Omotara James vs. The Speaker

On today’s episode of VS, Ajanae and Brittany interview m. mick powell about their forthcoming collection, Dead Girl Cameo (Penguin Random House). Join them as they discuss celebrity culture and conspiracy theories, obsession with the 90’s and 2000’s, Black queer feminist thought, and gathering artifacts across time periods. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Saidiya Hartman - Saidiya Hartman, Literary Scholar and Cultural Historian | 2019 MacArthur FellowNtozake Shange - Ntozake Shange preserves Black history and culture through literature (1989 interview)Cheryl Dunye - The Watermelon Woman at 25: the Black lesbian classic that wears its brilliance lightly | BFIDr. Andrea Y. Adomako - Andrea Y. AdomakoWriting Prompt:Write an ode to a cultural icon or piece of memorabilia from your childhood. Make the title a line from a song that was important to you during this era.

On today’s episode of VS, Brittany and Ajanae have the opportunity to talk with Tiana Clark. Listen in as they discuss navigating burnout and perfectionism, advocacy within the medical system, neurodivergence, and permission as a part of the creative process. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Terrance Hayes- What it Look Like | The Poetry FoundationSharon Olds- Sharon Olds talks about her workIssa Rae- AWKWARD Black Girl | “The Stop Sign” [S. 1, Ep. 1]Writing Prompt:Write an ekphrastic poem for a music video that you love. 

On today’s episode, Brittany and Ajanae talk with Deesha Philyaw and Kiese Laymon—phenomenal writers and co-hosts of the podcast, Reckon True Stories. During this conversation, they discuss the impact of great editors, the overlap between poetry and prose, rejection in the writers room, and the beauty of friendship. Until Next Time: Catherine Coleman (Kiese’s Grandmother) - On Resilience, Tender Rituals, and Responsible Love: Talking with Kiese Laymon - The RumpusKendrick Lamar - The Literary Genius of Kendrick LamarNene leakes - 10 Quotes NeNe Leakes Gave To Pop Culture That Prove She's A Cultural IconTami Roman - Tami Roman's Funniest Moments | Basketball Wives LegendsDeesha’s Grandmother - Local Dispatch: My grandmother's life lesson on the dignity of work | Pittsburgh Post-GazetteKiese Laymon - Award Winning Author Kiese Laymon Discusses Heavy: An American Memoir and moreWriting Prompt:Write a prose poem and borrow your favorite craft element from another genre to focus on.

Today’s episode was recorded live at the Sims Library in Los Angeles, California during this year's AWP conference. Join Brittany and Ajanae as they sit down with E. Hughes and Luther Hughes (no relation) to discuss the role that intimacy plays in their writing, memory being true for the moment, the role of grief in the writing process, and moments of messiness in their collections. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Toni Morrison: Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am - Exclusive Clip - Farah Griffin On SulaNatasha Trethewey- The Typology of Taint, in Thrall to a Word: A Conversation with Natasha Trethewey | World Literature TodayFrantz Fanon: Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks | What Language Reveals | Philosophy Core ConceptsLuther:Carl Phillips: Intimacy, Afloat in Space: A Conversation with Carl Phillips - The Adroit JournalCM Burroughs: Meat to Reckon With: A Conversation with CM BurroughsSza- Ctrl: sza - ctrl (full album)Taylor Johnson: An Interview and Poems from Taylor JohnsonWriting Prompt: Write an ode to your grief. 

On today’s episode, Brittany and Ajanaé have the honor of interviewing Nicole Sealey! Join them as they discuss friendship rituals, surviving writers conferences, learning from mentors, navigating old obsessions in new work, and love, love, and more love. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Nicole Sealey’s Parents- The First Person Who Will Live to Be One Hundred and Fifty Years Old Has Already Been Born by Nicole Sealey Collective teachers- Celebrating Yusef Komunyakaa with Major Jackson, Jennifer Jean, John Murillo & Nicole SealeyJohn Murillo- In the Poetry Library With John MurilloWriting PromptWrite a list of ways that you promise to care for your reader. 

On today’s episode of VS, Ajanae and Brittany are joined by poet Omotara James. Join them as they discuss the failure of poetry as savior, whistleblowers, art as a meet-cute, resisting shielding the speaker, and building trust with the reader. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Sharon Olds: Sharon Olds talks about her workMichaela Coel: ‘There is power in the word no’: Michaela Coel’s journey from Chewing Gum to I May Destroy You | CBC ComedyLucille Clifton: Lucille Clifton talks of her books of poems, including “Good Times”Writing Prompt: Write a confessional poem that addresses your reader directly. 

On today’s episode, Ajanaé and Brittany talk to Vanessa Angélica Villarreal! Listen in as they discuss mushrooms, quantum entanglements, borders, the ethics of daughters-memory, and the role of Fantasy and The Future in the Western literary canon. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo: Pedro Páramo | Official Trailer | NetflixJordan S. Carroll- Speculative Whiteness: Exploration Log 7: Interview with Jordan S. Carroll, author of Speculative Whiteness: Science Fiction and the Alt-Right (2024)The Dragon Age Games; South of Midnight: South of Midnight - Accolades TrailerWriting Prompt: Write a poem for your favorite television or book character. 

On today’s episode, Brittany and Ajanae chat with Amanda Johnston; join them as they discuss choosing joy, intentional literary citizenship, the history of Torch Literary Arts, recurring selves in the work, and existing in the here and now.Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Lucille Clifton - i am accused of tending to the past by Lucille CliftonKrista Franklin - ARTIST FEATURE: KRISTA FRANKLIN - EP2Wura-Natasha Ogunji - Interview with Wura-Natasha Ogunji | "Alpha Crucis – Contemporary African Art"Beyonce - The Business of Being Beyoncé Knowles-Carter | GQWriting Prompt: In the spirit of Amanda’s Praisesong project, choose a member of your community and write a praisesong or ode to them.

Welcome to Season 9! On today’s episode of VS, Brittany and Ajanae chat with Chet’la Sebree about love, the origin of words and theory, chronic illness, vulnerability, and using language to explore our curiosities. Until Next Time: Here is some media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!Natasha Tretheway: Natasha Trethewey’s Poems Take Wing on Intimate Details - The New York TimesShara McCallum FIELD STUDY: CHET'LA SEBREE IN CONVERSATION WITH SHARA MCCALLUMAllison Saar : #5WomenArtists Spotlight: Alison Saar - English with Audio DescriptionWriting Prompt: Research the etymology of a word and write a poem tracing its origin and evolution.

For this episode, Brittany and Ajanae had the privilege of talking with Yona Harvey and Mahogany Browne LIVE at Furious Flower 2024! Join them as they discuss the importance of community spaces, what they’ve learned from sistering and being sistered, finding affirmation in each other’s poetry, the process of shifting genres, navigating the tension between public personas and interior lives, and the misperception of being mean.Until Next Time:Here are some pieces of media to accompany your experience of the episode and a writing prompt to tide you over until we meet again!MahoganyFannie Lou Hamer: Fannie Lou Hamer's Powerful Testimony | Freedom SummerSonia Sanchez: A Word with Sister Sonia Sanchez | Wildest DreamsJune Jordan: I Must Become a Menace to My Enemies by June Jordan - Poems | Academy of American PoetsYonaSister: sisters | The Poetry Foundation Mary Lou Williams: Introducing...Mary Lou WilliamsSonia Sanchez: Sonia Sanchez - Poem for Some Women - live @ Def PoetryWriting Prompt:Write a poem in response to a poem that affirms you.