“As a poet, the poem has to be more than a single moment; it has to point to something.” Interview by Joyce Peseroff, WTP 2018 Poetry Judge Cynthia Manick is the author of Blue Hallelujahs (Black Lawrence Press, 2016), and is a Pushcart Prize–nominated poet with an MFA in Creative Writing from the New School.…
Category: poet Interviews
WTP Writer: Dina Elenbogen
Writing Poetry is “Gathering Sparks” By August Smith, WTP Features Writer Dina Elenbogen is author of the memoir, Drawn from Water (BkMK University of Missouri Press) and the poetry collection Apples of the Earth (Spuyten Duyvil, NY). Her work has appeared in anthologies such as City of the Big Shoulders (University of Iowa Press), Beyond Lament…
WTP Writer: Richard Hoffman
“I see my younger self in many of today’s young poets.” Interview by August Smith, WTP Feature Writer Richard Hoffman has published four volumes of poetry: Without Paradise; Gold Star Road, winner of the Barrow Street Press Poetry Prize and the Sheila Motton Award from The New England Poetry Club; Emblem; and his new collection Noon until…
WTP Writer: David Hamilton
Poems Discovered More Than Written By Emily Jaeger, WTP feature writer David Hamilton, whose poetry appears in WTP Vol. V #7, is the author of Deep River: A Memoir of a Missouri Farm (University of Missouri Press), Ossabaw (Salt Publishing), and numerous uncollected essays. He is Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Iowa, where…
Interview: Poetry in a New America
Poetry in a Polarized Era Interview by Jo Ely, Contributing Editor Since the election of Donald Trump, not only the political landscape has changed, but also the way in which that landscape is perceived and addressed by writers, in particular, poets. What follows is a group interview, with poets from diverse backgrounds who contribute often…
WTP Writer: Charlotte Holmes
Into the Grass Labyrinth Interview by Emily Jaeger, Features Editor Charlotte Holmes is a writer, a poet, and a teacher of creative writing. Her first book, Gifts and Other Stories, was published in 1994. Published by BkMk Press in 2016, her new collection of stories, The Grass Labyrinth, has been hailed as “a contemporary classic.” Holmes received…
Interview: Jean Valentine
“I want [my poetry] to take off the diver’s mask.” Interview by Nancy Mitchell, Plume Poetry Originally published in Plume Poetry. Saturday morning, June 4, 2016, Schumaker Pond, Salisbury, Maryland. Our conversation began the last morning of Jean’s four-day visit to our house in Maryland. Because we spent most of our time in the company…
WTP Writer: Robert Peake
Inspiring Other Poets “I want Poet Tips to be so successful in helping people connect meaningfully to the language arts that I don’t have to overhear the phrase, I don’t get poetry ever again.” Interview with poet Robert Peake How did you come to writing poetry? The creative arts were always encouraged in my family; I…
WTP Writer: Sophia Blackwell
“My audience is always smarter than me.” Interview by Jo Ely, Literary Editor Sophia Blackwell was born in Newcastle. She read English at Oxford, where she started performing poetry with Hammer & Tongue. Now an established performance poet, her poetry has been anthologized by Bloodaxe, Nine Arches, The Emma Press, Sidekick Books and The Woven…
Interview with David Loret de Mola
Performance poetry and so much more Guerilla Poetry Month was initiated in 2014 —street performance poetry by a group of artists from Zero Forbidden Goals (ZFG). Can you tell us a little about ZFG and how Guerrilla became an offshoot? Well, ZFG started as a collection of hiphop artists who came together to perform in…
WTP Writer: Eleanor Hooker
Her Poetry Collection | Flash Fiction | & Life [dropcap]E[/dropcap]leanor Hooker’s first poetry collection, The Shadow Owner’s Companion, was published by The Dedalus Press in 2012. Her second collection will be published later this year. In February 2016 she was awarded First Prize in Bare Fiction’s Flash Fiction competition in the UK, and her short…
The Double Life of Salena Godden: Performer and Writer
Interview by Press Literary Editor Jo Ely: Salena Godden is a performer, poet, short story writer, playwright and author. She’s appeared on television and radio, including Channel 4, the BBC’s Verse Illustrated series and Loose Ends. She’s also made regular appearances on the BBC’s The Verb and Bespoken Word, and is resident poet for Click…