A Conversation with Perugia’s Intern: Kamali Williams

Kamali Williams recently completed a summer internship at Perugia Press, sponsored by the Praxis Program at Smith College. This is the sixth summer Perugia has been able to offer this internship, as a partnership between Perugia and Smith College. Jean Blakeman, Perugia Press board president, conducted an interview with Kamali about her experience as a Perugia intern and as a poet.

Q. What first brought you to poetry?

A. Growing up, I was always “the reader” in my family — the one who could be found tucked away in a corner, nose buried in a book, exploring places and lives far beyond my own. Books were how I learned about the world, how I understood people, and how I built my own little mental library of ideas and images. But somewhere between middle school and freshman year of high school, something shifted. Reading no longer felt like an escape; it felt like an obligation. For a while, I wondered if I had lost my love for it completely. Looking back, I realize it wasn’t that I stopped loving to read — it was that I needed different kinds of books, stories that spoke to where I was in life.

In 12th grade, during English class, I was introduced to a book that would truly change me: Black Girl, Call Home by Jasmine Mans. That collection didn’t just give me poems — it gave me permission. It opened up what poetry could be: vulnerable, raw, beautiful, and unapologetically personal. For the first time, I felt completely seen in a book. It wasn’t just about words strung together; it was about voice, truth, and identity. I’ve returned to that book more than once, and every time, it impacts me in a new way.

Q. How did you first encounter Perugia Press?

A. I was introduced to the press during J-term of 2024 when I took the course “The Art and Business of Poetry” at Smith College and it was taught by Rebecca Olander, the editor and director of Perugia Press. She introduced the class to the internship and then this summer I wanted to intern at a press to get experience with marketing, especially at a small press like Perugia.

Q. What were you involved with at the press?

A. This summer, there were different tasks which I appreciated. My most favorite was working on classroom guides which were for Seamless by Linda Tomol Pennisi and Apostasies by Holli Carrell. I loved working on the classroom guides because while working on them, I imagined students learning about poetry and getting so excited about it with the influence of the book and guide. I was able to read for the contest as well. It was fun to read different manuscripts of poetry and give an opinion on my top manuscripts to move forward to the next stage of the contest. Being able to read so many different manuscripts, I was very impressed by the quality of work that people submitted. Lastly, working on Canva was great because I was able to create designs for prompts that I wrote based on Perugia books and that would be posted on Instagram. 

Q. What are some things that stay with you from the books you worked with?

A. The emotions. Reading the books I worked with made me realize poetry helps give a voice to those who need it — that’s the point of writing. When I was reading, I was wishing I was able to write these poems, but I’m so glad being a part of the internship helped me read them and got me introduced to the books. For example, when reading Now In Color by Jacqueline Balderrama, I was very impressed by her poetry highlighting not only her own personal and cultural experiences as a Mexican American woman in America, but also touching on the experience of her grandfather as an immigrant and on the experiences of immigrants and the border today. A section in her book is called “Alternative Ways to Paint,” which she created based on a series of paintings by Pablo Picasso. I thought that was so cool infusing art and poetry, which are two of my favorite things. These poems also gave me an excuse to look at Picasso’s art and how Jacqueline Balderrama was able to describe the paintings in a few lines of the poems she wrote.

When asked to choose books to read for a potential project at the press, I honestly chose Lisa Allen Ortiz’s Guide to the Exhibit and Jennifer K. Sweeney’s How to Live on Bread and Music based on their covers. I didn’t want to read the descriptions because I wanted to encourage myself to try something new. When I read poetry, I gravitate more towards poetry written by Black women because I know that I will find something in common and will love the poetry because of that. When reading both books, I realized I enjoyed both because of how different they were to what I normally read. I’m glad that I chose these both because I got introduced to two new authors. 

Q. Other than being Perugia’s intern, tell us a bit about yourself.

A. I’m entering my senior year at Smith College, majoring in Film and Media Studies with a poetry concentration. At Smith, I’m on the rugby team and I’m a Smith WOZQ DJ. As a DJ, I just go on the college radio station and play music of my choosing, and every week I try to have different themes to correlate with what I want people to listen to. I love reading, writing, watching movies, listening to music, and hanging out with my friends. I’m also from New York City and a middle child!

Q. Do you have a favorite poet? Or a favorite poet of the moment?

A. I have a few! Audre Lorde, Jasmine Mans, and Ocean Vuong. These are my top three because I discovered each of them at different points of my life and their work has stuck with me and just made me feel seen in some way. 

Q. Perugia’s work centers on highlighting the work of women writers. Do you see a connection between the mission of the press and that of Smith College, where you are a student?

A. I do see a connection because this summer I’ve been reflecting about my time at a HWC (Historically Women’s College) and realized Smith helped me find my voice and shaped me into the person I am now. I see Perugia as a press with this mission also, that can help encourage women poets to use their voices through writing and also inspire readers to find their own voices too. 

Q. How do you see poetry fitting into your life as you move forward?

A. I always think about poetry no matter where I am because you can write poetry about anything your heart desires. I believe the beauty of poetry is all around us and it’s not hard to look for. I often write poetry about what I see. For example, I made a poem about just looking up at the sky and how the sky interconnects people who live close or far to you. At Smith I am a poetry concentrator, so I’m looking forward to the classes I take for my senior year that will introduce me to new poets. 

Editor’s note: It’s been wonderful to work with Kamali Williams this summer – a great match was made between Smith, Kamali, and Perugia Press! Thanks to Jean Blakeman for conducting this interview, to Smith for funding the internship through Praxis, and to Kamali for your diligent, detailed, and creative work this summer.