Forbidden Flowers converses in a radical language of desire through bold, provocative poems. Cornue and Morton’s poetry ruminates on the human condition and its relationship to mortality, love, and sexual prowess, from the perspective of powerful, queer poets in a patriarchal world.
With references to Charles Baudelaire, Frankenstein and Valley of the Dolls, Forbidden Flowers is an active dreamscape of literary and cinematic fantasies. Yet Cornue and Morton’s theater interacts with late stage capitalism, punctuated with world weary humor and American ennui. These poems are just a step away from death’s cliff, but always willing to risk another turn at the roulette wheel.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Spleen is a poetry collective of desire founded by two queer women.
Carmen Cornue (she/her) resides in San Francisco and her work is deeply indebted to French poetry, international arthouse films and classic American cinema. Her poetry has appeared in The Atlanta Review, Apricity Press and other publications. She holds positions as a poetry reader with the Los Angeles Review and judge with NYC Midnight.
Donna Morton (she/they) writes poetry inspired by filmic landscapes, morbid literary cues, and the lifestyles of meandering flâneur and cloistered nun. Morton’s poetry has been published in The Shoutflower and Fauxmoir Lit Mag, among others. Donna writes under several pen names and also wrote a Mad Lib horror story based on experiences in spooky, swampy Pennsylvania.
Both poets have been featured in Southword: New International Writing, Mad Gleam Press and on the podcast Beyond the Screams. Forbidden Flowers was a finalist in Munster Literature Centre’s Fool for Poetry International Chapbook Competition in 2021 and Host Publications 2022 Chapbook Prize.
Find Carmen and Donna reading their poetry on Instagram, @spleen1857.
Find out more about Carmen at carmencornue.com.
