Erika Phoenix’s pamphlet ‘Welcome to Post Carolina’ was highly commended in the Best Unpublished Pamphlet category of the 2025 Disabled Poets Prize. 

I thought is one of the poems that features in the pamphlet.

The Disabled Poets Prize looks to find the best work created by UK-based deaf and disabled poets.

I thought

I thought my heart was rotting from the inside out  

But it was not  

It was a shedding of snakeskin that could no longer contain it. The same pain of bones stretching when our bodies grow bigger. It is an awareness of a white hot iron ready to strike.  

The necessary companion is the water that sets the new shapes.  

The strongest hearts survive storms, but with resilience comes endless rage. A love that shapes diamonds and builds worlds for our descendants. The beating muscles of our hearts are a portent of the future. The rhythm by which we pick apart your castles and toss away your trinkets.  

Our hearts strike our chests and from that spark comes a cry, “Together,” A shrieking and howling louder than God,  

“We will destroy your gilded age.” 

About Erika Phoenix

Erika Phoenix is an multidisciplinary artist originally from South Carolina, now residing in Wales whose work spans theatre, visual arts, and writing. They are influenced by nature, absurdity, and Southern Gothic elements. Being a neurodivergent artist also feeds into her work, showcasing the internal influences of ADHD and PTSD on the physical form. Erika has performed multiple solo shows that she’s written including “Stomping Grounds” and “Homemaking with Hera”, both focusing on characters from mythology.