| Joe | Dill |
Joe Dill is Joseph Dillard and he lived in Maywood, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, most of his 20 years. He says "I was born in Chicago and that's where I do most of my running around when I go out."
In discussing his childhood, Mr. Dill says "I'm the oldest of 5 children [and] my parents are still together thank God. My childhood wasn't as ruff as it could have been, but it wasn't easy not one bit. My father was on dope, but he's been clean for about 10 years now, and my mother is the strongest black women alive in my opinion. Through all the tough times she stood by my father and never let go, and with God's help it all worked out."
He states "I base a lot of my poems on my black people because I see a lot in Chicago. I see my beautiful black people hurting themselves in so many ways, and it's hurtful to see. My other poems are usually based on the deaths of my 2 cousins and my auntie. One of my cousins and my auntie were murdered and my other cousin died of a brain tumor although the drugs he was using wasn't helping out."
"I see a lot of stuff happen in this big city I guess I absorb it more than others do. That's basically why I started writing I feel it's just a creative way to get things off of my chest it's better than robbing or shooting someone."
You can contact Mr. Dillard via e-mail at joedill@yahoo.com or by sending an e-mail to TimBookTu and it will be forwarded.