Author. Journalist. Poet.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR BANNO is an incredible debut collection. Already so excited to re-read it, and so grateful to brilliant Kiran Bath for answering all my questions! I can’t wait to read more from her.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR BANNO is available for purchase here!
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
Season 7 is off to a robust start with Pakistani-American romance author Aamna Qureshi, who has published numerous books despite her young age. I deeply enjoyed speaking to Aamna after her international travels and my own multi-state road trip last weekend!
Aamna’s latest book, IF I LOVED YOU LESS, a romantic comedy retelling of Jane Austen’s EMMA, will be out on July 18 in the U.S. and is available for purchase here! Aamna also shared the title of her next book (for the first time) during our conversation!
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
I had such a restorative conversation with one of my favorite poets, Diannely Antigua, following the release of her sophomore collection, GOOD MONSTER!
I met Diannely Antigua at Open Mouth’s third annual poetry festival, for which she was a featured reader, and it was one of the most moving readings I’ve ever experienced. I talked about it and UGLY MUSIC, Diannely’s debut collection, last year during National Poetry Month.
Needless to say, I was eagerly anticipating GOOD MONSTER’s release— and it did not disappoint!
GOOD MONSTER is available for purchase here!
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
I had a great time talking to composer and musician Amos Cochran, a fellow Artists 360 alum and long-time friend. Amos claims he “has a huge thing against words,” but he gave me some great writing insights!
Background music in this interview:
“Sailing” by Amos Cochran
“Unscored” by Amos Cochran
Amos’s Music Library, Edit/Score:
https://www.editscoremusic.com
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I can’t believe it’s already the end of the Season! I had so much fun talking to Chinese-Iranian poet and editor Saba Keramati about her stunning debut collection Self-Mythology, a finalist for the 2024 Miller Williams Poetry Prize from the University of Arkansas Press!
I’ve long been a fan of Saba’s work, and I already can’t wait to revisit this collection.
Some topics of discussion: an unexpectedly early release, a fixation on the self, a behind-the-scenes look into the poetry prize submission process, the significance of mirrors and memory, Anne Carson’s impact, and dealing with loneliness and fear as a writer.
Self-Mythology had a surprise early book release and is already available for purchase!
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
I met poet & software developer Olatunde Osinaike back in 2019 during Open Mouth Literary Center’s Third Annual Poetry Festival, and I’ve long admired his work!
I had so much fun speaking to him ahead of the release of his debut full-length collection, Tender Headed— a beautifully and deliberately crafted collection that I deeply enjoyed reading last month and that I’m already so excited to revisit! Camille Rankine, who selected it as a winner of the 2022 National Poetry Series, called it “a two-step on a tightwire,” and I agree. I’m ecstatic to feature Olatunde as my last guest this year on Tightwires, and I learned so much from our conversation!
Tender Headed comes out next Tuesday, December 5 from Akashic Books!
Preorder it now from any of these retailers: Akashic Books, Bookshop, Books-A-Million, Target, Barnes & Noble, Walmart.
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
I am now booking for 2024!
I had a great time talking to J. Bailey Hutchinson, the second of my three Season 4 guests, in a special Halloween episode of Tightwires!
Bailey is a fellow Open Mouth Literary Center and Arkansas MFA alum— she was a fourth year when I was a first year— and I’ve long admired her work. Including her 2022 Miller Williams Poetry Prize-Winning debut collection Gut, which we discussed at length during our conversation and for which she is currently touring.
Other topics of discussion: the post-grad school job hunt, navigating truth in writing, our endless admiration for poet & professor Geffrey Davis, how butchery is like poetry, and the best chicken wings in Fayetteville!
Interested in being a future featured guest? Let me know!
I am now booking for 2024!