how to construct a breakup poem by June Lin

This chapbook explores the performativity of romance and love as self-destruction by tracing an ambiguously healthy relationship through a variety of poetic forms. The collection touches on self-esteem, nostalgia, and determination, and eventually drives home the intensity of love, loss, and moving on.

June Lin is a young poet from Canada. Currently studying Politics, Philosophy and Economics in university, she's been published in a variety of literary magazines, including the Ilanot Review, Gone Lawn, Bywords, and Vagabond City.

“A friend once tweeted that if she was brutally murdered to tell her story during a makeup tutorial video, longform YouTube style. how to construct a breakup poem by June Lin exudes that kind of energy, but instead of a MUA devising the narrative based off of research, no matter how expansive, Lin writes the story herself. Lin demands it to be heard in a way that will gut you. How much of yourself are you willing to carve away for others to love you? What if it’s everything? What if there’s still a lot of you to parse in the afterlife, and it’s still there to write about in a poem, or maybe a notes app essay, until you let go of all things dead, including those parts of you given to others, to rewrite the narrative without them.” —tommy blake, author of Trick Mirror or Your Computer Screen + Peanut [the cat] auditions as Courage [...from Courage the Cowardly Dog]

“So often while reading how to construct a breakup poem I found myself shouting yes at what June Lin writes. I’ve experienced many of those things, that deep desire for connection, the questions you ask of yourself, your lover, even your ex-lover. June masterfully describes the ache, the longing, the desire associated with love and the dark side of love, the destructive side that leaves you alone and frightened. “i wanted you to save me from myself,” she writes. “i wanted you to be the one person who could do what even I couldn’t, who could crawl inside of me, look around, and say i’m staying.” June is unapologetic and takes you along for the ride. “a poem is just an emotional x-ray and you’re about to make the world your doctor.” Only June can tear me apart and put me back together, and her book is a first aid kit to bandage you back up in the pursuit of love. Brilliant, philosophical, and wise, June is a powerful poet and her debut collection is an absolute must-have.” —Aura Martin, author of Butterflies Over Flame