The Poetry Space_

With Tim on a plane, Katie flew solo for our first official open mic! Joe Barca, Oddwritings, Attracta Fahy, Sylvie Bax, and Doodleslice were among the poets who shared work in a lively and inspiring hour of poetry.

We tackle a tiny but important detail on this week's space—where to break our lines. Enjambment is a key part of keeping poetry interesting to read. Katie, Tim, and friends discuss how to break a line, paraprodek ... paraprod ... paraprose—whatever, just listen—using many examples from poems.

On the heels of the Haiku North America conference we talk about haibun—a scaled up model of the jumps in haiku. What is the form and how does it work? We talk to Dave Bonta, curator of the Haibun Film Festival, and share a number of haibun in the process, including Katie's poem in the current issue of Frogpond.

Inspired by John Richard Smith's poem “Regret Tattoos,” we talk about regrets in poetry. Are there poems that we regret publishing? Should we ever regret a poem? Katie, Tim, and friends discuss, including insight from behind the editor's desk Mark Danowsky of One Art. Attracta Fahy and Megan Hoffman share powerful personal accounts of their experiences speaking the truth, and we share some poems, as always.

Is every poem an act of gratitude? Are the most popular poets all poets of gratitude? There does seem to be lack of gratitude in modern culture that does as much damage as a vitamin deficiency—can poetry be the antidote? Katie, Tim, and friends discuss all of this, while sharing some unforgettable poems of thanks.

A week after the release of Rattle's NFT Poets issue, we gather together a number of the contributors to talk about their work and how the issue came to be. Guests include Gregory Betts, Pierre Gervois, Johnny Dean Mann, George Pastana, Sarah Ridgley, Justin Tagg, and Dick Westheimer in what felt like a party.

Let's talk about Katie's favorite movement: The Beats! We discuss free writing, freedom of speech, and ties to Blake, as the whole crew tries to convince Tim that Beat poems aren't too long. The space closes out with Tim's rendition of "Subterranean Homesick Blues" by Bob Dylan, at least one (maybe?) Beat he can get behind.

On the heels of the 2023 Wrightwood Poetry Slam, we talk about performance poetry, sharing some favorite slam-style poems, and exploring what we might be able to learn from the competitive poetry. Tim takes a look back at Rattle's slam issue, and Katie suggests Ginsberg's "America" might be the first slam-style poem.

This week we trip into the Jello-filled pool of humor. What makes a poem funny? Why make a poem funny? Melissa Balmain of Light Poetry Journal joins the usual gang, as Katie and Tim discuss what makes comedy tick. We read some favorite funny poems along the way.

This week, Katie, Tim, and crew talk about poems about the news, discussing the history of Rattle's Poets Respond series, news toxicity, and whether poems are an antidote or accelerant. We also share a bunch of great news poems along the way.