Podcast Episode Details

#174: 3 Poets Read Their Work and Talk Craft Choices — Mary Jean Chan, David Whyte and Anthony Anaxagorou (Compilation)

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Episode 174

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Poets Mary Jean Chan, David Whyte, and Anthony Anaxagorou read their work and unpack emotional truth, craft choices, and poems built from lived detail.  

You'll learn:

• How early “bad” poems can still be soothing and give you a way through angst. 
• Why simplicity of voice can beat complexity when a poem needs clarity. 
• How form and layout can carry a poem’s physicality, including a modern sonnet’s constraints. 
• How to face writer’s block by writing directly about the ways you can’t write. 
• Why repetition works in live readings, helping the audience “hear” what just landed. 
• How to mine notebooks for strong lines, then iterate through multiple drafts and edits. 
• A simple morning practice for capturing overheard language until you find where the poem starts.  

Resources and Links:

• Mary Jean Chan: maryjeanchan.com
• David Whyte: davidwhyte.com  
• Anthony Anaxagorou: anthonyanaxagorou.com
• Our full episode with Mary Jean Chan, #170: https://podcast.londonwriterssalon.com/episodes/170-mary-jean-chan-emotional-truth-in-contemporary-poetry-imagery-juxtaposition-and-finding-the-right-form
• Our full episode with David Whyte, #32: https://londonwriterssalon.simplecast.com/episodes/032-david-whyte-poetic-imagination-the-way-of-the-poet-PdTckwKE
• Our full episode with Anthony Anaxagorou, #12: https://podcast.londonwriterssalon.com/episodes/012-anthony-anaxagorou-push-past-self-doubt-and-think-like-a-poet-fHa8ehM1

About the poets:

Mary Jean Chan is the author of Flèche and Bright Fear (Faber), and their work has won and been shortlisted for major prizes. 

David Whyte is a poet and writer whose books include Consolations and The Bell and the Blackbird, alongside ongoing poetry and speaking work. 

Anthony Anaxagorou is a poet and publisher, founder of Out-Spoken, and author of After the Formalities and Heritage Aesthetics.

For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.

For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.

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Published on 1 week, 3 days ago