On today’s episode, Ajanaé and Brittany talk to Vanessa Angélica Villarreal! Listen in as they discuss mushrooms, quantum entanglements, borders, the ethics of daughters-memory, and the role of Fantasy and The Future in the Western literary canon. 

Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo: Pedro Páramo | Official Trailer | Netflix
• Jordan S. Carroll- Speculative Whiteness: Exploration Log 7: Interview with Jordan S. Carroll, author of Speculative Whiteness: Science Fiction and the Alt-Right (2024)
• The Dragon Age Games; South of Midnight: South of Midnight - Accolades Trailer

Write a poem for your favorite television or book character. 

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On today’s episode, Brittany and Ajanae chat with Amanda Johnston; join them as they discuss choosing joy, intentional literary citizenship, the history of Torch Literary Arts, recurring selves in the work, and existing in the here and now.

Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Lucille Clifton - i am accused of tending to the past by Lucille Clifton
• Krista Franklin - ARTIST FEATURE: KRISTA FRANKLIN - EP2
• Wura-Natasha Ogunji - Interview with Wura-Natasha Ogunji | "Alpha Crucis – Contemporary African Art"
• Beyonce - The Business of Being Beyoncé Knowles-Carter | GQ

In the spirit of Amanda’s Praisesong project, choose a member of your community and write a praisesong or ode to them.

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Welcome to Season 9! On today’s episode of VS, Brittany and Ajanae chat with Chet’la Sebree about love, the origin of words and theory, chronic illness, vulnerability, and using language to explore our curiosities. 

Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Natasha Tretheway: Natasha Trethewey’s Poems Take Wing on Intimate Details - The New York Times
• Shara McCallum FIELD STUDY: CHET'LA SEBREE IN CONVERSATION WITH SHARA MCCALLUM
• Allison Saar : #5WomenArtists Spotlight: Alison Saar - English with Audio Description

Research the etymology of a word and write a poem tracing its origin and evolution.

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For this episode, Brittany and Ajanae had the privilege of talking with Yona Harvey and Mahogany Browne LIVE at Furious Flower 2024! Join them as they discuss the importance of community spaces, what they’ve learned from sistering and being sistered, finding affirmation in each other’s poetry, the process of shifting genres, navigating the tension between public personas and interior lives, and the misperception of being mean.

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

Mahogany
Fannie Lou Hamer: Fannie Lou Hamer's Powerful Testimony | Freedom Summer
Sonia Sanchez: A Word with Sister Sonia Sanchez | Wildest Dreams
June Jordan: I Must Become a Menace to My Enemies by June Jordan - Poems | Academy of American Poets

Yona
Sister: sisters | The Poetry Foundation 
Mary Lou Williams: Introducing...Mary Lou Williams
Sonia Sanchez: Sonia Sanchez - Poem for Some Women - live @ Def Poetry

Write a poem in response to a poem that affirms you. 

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On today’s episode of VS, Brittany and Ajanae speak with Alexa Patrick about all things nostalgic. Join them as they discuss playfulness as a craft tool, memory as a poetic foundation, the harms of being the only, prom season, desire, and having a crush on everything!

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Morgan Parker: Award-winning poet Morgan Parker talks motivation behind new essay book
• Toi Derricotte: Toi Derricotte: Creativity in Isolation, part 1 of 3
• Hilary Duff: Metamorphosis

Write an ode to your favorite coming of age ritual.

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During today’s episode, Brittany and Ajanae talk with Ayokunle Falomo, author of the poetry collection Autobiomythography Of. Join them as they discuss the intertwining of mythology, time, and history, as well as the responsibilities of parenthood, keeping secrets, and navigating the multiplicity of the self. 

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Lucille Clifton - Lucille Clifton, The Killing of the Trees
• James Baldwin- Where To Start With James Baldwin | The New York Public Library
• Aṣa - Aṣa - Good Thing (Official Video)
• Ai Ogawa - Ai | The Poetry Foundation

Write a contrapuntal with two different origin stories for yourself or someone else. 

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During today’s interview, Brittany and Ajanae sit down with Sarah Ghazal Ali. Listen in as they discuss writing as a spiritual practice, honoring matrilineage, the importance of disbelief, the failed project of purity, and the generative force of fixed forms.

Note: this episode was originally recorded in fall of 2024. 

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Mary Szybist: Mary Szybist Accepts the 2013 National Book Award
• AGHA SHAHID ALI: Remembering Agha Shahid Ali
• Farida Khanum: Farida Khanum in concert : Malika-e-Ghazal in India

Write a litany of doubts or disbeliefs.

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Here’s a writing prompt to accompany your experience of the episode to tide you over until we meet again!

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During this episode of VS, Brittany and Ajanae are joined by poet and advocate Daad Sharfi. In this episode, they discuss the reconstruction of memory, boundary setting, real and imagined borders, and the absurdity of the legal system. 

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Family whatsapp: Types of People on Family WhatsApp Groups | MostlySane
• June Jordan: June Jordan -- "Poem about My Rights"
• The work of her friends: You Can't Create Alone: On Fostering Literary Community - The Millions
• To All My Friends by May Yang - Poems | Academy of American Poets

For this poem, choose a memory. Assign it a color. How does this color tint or shift the memory? Make it more or less true?

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During this episode of VS, poet and multidisciplinary artist Farah Chamma joins Brittany and Ajanae. Listen in as they discuss the importance of trusting your intuition, the nuances of language, suffering and passion, as well as the necessity of defining oneself as an artist and a person. 

Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!

• Hussein Barghouthi: POETRY IN DIALOGUE THE POET HUSSEIN BARGHOUTHI part 1
• Hanane Hajj Ali: AMERICAN THEATRE | Hanane Hajj Ali, ‘Jogging’ for Survival in Beirut
• El Rass: My Battle
• Berimbau: The Berimbau: Musical Instrument Or Icon Of Resistance Against Oppression?

Write a contrapuntal evaluating a habit or activity in your life by the ways it contributes to and relieves suffering.

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