Michael J Hawk ... aka King of Darkness
Poet
 Call me Hawk, the Poet…King of Darkness. I began writing poetry in 1981 at age 13; it was a means of venting my anger and frustration. I was raised in a hard-line Christian Church, where the influence of Satan and his demons on mankind was a prevalent part of the church’s doctrine, and the Book of Revelations was heavily preached. It was the experiences I had in this church that formed the foundation of my dark poetry. In those fledgling years of writing poetry, I used Angels to represent people I liked and Demons for those I hated. Over the course of the past 25 years, my poetry has evolved in both subject matter and style, but the core reason for why I write has remained the same.

In my language arts class we were learning about metaphors. In seventh grade, the chapter on metaphors wasn’t exactly ground breaking, but it was the catalyst for a style of writing that would I soon develop.  I began to use metaphors in my poetry. The poems from 1981 through 1984 are just pure unbridled anger and hatred; although in 1984, my creativity began to blossom.  In 1985 I began a new phase of poetry, the anger was still there, but I was becoming more philosophical. Instead of just venting undirected frustration, I was asking questions, and searching for answers.

1986 is when I began questioning the Bible, and the existence of God. I have always been fascinated with the apocalyptic prophecies of the Bible, and I incorporated that fascination into my poetry. I had a religious identity crisis: I believed that there was some form of intelligence in the universe, but I did not accept what religion told me that intelligence was. I rebelled against church and things associated with it. I simply couldn’t be convinced of a spiritual realm. My mother would sit me down and cast demons out of me through prayer; and that’s another thing I didn’t accept, the concept of prayer, I still don’t believe in it, prayer, that is. All of my religious complications and my new talent for writing poetry seemed to be a match made in heaven. Pardon the pun.

Only two poems were written between August of 1986 and February of 1992, “Tormented Souls parts I and II” in February of 1989, both of these poems were written about my brother-in-law’s suicide.

 The four year gap was due to an accident I had in the U.S. Army, in which I broke both of my legs and fractured my back, the short story “Tough One” deals with this accident.

When I started writing again in 1992, my anger and frustration were rejuvenated, and my creativity had also matured. My conflict with religion took center stage. And that conflict was, do I believe in God or don’t I? There seemed to be only one solution, and that was to be both believer and atheist. Let me explain; I believe that there is a God, but I do not believe in religion. God is spiritual and religion is man made. I came to the conclusion that religion had nothing to do with God, it is all for man’s benefit. Religion is not God; it is merely a conduit for worshipping God. For thousands of years man has worshipped God with religion. As a result, with its imagery, artifacts, and rituals, religion became the one being worshipped, not God.

People need something to believe in, they need a tangible object on which to build their faith. Religion has catered to that need, leaving God out in the cold. To worship God, all one needs is a Bible and a quiet place to read. Giant cathedrals, paintings of saints, crucifixes, and such are nothing more than window dressing.

As the years grew longer, my poetic prose became deeper and much more spiritual. The metaphors were becoming more complex and the subject matter more philosophical. My poetry started out as a vent for my frustration, and became an avenue for spiritual awareness. More to the point, through my poetry, I found my spirituality. But there is still a part of me that doubts, and it is that part in which I explore my atheistic thoughts. Is that blasphemy? I don’t think so. The Bible says, “Seek and ye shall find”. Through my poetry I am seeking, and one day, I will find the truth I am looking for.

The concept of writing a poem is to evoke some kind of emotion in the reader. Whether the intention is to provoke positive emotion or negative, is a moot point. As long as the emotion is felt, as the poet, I have done my job. Some readers may take offense to what I have written regarding church and religion. If your faith is strong and you are secure in your religious convictions, then nothing I have written should offend you.

Sincerely,

Michael J. Hawks

*Authors note:

APOCALYSE OF THE GODS

Was co-written with H. Brian Damon

ASYLUM WITHIN and CITY OF BONES

Were co-written with Emil Donatello III also known as “Crow”

Both Brian and Crow are members of the Black Rose Poets Society.

You can find more information on the Black Roses at

http://www.brpsonline.com/

Look for Michael's book "Where Darkness Reigns" to be coming out soon!

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