Interview: Maia Campbell

Maia Campbell’s “All That We Love Is Burning” is one of the poems that will appear in the inaugural issue of 3Decker. Here is a little interview with Maia speaking in her capacity as a poet living and working in Worcester County. The inaugural 3Decker issue will be arriving very soon!

1.Tell us about your accepted poem(s). What inspired it/them?

• I started writing “All that we love is burning” in the winter of 2025, in the middle of very intense depression. I live with depression and anxiety, but this period was especially difficult with everything that has been occurring in the world. I struggled to see a path for myself in this world, and everything felt on fire. I was writing to express how I have been feeling and to remind myself to hold on to the little things that matter. 

2. What is your writing process?

• My writing process has often been haphazard. In the past, I would write a poem if I got an idea for one. That worked for quite a while because I get ideas for poems quite often. However, I’m now trying to be more disciplined and at least write down a few lines or an idea every day. I text myself lines when they come to me when I’m out and about.

3. Where can we find more of your work?

• I don’t share poems publicly as much as I used to, but I will sometimes share on my Substack, Poetically Expressed Thoughts. My only public Instagram account focuses on Black American History, but I will sometimes share my poetry on it.

4. What makes Worcester feel like home to you? What’s your favorite thing about Worcester County?

• I cannot explain why Worcester feels like home; it just is. I love the little quirks around the county. I feel like it is a good city for an introvert like me: a fantastic library system, beautiful museums, lots of local coffee shops, and relatively short drives out into nature.