Éditions Charlie Crane, a meeting with Mathilde Toulot - the founder

1 - Mathilde, could you tell us about your journey: how did you come to poetry, and then to creating this collection?

My journey is as winding as a river, but, like a river, it always flows in the direction of my inner current. I worked for 20 years as a journalist in fashion and had set up a content studio for luxury brands. After the birth of my third child, I had had enough of that world, of the relentless commissions — I needed to express myself. For my work to make sense in my own eyes.

2 - Where did the inspiration come from to publish a poetry collection for newborns, given that your own children are already grown?

I was 45 when I had the idea. And in my mind, motherhood was over for me. I would not fall pregnant again; this number is like a symbolic circle that wraps me in its certainty. I would have no more children of flesh, made from my blood. Nestled in the knowledge of my body, this certainty gave birth to "À toi qui es là".
This collection is like writing in the guest book of a place one has loved beyond all else. You leave it and you leave the most beautiful of messages for those who come after. With "À toi qui es là", I pass on to my sisters, future mothers, and to the fathers by their side, words to build the bond.

3 - As both an editor and an author, how do you juggle these two roles? What are the advantages (and perhaps the challenges) of wearing both hats?

These are different states of mind. The author's state is one where I walk at the edge of the world, in my inner garden — it is at dawn in the morning that I write. The editor's state is turned towards others and takes place in the full light of day. The two complement each other perfectly.


4 - How do you imagine the role of a poetry book in today's world?

Poetry is having a moment. Many poetry clubs are springing up. No doubt because this condensed and effective language that speaks heart to heart, in an instinctive way, suits our era that lives at a hundred miles an hour. We have always needed to connect with one another through beauty.

5 - Why did you publish this collection by launching Éditions Charlie Crane, rather than with an already established publisher?

For more than ten years, my husband Thomas at Charlie Crane has been supporting young parents by designing beautiful, enveloping furniture adapted to little ones. Supporting families in my own way, but this time with words, felt like a natural step. 

6 - How did the process of selecting the authors unfold?

I started reading poetry, going everywhere poets were reading, I met them, I told them about my idea and from the very first conversations, I sensed that I had not entirely dreamed up this project, that it was going to exist, that bridges were being built between my idea and others. The desire to spread poetry for newborns began to consume me. I had the idea for the gift box at the same time as the collection. People had to want to give it to themselves.

 7 - What place did the book as an object (layout, illustration, choice of paper, etc.) play in your approach?

It may sound blunt, but a book is also a product. It has to find a market. If I wanted to share poetry with as many people as possible, I needed the most irresistible of cases. It went without saying that it had to be beautiful. And besides, I love beautiful things — my wallet complains about it a great deal.

8 - You recently launched a poetry workshop in the neonatal unit at Hôpital Robert Debré, where you offer parents and newborns a moment of reading. Can you tell us about this experience?

I visit parents in their room, with their premature or sick baby. I explain the benefits of reading and poetry to them, we chat a little together. Then I read a poem and afterwards, I invite them to read in turn. It sounds very simple on paper, and yet these are experiences beyond words. A neonatal unit is a very particular place. As soon as the doors close behind you, you enter a world where tension rises tenfold. The stakes of life and death are ever-present. The need for parents to be supported and comforted is too. And I am glad to give them a few minutes of light. They give it back to me in kind.

9 - Is there a moment or an anecdote that has particularly moved you?

When, in the middle of reading, mothers suddenly press their palm to their heart and cry out "How good this makes me feel!". There is no better reward. Or that father who tells me he replaces the names in the texts with his daughter's name to feel even closer to her while reading.

10 - Does Éditions Charlie Crane have other projects in the pipeline?

We have incredible projects in the pipeline for newborns. And some delightful toy books for toddlers! 



To finish: what would you like to say to all the people (readers, parents, babies, partners) who will be touched by this book?

I want to take their hand and say: I know, me too. Experiencing joy together is the salt of life.