Christiana Castillo is a poet and educator based out of the Greater Detroit Area. She is a teaching artist with insideOut Literary Arts and the Youth Arts Alliance. Her writing can be found in Belt Magazine, The Wayne Literary Review, Alegría Magazine’s Latinx Poetry Project, and Riverwise Magazine.
1. When did your love for poetry begin?
Oh wow, I have been writing poetry since I was six years old. It has always been a medium I have taken to. In elementary school I would write my mom and sister poems for their birthdays.
2. Where do you envision taking your writing?
I hope to have the poetry manuscript I have been working on, Crushed Marigold, published and I hope to have my bilingual children’s book “A Town Called Hope” published as well. Writing has been a way for me to cultivate and celebrate community and I hope to continue to do so.
3. If you could change the world through your poetry, what would be your message to heal the world?
I think celebrating my voice and the voices of other people of color is a way to heal the world. I hope to continue to contribute to that healing.
4. What brings you ALEGRIA?
Ah, so many things! My family, my loved ones, my community, my students, teaching, gardening, sunflowers, being a poet.
The LatinX Poetry Project is a poetic anthology with over 45 new LatinX Poets from diverse backgrounds. Purchase your book here.
