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Bad Poems [by Alan Michael Parker]
I recently spent a couple of months writing and reading as badly as possible, a practice I now recommend. During my hiatus, I worked diligently to figure out what “bad poetry” meant to me,…
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Eleven Questions for Eleven Poets [by Alan Michael Parker] – Part II
More wonderful answers by super poets… Part II of III… a follow-up post to… http://blog.bestamericanpoetry.com/the_best_american_poetry/2016/09/eleven-questions-for-eleven-poets-by-alan-michael-parker.html Question 6: Which poem in your book arrived mostly whole? Elizabeth Colen: Quite a few of the poems in…
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La Rentrée: Enlightenment New Year [by Paul Tracy Danison]
We are not alone, we will never be alone, with our memories of our sweet sons and daughters at the Rentrée. Calculating when France’s New Year – called la Rentrée, “re-entry” – begins…
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The Comics of Lydia Conklin [introduced by Alan Michael Parker]
The comics of novelist and cartoonist Lydia Conklin bristle with wondrous unfillable silences, à la Samuel Beckett, and wacky pointedness worthy of Roz Chast. Conklin’s especially terrific at the stare-down. But it’s her timing…
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Bad Workshops [by Alan Michael Parker]
In the Spring of 2013, I taught the worst undergraduate poetry workshop ever. The students were marvelous and curious and smart; the writing distinctive; the books were scintillating; the visiting poets I brought wow,…
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“A Woe of Ecstasy” [by David Lehman]
"A woe of ecstasy" — Emily Dickinson's phrase: run with it. "Next Line, Please" invites you to write a brief poem beginning with this striking phrase. In Handbags, Purses, and Wallets
