What did winning the Spotlight Books competition mean to you and how has it helped to advance your career?

This win led to my first full-length poetry collection being published, which these days is so hard to achieve for an unknown poet – I have had some competition wins and single poems published in magazines, but no pamphlet. That meant everything to me in terms of advancing my career, as being published in this way means I can apply to a wider range of presses, and opportunities that were previously closed to me are now within my grasp. The book has only recently been published, so longer term, it is too early to say, but I know I have only just started to reap the rewards.  I was also introduced to amazing organisations and individuals who all continue to support me.

Aisha Phoenix interviews Jacqueline Haskell about her new collection, Stroking Cerberus: Poems from the Afterlife, for The Mechanics’ Institute blog.