SLEERICKETS

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS Episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Buy Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Watch the Think Symposium talks and readings here! (Here’s a link to mine, which stars at 52:14)– Elijah’s book Against Oblivion is out now!– ALSCW conference 2026– Elijah Perseus Blumov– Versecraft– Emily Grace– Literary Matters – David Starkey– Anacapa Review– Gunpowder Press– CPT AndrewVisscher (Drew Visscher is a literary scholar whose work explores the intersections of literature, history, and military culture in nineteenth-century Britain. His current project examines military memoirs and periodicals as sites of knowledge production that helped shape broader transatlantic military identities. Context: I am what USMA calls a "Junior Rotator," a full-time Instructor within the English Division, temporarily "plucked" from the regular Army. My program funds an MA as a prerequisite to teach entry-level Composition and Literature at USMA as an active-duty assignment, and there are future competitive paths to AP. Whether through this program or as a retired civilian, I'm using this project to guide doctoral research down the road.)– The United Service Journal– Mary Finnegan– Tamarah Rockwood– Fiona Spring– Forester McClatchey– John Poch– Dora MalechFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS Episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Buy Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Watch the Think Symposium talks and readings here! (Here’s a link to mine, which stars at 52:14)– Elijah’s book Against Oblivion is out now!– ALSCW conference 2026– Elijah Perseus Blumov– Versecraft– Emily Grace– Literary Matters – David Starkey– Anacapa Review– Gunpowder Press– CPT AndrewVisscher (Drew Visscher is a literary scholar whose work explores the intersections of literature, history, and military culture in nineteenth-century Britain. His current project examines military memoirs and periodicals as sites of knowledge production that helped shape broader transatlantic military identities. Context: I am what USMA calls a "Junior Rotator," a full-time Instructor within the English Division, temporarily "plucked" from the regular Army. My program funds an MA as a prerequisite to teach entry-level Composition and Literature at USMA as an active-duty assignment, and there are future competitive paths to AP. Whether through this program or as a retired civilian, I'm using this project to guide doctoral research down the road.)– The United Service Journal– Mary Finnegan– Tamarah Rockwood– Fiona Spring– Forester McClatchey– John Poch– Dora MalechFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

NB: My hypothetical about being born in California in 1960 sounds like it’s specifically referring to Ted Kooser’s birth, but I meant it more generally. Also, I probably should have said 1950.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS Episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Buy Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Watch the Think Symposium talks and readings here! (Here’s a link to mine, which stars at 52:14)– Elijah’s book Against Oblivion is out now!The Varieties of Religious Experience by William JamesTed KooserThe Stafford Challenge9 October by Anne CarsonBoris DraylukThe Poetry Space: Does a Poem Need Something to Say? with Matthew Buckley Smith (Part 1) | Ep. 158Robert ChaboneauCat Person by Kristen RoupenianWatchmen (2009)ALSCW conference 2026Secret Show notesThe Invention of Love by Tom StoppardBitters by Chris ChildersThe Score by Oliver CottonYou Can See Everything (2026)Legend (1985)Matthew's conversation with Elijah about poetry podcastingFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

NB: Right, right, right, actually “nights” and “ignites” don’t make a true rhyme but rather an identical rhyme.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS Episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Buy Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Watch the Think Symposium talks and readings here!– Elijah’s book Against Oblivion is out now!– Cameron’s poem Alternative Autobiography in Poetry London– My conversation with Elijah at the Versecraft substack– LM 19.1– Tar River Poetry Fall 2026– M. D. Skeen’s post on The Hotel Barth– The Survivalist (2015)Frequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS Episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– The Think Symposium is this Friday, October 16, and Saturday, October 17– I’ll be giving a talk Friday, October 16, at 5:00 p.m. and a reading with Boris Dralyuk and Sunil Iyengar Friday, October 16, at 8:00 p.m.– New Verse Review’s Halloween Issue– Zara Raab’s Review of The Soft Black Stars– BlackRaven’s Review of The Soft Black Stars– Groom by Austin Segrest– The Ambassadors by Hans Holbein– Song of Solomon– Conversion on the Way to Damascus by Caravaggio– The Man of Adamant by Nathaniel HawthorneFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Check out Alice’s SLEERICKETS The episode map!– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!Stranger ThingsThe BFG by Roald DahlNew Mountain Goats album DaysMatthew's essay Macbeth and His ProblemsKurzel's Macbeth (2015)Cohen's Macbeth (2021)The Forbes symposiumTo the Bobbydazzlers by John ForbesSalute by James SchuylerAidan ColemanTowards a Contemporary Australian Poetics by John KinsellaA Brief Outline of The History Of Australian Poetry by Alex McKeownclick here for what we do by Pam Brown The Applestealers anthologyThe New Australian Poetry edited by John TranterThe New American Poetry 1945-1960 edited by Donald Allen Jamie GrantKevin HartFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: Poetry SaysBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

NB: Yes, yes, yes, of course I meant to mention Putin. Putin also, yes.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Pre-order the new book of short stories by my wife, Joanna Pearson!– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Tar River Poetry is open for submissions!– Literary Matters is also open for submissions!– Elijah’s review of my chapbook– Sunil Iyengar– Ned Balbo– Jonathan Fine– Claudia Gary– The DC Arts Center Poetry Series– The Score by Oliver Cotton– The Musical Offering by J. S. Bach– The Unconscious by Sigmund Freud– Hamlet– Short, Sweet by Hailey Leithauser– How to Moth by Hailey LeithauserFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Tar River Poetry is open for submissions!– Literary Matters is also open for submissions!– The Flummoxed by Ethan McGuire– Apocalypse Dance by Ethan McGuire– H. P. Lovecraft: Against the World, Against Life by Michel Houllebecq– La Gradiva (2026)– The Thing (1982)– Stephen King– Thomas Ligotti– Edgar Allan Poe– At the Mountains of Madness by H. P. Lovecraft– Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell– In Amundsen’s Tent by John Martin LeahyFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Come see me at the D.C. Arts Center Poetry Series on Sunday, Sept. 27, at 3 p.m. EST. w/ Ned Balbo & Jonathan Fine– I’m going to see The Score Saturday the 26th, in case you want to see it too!– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Hilary Menos’s review of The Soft Black Stars in The Orange County Review of Books– Tar River Poetry is open for submissions!– Literary Matters is also open for submissions!– The Byron Bay Option: On (Not) Giving Up Poetry by Alice Allan– New Verse Review’s Summer Sampler #2– Boris Dralyuk’s note on Zina’s poem– So This Is Love by Zina Gomez-Liss– Thomas Jardine’s review of So This is Love– Zina’s response to Jardine’s review– The Fall of Rome by W. H. Auden– Horace i.37– Sundowner by Hilary MenosFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith

SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Come see me at the D.C. Arts Center Poetry Series on Sunday, Sept. 27, at 3 p.m. EST. w/ Ned Balbo & Jonathan Fine– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Hilary Menos’s review of The Soft Black Stars in The Orange County Review of Books– Stephen Dunn broadside from Lettre Sauvage– The Island in the Sound by Niall Campbell– Poetry London– The Odyssey (2026)– The Return (2024)– Emily Wilson’s review of The Odyssey in the LRB– Emily Wilson’s review of The Odyssey in The AtlanticFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen–Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida Sophasarun– Alex McKeownOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith