Unpacking ‘Under the Tattered Roof’ with Jerome Masamaka

In this interview, we learn more about Jerome Masamaka and the story behind his debut collection, Under the Tattered Roof.

Centre for Stories first met Jerome during his studies at Murdoch University in 2019. While completing his Creative Writing PhD, Jerome remained an active participant and member of our online community. Jerome’s work has been published in Westerly Magazine and Portside Review, and delivered at Bodies of Water: Poetry in the Wetlands as well as poetry nights across Western Australia.

Centre for Stories (CFS): Can you tell us how this poetry collection, Under the Tattered Roof, came to be?

Jerome Masamaka (JM): Most of the poems in this collection came from my creative writing PhD project on climate change poetry. Shortly after I completed my research studies in May 2022, I saw the call for poetry manuscripts on the Centre for Stories’ Facebook feed. I put together a sample and submitted. When I didn’t hear from Centre for Stories after the expected two weeks, I thought my manuscript hadn’t been selected. But on one beautiful Friday morning a few days later, I received an email from Logan explaining that Centre for Stories and Red River Press had been happy with my manuscript.

I was excited because I really wanted to publish this collection. It conveys my eco-activist sentiments about the climate catastrophe unfolding before us. I grew up in a climate vulnerable community in Ghana; in a coastal town that has been ravaged by sea erosion for decades. Global warming and the rise in sea level pose existential threat to my birthplace. That was my motivation to do creative writing research on how poetry can contribute to the global awareness about the ravages of climatic instability. The creative output of that research results in this volume.

CFS: Who did you celebrate with when you heard the wonderful news that you’d be getting published?

JM: There are a few people, in my family and circle of friends, who have been enthusiastic about my poetry. Four of my most enthusiastic fans are my father, my uncle, a lawyer friend and my dream lady. My father, a former English teacher, and my uncle, a former literature lecturer, have always been looking forward to my first published collection. My lawyer friend motivates me all the time to keep writing. And my wonderful dream lady, to whom I dedicated a few love poems in my earlier writing, celebrated the great news with me.

CFS: What was it like working with your editor, the amazing J Eh Kaw Thaw Saw?

JM: J is an amazing editor. He is very meticulous. His editorial acumen is not limited to typos, grammar, and stylistic inconsistencies. He has sharp eyes for the aesthetic merit of every single poem. He offered very profound critical comments on each and every poem, which impressed me a lot. He picked out every single bit that I missed, and I found myself agreeing with almost every suggestion and comment he presented. Such was my high regard for J’s critical feedback that I kind of relied on him as the litmus test for the new poems I added. And I used to think: ‘Once J thinks this poem is worthwhile, then it is good.’

I thank Centre for Stories and Red River for making available to us such talented editors without whom the process wouldn’t have been this smooth.

And oh, I cannot forget that J is a very fast reader. He returned works to me with comments faster than I even expected. He made the journey fun. No stress!

CFS: This book sits within a series of poetry collections within the Green Leaves/Red River project in collaboration with Red River Press in Delhi. What is something cool/fun/challenging that has come up during this process?

JM: So far, my experience has been positive throughout this process. Centre for Stories has been active with many literary events which bring other creative minds together. Networking has been possible with others who have published, and are publishing, under the Green Leaves/Red River project. It’s been wonderful connecting with Laksmi, Manveen, Baran and others. It’s exciting to be part of a community of creative minds with whom I interact with regularly at Centre for Stories and other venues. Every visit to Centre for Stories awakens in me the excitement of having a communion with people who speak the language of art. That, for me, is an exciting part of this process.

CFS: This is your debut collection of poems (possibly a first of many!). What has met your expectations and what has been awkward or unexpected?

JM: It is certainly my debut published work but not my first collection. I have a manuscript from my earlier writings that I haven’t published yet. I’m also working on another collection to publish after this one.

So far there has been no unfulfilled expectations. I have been pleasantly surprised at how smooth and easy the process has been. I got adequate feedback and information from Centre for Stories throughout the process. Despite their busy schedules, Caroline, Robert, Logan, and Luisa are warm and approachable. They make it exciting to work with the Centre on this project.

CFS: Is there a poem you’d like to share with our readers?

JM: I want to share this collection’s eponymous poem with readers to give them a feel of what to expect from the book. The title of the collection is directly from this poem, and it is one of my most personal. I struggle to cope with the dry heat of Western Australia. Hot sunny days are familiar to those of us of African origin. But I’m used to hot, humid sun, not the dry heat that threatens to cut the skin into pieces and leave one with a chronic case of dry eyes. I pour out my frustrations with the excessively dry heat of Western Australia in this poem.

Down Under the Tattered Roof

Fierce Sun

fire- inspiring

spitting pikes

blow by blow on the forehead

strike upon strike on bald heads

We fled to the beach to sue for peace

Water the buffer, hot sand to witness

The sky cleared her throat, her son the sun

had a charge we cannot escape

Here at Coogee, we answer the call

But not the questions …

Our summer clothes torn through

Naked bodies stripped by laser beams

Cutting UV incised the pores

and thirsty follicles gasped for breath …

The beach was steaming

till a roaming cloud moved close

towed by ospreys and gulls

silhouetting in its shadow

stalking shoals under the false ruse

We aimed for brief shelter

against a charged heaven

These shadows, once stitched whole

a canopy shield for fragile earth …

Floating O-zone with elastic tent

covering Australia, its O center

before stretching to the icy fringes

Here once was Helium’s shrine

installed a god, adored in winter

worshipped in summer

A sleeping deity with reckless supplicants

who raised search lights with smoking logs

to look behind a flammable roof

for answers, who was there?

Where and when were we born?

Something caught the smoke

The roof caught the fire

The sky went up in flames

And we are here

wincing

under its torn ceiling

with yearnings for the past.

About Jerome

Jerome Masamaka is an emerging poet and writer. Born in Ghana, Jerome left his position as assistant lecturer at the University of Ghana in pursuit of his PhD at Western Australia’s Murdoch University. Jerome’s creative work often takes focus on climate change conversations, reframing the narrative through the perspectives of West Africa.

Green Leaves / Red River is an international publication project by Centre for Stories in partnership with Red River Press based in Delhi.

The project supports eight poets from CALD backgrounds to publish a full manuscript of poetry. The project also provides two editorial fellowships to emerging editors from CALD backgrounds. Editorial Fellows work with the writers to develop a manuscript of high literary standard. The collections will be published over two years and sold individually as part of a series.

This project is possible with funding from the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries.

This interview was published on 19 December 2023.