Rattle Poetry

Latest Episodes:

ep. 136 - Susan Vespoli Mar 20, 2022

Show notes

Susan Vespoli lives in Phoenix, Arizona, where she relies on the power of writing to stay sane. She’s taught Montessori preschoolers and ENG101 to community college students, owned a school, delivered newspapers, bicycled up a mountain, rehabbed a few extreme fixer-upper houses, and currently facilitates virtual writing circles on writers.com. Her work has been published in Rattle, Mom Egg Review, NASTY WOMEN POETS: An Unapologetic Anthology of Subversive Verse, Nailed Magazine, and other cool spots. Her new book, Blame it on the Serpent, opens all the windows and doors to shed light on her experience of loving offspring captured by the terrorist known as an opioid epidemic. For more, check out her website at: https://susanvespoli.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. A Zoom link will be provided in the chat window during the show before that segment begins. For links to all the past episodes, visit: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a haibun. The haiku’s season is spring. Next Week's Prompt: Write a poem about something you were wrong about. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 135 - Kevin Clark Mar 13, 2022

Show notes

Kevin Clark’s Self-Portrait with Expletives won the Lena-Miles Wever Todd Poetry Series Book Competition. His first full-length collection, In the Evening of No Warning, earned a grant from the Academy of American Poets. In spring 2020, Kevin was selected for a two-year appointment as poet laureate of San Luis Obispo County, California. Recipient of two teaching awards, Clark has written a textbook on writing poetry, The Mind’s Eye: A Guide to Writing Poetry. Clark lives with his wife, Amy Hewes, on California’s central coast, where he continues to play hardball and city league softball. Stephen F. Austin University Press just published Kevin Clark’s third full-length collection, The Consecrations. Find more at: https://kevinclarkpoetry.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. A Zoom link will be provided in the chat window during the show. For links to all the past episodes, visit: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a poem about one of the seven wonders of the world: Great Pyramid of Giza, Colossus of Rhodes, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Lighthouse of Alexandria, Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis. (This is the classic list; feel free to use an updated list that includes different wonders.) Next Week’s Prompt: Write a haibun. The haiku’s season is spring. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 134 - Kashiana Singh Mar 06, 2022

Show notes

Kashiana Singh is a management professional by job classification and a work practitioner by personal preference. Kashiana’s TEDx talk was dedicated to Work as Worship. Her poetry collection, Shelling Peanuts and Stringing Words presents her voice as a participant and an observer. Kashiana’s latest full-length collection, Woman by the Door, is a knitted collage of poems rooted in lived experiences and saturated with the poet’s varied sensibilities and influences. Her poems have been published on various platforms including Poets Reading the News, Visual Verse, Oddball Magazine, Rattle #73, and elsewhere. Kashiana lives in Chicago and carries her various geographical homes within her poetry. Find Kashiana's books and more at: https://kashiana.wordpress.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. A Zoom link will be provided in the chat window during the show. For links to all the past episodes, visit: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a descort poem. A descort is defined by its lack of predictability; no line in the poem should resemble any other line in terms of length and meter, and no lines should rhyme. In other words, each line should be unique. Next Week’s Prompt: Write a poem about one of the seven wonders of the world: Great Pyramid of Giza, Colossus of Rhodes, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Lighthouse of Alexandria, Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis. (This is the classic list; feel free to use an updated list that includes different wonders.) The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts. 0:00 Welcome 1:10 Tatiana Dolgushina, “When War Makes a Child” 11:10 Featured Guest: Kashiana Singh 1:12:02 Kim Stafford, "Five Poems for Ukraine" 1:24:38 Open Lines 1 1:34:45 Brian Beatty, "Winter Can Go Away" 1:37:35 Open Lines 2 1:55:35 Tim's & Megan's Prompt Poems 1:59:43 Open Lines 3 2:25:10 Sciku, Next Week's Prompt & Guest

ep. 133 - Roberta Beary Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

Roberta Beary identifies as gender-expansive, and writes to connect with the disenfranchised, to let them know they are not alone. Her work appears in Rattle, 100 Word Story, Cultural Weekly, and The New York Times. Her short poem collection, The Unworn Necklace, received a finalist award from Poetry Society of America. Her prose poem collection, Deflection, was named a National Poetry Month Best Pick by Washington Independent Review of Books. Her next haiku collection, Carousel, won the Snapshot Press manuscript book award and should be out by the end of 2022. She lives in County Mayo, Ireland with her husband Frank Stella. Find Roberta's books and more at: https://robertabeary.com/ Find Julia Kolchinsky Dasbach's Worlds Together Worlds Apart readings here: https://www.facebook.com/WTWA2020/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: It’s the year 2222. What kind of world do we live in? Write a poem about it. Next Week’s Prompt: Write a descort poem. A descort is defined by its lack of predictability; no line in the poem should resemble any other line in terms of length and meter, and no lines should rhyme. In other words, each line should be unique. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 132 - Marjorie Saiser Feb 20, 2022

Show notes

Marjorie Saiser is the author of six books of poetry and co-editor of two anthologies. Her work has been published in American Life in Poetry, Nimrod, Rattle.com, PoetryMagazine.com, RHINO, Chattahoochee Review, Poetry East, Poet Lore, and other journals. She has received the WILLA Award and nominations for the Pushcart Prize. Her latest book is a collection of new and selected poems, The Track the Whales Make. Find Marjorie's books and more at: http://www.poetmarge.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a poem about one of your ancestors. Next Week's Prompt: It’s the year 2222. What kind of world do we live in? Write a poem about it. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 131 - Zilka Joseph Feb 13, 2022

Show notes

Zilka Joseph was awarded a Zell Fellowship and the Elsie Choy Lee Scholarship from the University of Michigan. Her work has appeared in Poetry, Poetry Daily, The Writers’ Chronicle, Frontier Poetry, Kenyon Review Online, and other publications. Sharp Blue Search of Flame, her book of poems published by Wayne State University Press, was a finalist for the Foreword INDIES Book Award. In Our Beautiful Bones, her most recent book, has had been nominated for a Pushcart, A PEN, and a Michigan Notable Book Award. She was born in Mumbai, lived in Kolkata, and now lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her work is influenced by Eastern and Western cultures and by her Bene Israel roots. She teaches creative writing workshops, and is a freelance editor and manuscript advisor. She is dedicated to coaching, lifting up every writer she works with, and creating a unique community of writers/students wherever she lives and teaches. Find Zilka's books and more at: http://www.zilkajoseph.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a poem about an act of rebellion. Next Week's Prompt: Write a poem about one of your ancestors. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 130 - William Logan Feb 06, 2022

Show notes

William Logan writes poetry and a little criticism. His most recent books are Rift of Light (poems, Penguin, 2017) and Dickinson’s Nerves, Frost’s Woods (essays, Columbia University Press, 2018). His reviews, when there are reviews, appear in the New York Times Book Review, the New Criterion, Poetry, Hudson Review, Hopkins Review, and other journals. He teaches poetry workshops and the occasional graduate course in the craft of poetry. Logan received the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism, the Aiken Taylor Award in Modern American Poetry, the Staige D. Blackford Prize for Nonfiction, the inaugural Randall Jarrell Award in Poetry Criticism, the Corrington Medal for Literary Excellence, and the Allen Tate Prize. Find more on his most recent book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/556232/rift-of-light-by-william-logan/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a Lennon lyric set in winter. Next Week's Prompt: Write a poem about an act of rebellion. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 129 - Lester Graves Lennon Jan 30, 2022

Show notes

Lester Graves Lennon is a poet, editor, and investment banker. His first book of poetry, The Upward Curve of Earth and Heavens, is found in more than 70 public and university libraries including U.C. Berkeley, Yale, Harvard and Oxford. His second book, My Father Was a Poet, was published in the spring of 2013. His third book, Lynchings: Postcards from America, has just been published. Lester is the Poetry Editor of Rosebud Magazine, a founding member of the Los Angeles Mayor’s Poet Laureate Task Force, a board member of the Community of Writers, and emeritus member of the West Chester University Poetry Center Advisory Board. Find more on his new book here: https://www.wordtechweb.com/lennon_postcards.html As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write a poem with one word per line. Next Week's Prompt: Write a Lennon lyric set in winter. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 128 - Bill Glose Jan 24, 2022

Show notes

Bill Glose is an award-winning writer whose honors include the F. Scott Fitzgerald Short Story Award, the Dateline Award for Excellence in Journalism, and the Heroes' Voices Award for Veteran's Poetry. Bill is the author of five books of poetry—Postscript to War (Main Street Rag Press, 2020), Virginia Walkabout (San Francisco Bay Press, 2018), Personal Geography (David Robert Books, 2016), Half a Man (FutureCycle Press, 2013), and The Human Touch (San Francisco Bay Press, 2007)—and two chapbooks, Child of the Movies (Finishing Line Press, 2019) and Memory of Spring (Orchard Street Press, 2021). He was also the editor of the story anthology, Ten Twisted Tales (San Francisco Bay Press, 2008). From 2003 to 2020, Bill was a contributing editor with Virginia Living and a regular contributor to other magazines. He still writes freelance articles, appears frequently as a featured speaker on literary craft, and serves as a judge in writing contests. Find more info and all the books here: http://www.billglose.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Make the title of your poem a question and the body of your poem the answer (or the other way around!). Next Week’s Prompt: Write a poem with one word per line. The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

ep. 127 - Marcela Sulak Jan 16, 2022

Show notes

Marcela Sulak returns to share her work as a translator! Marcela has published four titles with Black Lawrence Press–three poetry collections, including City of Skypapers (2021), Decency (2015) and Immigrant (2010), as well as her lyric memoir, Mouth Full of Seeds (2020). She’s co-edited with Jacqueline Kolosov the 2015 Rose Metal Press title Family Resemblance. An Anthology and Exploration of 8 Hybrid Literary Genres. Sulak, who translates from the Hebrew, Czech, and French, is a 2019 NEA Translation Fellow, and her fourth book-length translation of poetry: Twenty Girls to Envy Me: Selected Poems of Orit Gidali, was nominated for the 2017 PEN Award for Poetry in Translation (University of Texas Press). Her essays have appeared in The Boston Review, The Iowa Review, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Asymptote, and Gulf Coast online, among others. She coordinates the poetry track of the Shaindy Rudoff Graduate Program in Creative Writing at Bar-Ilan University, where she is an associate professor in American Literature. She also edits The Ilanot Review and hosts the TLV.1 Radio podcast, Israel in Translation. Find more info and all the books here: http://www.marcelasulak.com/ As always, we'll also include live open lines for responses to our weekly prompt or any other poems you'd like to share. For details on how to participate, either via Skype or by phone, go to: https://www.rattle.com/rattlecast/ This Week's Prompt: Write an echo verse poem by repeating the end syllable of each line, either verbatim or as a rhyme or slant rhyme. Robert Lee Brewer offers excellent examples of this form on the Writer’s Digest website. Next Week's Prompt: Make the title of your poem a question and the body of your poem the answer (or the other way around!). The Rattlecast livestreams on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, then becomes an audio podcast. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

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