Author: PoetrySays

UK-based psychotherapist Steve Wasserman sees poetry as having a kind of medicinal power, especially when memorised. We chat about using memorisation to step outside the churn of the mind, then Steve recites the very tricky Wallace Stevens poem Final Soliloquy of the Interior Paramour (newly memorised!).

Show notes

• Steve’s podcast Poetry Pharmacy
• Steve reading Final Soliloquy and discussing our podcast ep
• Large Red Man Reading and the ModPo close reading
• Stevens’ reading of Final Soliloquy
• 52 poems in 52 weeks
• Saved by a Poem: The Transformative Power of Words by Kim Rosen
• Wallace Stevens: Voices and Visions documentary
• Speedway & Swan by Brian Blanchfield
• Cid Corman’s It isn’t for want on ModPo
• Marianne Moore’s A Grave (‘it is human nature to stand in the middle of a thing’)

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We turned the tables on past Sporting Poets convenor Bonny Cassidy this month, who was joined at the mic by Sally Evans and Dave Drayton.

Would you let a mic into your poetry workshop?

Sydney poets Benjamin Dodds and Mran-Maree Laing were brave enough to let me record while we workshopped three unpublished poems. We wanted to show what the workshop process can be like for those who might feel intimidated by the idea. I think the result is pretty representative of what a top-notch workshop can do for a poem. It was such a pleasure to share work with these two fantastic writers!

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Grab yourself a beverage, pull up a chair and listen in as I ask Toby Fitch to help me understand Rimbaud, figure out where the keys to poetry are hiding and keep my sense of humour about me along the way. Toby reads us a new, very funny poem during this chat and talks a little bit about his latest manuscript-in-progress, along with how he finds ways to make writing happen alongside everything else.

Show notes

• Arthur Rimbaud
• ‘Je est un autre’
• The Bloomin’ Notions of Other & Beau
• Orb
• Illiterature
• After the Orgy
• Jerilderies
• Undulatus asperatus
• Overland

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For my 50th episode I wanted to talk about how I got started with this podcast, which took me back to a pretty painful decision point in my life. These are the poems (and quotes) that helped me stop being so busy, sit down and actually make something.

Show notes

• Sonya Tsakalakis on Charlotte Mew
• Exultation is the going by Emily Dickinson
• Robert Montgomery
• Jane Kenyon’s advice on the writing life
• Merlin Mann
• Cary Tennis on why all the practice you get makes you better

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Our midwinter poetry reading at Compass Pizza featuring a fantastic bunch of poems from Carmen Main, Robbie Coburn and Amanda Anastasi.

In an episode that spans countries, languages and histories, Melbourne poet Gemma Mahadeo shares the poem Calypso History Lesson from Fred D’Aguiar’s book The Rose of Toulouse. We start off with some thoughts on Ted Hughes’ Crow before D’Aguiar’s poem takes us in all sorts of directions, from Hansonism to urban foxes to West Indian cricket commentary.

Show notes

• The Vulture Goddess from Fred D’Aguiar’s American Vulture.
• The Story in History: interview with D’Aguiar on the place of history in his work.
• ‘There is no sophistry in my body: / My manners are tearing off heads – ’ is from Hawk Roosting by Ted Hughes.

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Benjamin Solah can recite a calendar of upcoming spoken word gigs from memory. We talk about what spoken word actually is (or might be), whether there’s a particular slam style, how politics plays into this kind of poetry and why you should just get up there and perform at the next open mic.

Show notes

• Melbourne Speaks Poetry – Ep 00
• Melbourne Spoken Word
• Slamadamadingdong! Poetry Slam
• Button Poetry
• Write About Now
• Alan Wearne on why ‘all poetry is spoken word’
• Paper Waves
• ‘Salt’ by Bill Moran

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