By Faith Greene
POETRY is best described as literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience. Like many other art forms, poetry takes you to another world through the use of words, often in a way that almost seems magical.
Last week, Shykah Persaud, a talented Guyanese artist and poet had her first book of poems published online.
In an interview with the Buzz, the budding creative shared that she has been writing since the age of 13 and has developed a unique style that captures the essence of her colourful personality. She is passionate about colour and incorporates this into her art, which, she said, makes her work come alive in a way that is truly inspiring.
Shykah’s poetry is equally vibrant and has the power to transport her readers to a world of imagination and emotion. She hopes that her work resonates with the mind and soul of her readers or viewers.
The 21-year-old said that although she has been writing poetry for some time, it was only recently that she opened up about it. Shykah noted her own improvements in her poetry writing, saying, that up until a few years ago, most of her poems were sad or depressing. One of her biggest inspirations, she identified, is her wife.
She said: “Usually I only write when I feel grief or hurt and I’ve been working on that and so leading up to like a few days ago when I launched the book, it was mostly happy poems because I’m working on my poems being less sad, and more happy.”

Her book, ‘Colours, for you’ is unlike any book of poems you will ever read.
Through this dynamic book, Shykah aims to bring awareness to a larger community. In the process of writing her book, she noted that it took her close to a year to complete.
“That’s where my wife came in and she was like hey, did you write anything today? Hey, what are you doing? Did you update the book? So, without her guidance or badgering, I don’t know, I don’t think it would have been …launched within a year,” she added.
“So, it’s kind of scary but, at the same time, I’m happy that it can be; it can reach out to persons that are in the same situation or persons that are part of the LGBTQ community. They can read it and they can feel included and also inspired to do whatever it is that they do to feeling themselves,” she said.
“I think the fear that not everyone may like the book, you know? It might not be everyone’s cup of tea. I think the bad side of criticism. That was one of my fears,” she expressed.
Moreover, to get a copy of the book, persons can either purchase it on Amazon Kindle or directly from Amazon.
Shykah said that, in October, she will be doing a bulk order of copies of her book.
Additionally, she said she is working on a launch date in October so that she can have a meet and greet.
She said: “People can come out, probably purchase the book if they want, meet me and my wife. So, it will be available locally from October month end heading into November.”