Author explores experiences surrounding funerals and life in new book

Leah Warner wrote and published Euphoric Dreams, an anthology of poems and short stories around four categories: Love and Loss, Fantasy and Horror, Life in the 21st Century, and Animals and Nature.

The 39-year-old from West Bromwich said most of the poems, apart from fantasy and horror, were situations and moments from her own life that she put into words to write a poem, while the fantasy and horror section was shorter. stories.

She said the idea for the book came from her years working in Bereavement Services for Dudley Council and hearing poems read at funeral services, as well as her own experience of having to write a poem for a family member’s funeral.

She said: “It all started a few years ago when my great aunt from London died and my mum asked me to read a poem at the funeral.

“That evening I googled funeral poems but unfortunately nothing I was reading felt like a true representation of my aunt as I wanted it to be quite personal to her so I decided to I write my own poem for hers.

“I read it at the funeral and had kind comments about how appropriate and beautiful my words were for her, so after that I started brainstorming other poems I could write and within days I wrote quite a lot. .”

She said she had always been interested in writing and decided to take the time to write this book and after six months worked with a publishing company in Birmingham to publish the book and put it up for sale on Amazon.

She said her experiences at bereavement services really helped her form the words for her poems and stories and said she is already working on a new book, while also saying full-time writing would be her dream .

She said: “I’d like to think that people can relate to my work, maybe find it useful and helpful, and I find that when I write, the words and feelings that I put into them come to me quite easily , which makes it a pleasure to write.

“I understand the troubles and difficulties that come with the loss of a loved one or the daily tasks we all go through and the people we meet and the situations and decisions we all have to make.

“If I could do this full-time then that would be brilliant, although I work full-time and have to balance things, but I will continue to work and do this as I can and maybe I will. the real dream to be able to do this full-time.”

“Euphoric Dreams” is available for purchase on Amazon and other book sites.