In this episode of My life with poetry, Versopolis welcomes Nikola Madžirov – a Macedonian poet, essayist, translator and one of the most widely translated contemporary poets from the Balkans.
Madžirov reflects on his first encounters with poetry and the experiences that shaped his voice as a writer. He speaks about his creative process, the role of memory and displacement in his work and the quiet rituals of writing. One of the most memorable moments in the conversation is his reflection that perhaps his greatest achievement as a poet has been discovering the silence between words – the space where poetry often speaks most powerfully.
He also explores what poets share across languages and cultures, and how literary festivals become places where writers briefly ease each other’s solitude through conversation, friendship and shared experience.
Nikola Madžirov is the author of several acclaimed poetry collections, including Relocated Stone, which has been translated into more than thirty languages. His work has received numerous international awards and has appeared in major literary magazines and anthologies worldwide. In addition to writing poetry, he is an essayist, translator and a frequent participant in international literary festivals.
