Poets influence other poets. But good poets are influenced by other things as well. Take Mary Jo Bang who, in the following email interview about her new poetry collection, A Film In Which I Play Everyone (paperback, Kindle), cites David Bowie, surrealist painter Dorothea Tanning, and even Back To The Future Part III as having an influence on these poems.
For nearly 10 years, editors Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani have assembled an excellent anthology series of poetry by African writers called New-Generation African Poets. But unlike other geographically-based poetry anthologies, these don’t just present one or a couple poems by numerous poets. Instead, a handful each get their own 20 to 40 page chapbook in which to present their poetic vision. In the following email interview, Dawes and Abani discuss the newest installment, New-Generation African Poets: Tisa (boxed set).
Please note: All answers are from both Mr. Dawes and Mr. Abani.
Sometimes it can be difficult to keep literary subgenres straight, especially where science fiction, fantasy, and horror are concerned. Dieselpunk, grimdark, silkpunk — you practically need a dictionary to keep them all straight. Or, barring that, a really good genre-specific anthology. Which brings me to the follow email interview with Justine Norton-Kertson, the editor of Bioluminescent: A Lunarpunk Anthology (paperback, eBook), in which they not only explains what “lunarpunk” means, and how it relates to “solarpunk,” but also what went into this collection of short stories and poetry.
Usually when we think of scary stories, we think of movies, novels, video games, but not poetry. This despite the fact that one of the most famous poems of all time, Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” is a dark and stormy night. In the following email interview, Angela Yuriko Smith, the editor of the poetry anthology the Horror Writers Association Poetry Showcase Vol. IX (paperback, Kindle), discusses what went into this new collection, as well as how “dark poetry” is not the same as “horror poetry.”
For me, poetry works best when it’s not only emotional but open and honest, even raw. Which is why I got especially excited to read Jason Purcell’s new poetry collection, Swollening (paperback, Kindle) when, in the following email interview, they said these poems, “…can potentially be challenging for some folks.”
Poet, essayist, and activist Dawn Lundy Martin once said, “Can poetry be a form of social change? I don’t know the answer to that. I do think art can have a social impact even if it may be difficult to see the effects of that impact, to asses or measure it.” It’s a question I’ve pondered myself, most recently when editing the following email interview with Natalia Molebatsi, the editor of Wild Imperfections: An Anthology Of Womanist Poems (hardcover), in which she discusses what inspired and influenced this collection.
In some circles, writer H.P. Lovecraft is as known for his bigotry as he is his artistry. But this has just prompted other writers to take influence from the latter to comment on the former. In the following email interview with poet Brandon O’Brien, he explains how his first collection, Can You Sign My Tentacle? (paperback, Kindle), was not only influenced by Lovecraft, but also by people Lovecraft would’ve hated because of the color of their skin.
According to their website, the comic book company A Wave Blue World is, “…an independent publisher of high-quality graphic novels, anthologies, and art books, focusing on socially conscious storytelling and providing a platform for a multitude of creative voices.” But none of their books would seem to present this ideal better than Embodied: An Intersectional Feminist Comics Poetry Anthology (paperback, Kindle). In the following email interview with Wendy and Tyler Chin-Tanner, co-publishers of AWBW, and the co-editors of Embodied, they explain how this unique collection came together.
Despite what the title may suggest, Geoffrey Nutter’s new poetry collection, Giant Moth Perishes (hardcover, paperback), is not a long ode to Mothra or how she gave her life to save Godzilla (and us) from Monster Zero. Though as he admits in the following email interview — in which he discusses what influenced these poems — he won’t be offended if you think it is.