable. Sometimes the words tripped me up, and I had to pause and reread, but I didn’t mind. The language has teeth, and that’s part of its pull. What I admired most was the way the poems manage to be experimental without drifting into nonsense. Even in their most chaotic moments, they circle back to something recognizable and relatable, like grief that feels both personal and universal.
The repetition of despair, loss, and fractured imagery can weigh heavily after a while. Still, I can’t deny that the intensity is part of what makes this book what it is. Russell doesn’t water anything down, and that kind of boldness is rare. It felt like stepping into someone else’s storm and just staying there until the clouds passed.
I would recommend this book to readers who crave poetry that doesn’t play it safe. If you like writing that feels visceral, experimental, and emotionally unfiltered, this collection will stay with you long after you put it down. It’s not for someone looking for light verse or easy comfort, but if you want to wrestle with language and feel something real, Fists in the Eye that Blinks on a Pin is worth your time.
Pages: 110 | ISBN : 1763820602
LITERARY TITAN 