I Am Not A Doormat, by Emily Jannel

Poetry, chapbook, 20 pages, from Bottlecap Features.

In Emily Jannel’s second chapbook, she turns away from love and focuses on the relationship she has with someone meant to be close to her- her mother. Jannel had experienced tough times with her mother and never knew how much she would be affected till she turned to therapy who allowed her to see who her mother truly is. The poems in this collection are themes of anger, frustration, power, and fear. Anyone who has grown in a relationship with their mother or any other individual that has brought them down and made them feel like a doormat, is encouraged to read the poems of Emily Jannel to experience relatability and comfort knowing they are not alone in their feelings.

Relationships with family are one of the hardest to keep. Mothers and daughters are not always like the movies and Jannel goes to show that here in her chapbook. This collection is meant to express the feelings of growing up with a bully. Someone that was meant to care and love you but instead chose hate. Many people come from happy homes, but more come from broken ones too. This was made for the broken homes.

Emily Jannel is a Puerto Rican writer from Tampa, Florida and has been writing poetry since her college years. Since then, Jannel has been featured in several online magazines and has previously published her first chapbook with Bottlecap Press in December of 2022. Writing is Jannel’s favorite type of therapy and hopes to relate to other individuals with her personal experiences written in her chapbooks.