Berlin is the city where he was born, and that became his home… Apart from that it also means freedom to him, especially creative freedom, which is essential for his being. Dan is a writer whose passions and talents became his livelihood, and for 8 years he has been selling custom written poems for anyone who can pay 3 Euros and think of 3 words according to which the poem is written. This idea came to him ages ago, when he was playing this game with his friends. Now, it is what he does for a living along with publishing his work. I can’t imagine having inspiration and energy for writing several poems a day but Dan is just smiling and explaining to me that that is why he asks for the 3 words that give him ideas, together with the energy that people asking for a poem have…

The most common word people choose to be part of a poem is love… but sometimes he has to face words like Angela Merkel, Wiener schnitzel, and some super long german words connected to the food I can’t even remember.

And what would be Dan’s three words for a poem?

Determinism, Free and Will… His favorite subjects…

After I asked him if he could imagine doing this in any other place in the world, he began to talk about his experience of writing in different countries in detail. It turned out that he has been doing this in many places, and from what he experienced so far, living and writing close to Gibraltar would be the best option for him… “I’ve written in different places in Andalusia (tricky because I don’t speak a lot of Spanish), and on the rock of Gibraltar (works great because it’s British)… Also did it this year for the first time in Dresden, Nürnberg, and Munich. Worked fine there, but also not quite my kind of town for the long term I guess. And I did it in Prague where a giant security guard chased me away from the Charles Bridge, but where I eventually found refuge beside the John Lennon graffiti wall! I guess I’m a Bohemian, so Prague might be a good fit for me, but I’m also not so sure about the weather there…” He has a few published books of stories and a collection of his 3-word-poetry in German, but he is still looking for a publisher for his English language poems and prose since he prefers the English language for a lot of his writing. That is why he could also imagine living in some English-speaking country, like the UK, which he finds a bit tricky now after Brexit, but he is not a big fan of the weather there anyway…

He has a weird fascination with the USA, but getting a Visa there for the long term would also be too stressful. 

“New York is also terrible in the winter, and when I lived there (in a damp cellar apartment, on the couch of a friend) the tall buildings always felt too overwhelming. I also lived in Los Angeles, and there the weather is nice – Venice beach might be a good spot for street poetry. But ultimately, that city seems to be where poetry goes to die”…

…

I met Dan at a Turkish market while he was sitting on the floor, typing something into the typewriter. Then I noticed the signs in front of him and I couldn’t resist getting a poem written for me. I was very curious and fascinated how someone can have so much energy to write several poems everyday and I was pondering about the quality of this writing. 

On the first sign, Dan really looks like a stereotype of a poet, wearing glasses, scarf, long hair and beard and a deep expression. But more than a writer on the surface, he is a writer in his soul, and his poems written in just a few minutes are very good. I wasn’t able to talk to him properly, since he was busy writing his poem but in the short chat, where Dan was very friendly and open, I could feel his peaceful, chilled aura, tranqulity, and very authentic personality. After receiving my beautiful poem which you can read below, I got in touch with him again and Dan shared with me some of the moments that happened to him like being chased by a gorilla guy in Prague or living on his friend’s couch while writing in NY city.

Light, Destiny, Ocean by Dan

maybe

it is your destiny

to end up beside the sea

eventually

there

where

the light

is reflected by te ocean

there you might

find everything

you´ve been looking for

just listen to the seagulls sing

and you´ll be shaken to the core

ready for whatever the future may bring.