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Join Me at the 2019 Castle Rock Writers Conference on Saturday, September 28th
I’m excited to be part of this year’s Castle Rock Writers Conference, where I’ll be leading two related but independent workshops focused on the notion of Soundscape in poetry. Soundscape is a word I’ve pulled in from the world of music, where it means “a piece of music considered in terms of its component sounds” (says Lexico)—sounds considered apart from the poem’s rhythm. In poetry, it refers the full range of effects a poem’s sounds have on its readers.Read More
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On David Giannini’s Mayhap: Selected Brief Poems
No American poet since William Stafford is as quotable as David Giannini. A tendency toward aphoristic piquancy layers and complicates all of his work. It’s not that he rejects simplicity; it’s simply that the world and the mind that perceives it are not simple, and Giannini is committed to complexity as part of his continual reach toward wholeness. Giannini’s new collection (his fourth from Dos Madres Press), Mayhap: Selected Brief Poems, is a fine example his commitment.Read More
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Immensity’s Resonance
I’ve never, as I recall, posted while vacationing in México. It is typically an escape into extended quiet time with my lovely wife amid sea vistas, the soft rattle of palm leaves, a margarita or two, conversations with good friends in which I slaughter the Spanish language … and, of course, a stack of books to read. José Juan Tablada This time I’m also diverting myself by translating a small book of haiku-influenced poems by José Juan Tablada, called Un Día … poemas sintéticos (One Day … Synthetic Poems).Read More
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Join Me & Other Denver Area Authors
Click here for complete details (you’ll need to scroll down after you land).Read More
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Spring, Poetry, David Mason … and the Danger of Having a Poet Laureate
Don’t miss this wonderful interview….Read More
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The Drama of War-Time Poetry
The performance of “War of Words” went off without a hitch last night in the Black Box Theater at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. Having written the script, I was surprised by how moving it was—how the century-old poems sprang to life with such power and subtlety from the mouths of the five actors. Among the many enlivening elements were smoothly delivered accents—Hardy’s Dorset English, Apollinaire’s bon vivant playfulness, the taut Germanic sounds of Trakl, and the sly Chicagoan cadences of Carl Sandburg.Read More
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Poetry Voice Interview with Moi (and Other Goodies)
When Uche Ogbuji sent me the links to his and Kierstin Bridger‘s latest Poetry Voice podcast (Episode 9 of their series), I have to admit feeling a bit leery about listening to it because it includes an interview the dynamic duo did with me after a reading at BookBar, which featured Kierstin herself and Beth Paulson. Since I default to blather when in conversation, I worried that the interview would be embarrassing in one way or another: inarticulate, crammed with inaccuracies, etc.Read More
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Delicious Advice for Aspiring Poets
From the inimitable Wisława Szymborska, Nobel Prize-winning Polish poet who produced a column for a newspaper called Literary Life. She answered letters from everyday people who wanted to write poetry—a sort of “Dear Wisława” relationship that she handled with intelligence, humor, and care. Here are a few selections from her column, translated by Clare Cavanagh and courtesy of The Poetry Foundation.Read More
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Interview with Maryka Gillis
IN THE SPIRIT of naked self-promotion, I invite you to read Maryka Gillis’s interview with me at Folded Word.Read More
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Video from the Jaipur Literature Festival/Boulder
I had the pleasure of moderating the first panel discussion on the first day of the Jaipur Literature Festival/Boulder, which ran September 19-20 at the Boulder Public Library. The event attracted some 6,000 visitors over the two days, which is pretty remarkable. Our panel, consisting of Eleni Sikelianos, Arvind Krishna Mehrotra, and Vijay Seshadri, addressed the topic of “The Poetic Imagination” with verve and good humor. Because it went so well, I’m pleased to say that the Jaipur Literature Festival/Boulder folks have released videos of many sessions from the Festival, ours included. You can click below to watch it.Read More
Joseph Hutchison, Colorado Poet Laureate 2014-2019, has published 17 books, including a translation of flash fictions by Mexican author Miguel Lupián, and co-edited two anthologies. He lives in the mountains southwest of Denver, Colorado, the city where he was born. He teaches at the University of Denver's University College, where he currently directs three programs: Professional Creative Writing, Arts & Culture Management, and Global Community Engagement. 
