Author Archives: Shannon Laws

Poetry Club Talks…Rena Priest Part 2

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-bsxbv-1049811 Topic: Rena Priest, Washington State Poet Laureate 2021-22 Host: Ron Poems: “Toward a Beautiful Flare of Ruin” and “The Perils of Flight” Recorded: May 23, 2021 Rena Priest_Select Poems In our discussions, we admire, among many strengths, how thoughtfully Rena’s poems are structured and crafted. The poems in her first book focus on the cultureContinueContinue reading “Poetry Club Talks…Rena Priest Part 2”

De-escalation

https://youtu.be/inNBpizpZkE Thursday Share DayWriters LOVE words. Can the right words change the nation? Yes. The other day a friend sent this news article over to me, and I’m letting you all in on it. This is not the first time I’ve read about the Bellingham Police using their Crisis Negotiator Team to de-escalate a situation.ContinueContinue reading “De-escalation”

Poetry Club Talks…Rena Priest Part 1

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-fy9p6-103f3fb Topic: Rena Priest, Washington State Poet Laureate 2021-22 Host: Ron Poems: Various (see below) Recorded: May 15, 2021 Rena Priest_Select Poems This week Poetry Club discusses three poems by Rena Priest, the 2021-22 Washington State Poet Laureate.  Her work draws on history, scientific ephemera, and pop culture to tell stories and seek truths.  Her word choice isContinueContinue reading “Poetry Club Talks…Rena Priest Part 1”

Poetry Club Talks…Wislawa Szymborska

Poetry Club Talks…Szymborska. The famous female Polish poet Wislawa Szymborska (1923-2012). If you haven’t heard of her or read her poetry, give yourself a treat. This show is an introduction to the person and her poems. Linda shares three of Szymborska’s poems published in “Polish Poetry of the Last Two Decades of Communist Rule: Spoiling Cannibals’ Fun”*

Staycation

So I’m on vacation, day 4. I spent the first three days freaking out every 20-30 minutes thinking I had to be somewhere, call someone, or send an e-mail. Today, I think, I am finally chillin’. The beach is all over me and I’m not going to wash it off, because WebMD says “Enjoy it!” Negative Ions

Poetry Club Talks…Jack Straw Fellows 2021 Part 2

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-e683q-101b250 Topic: Jack Straw Poets 2021 Host: Shannon Poems: “anchor baby” and “porous” Recorded: April 24, 2021 2021 Jack Straw Poets This week Poetry Club discusses two more poems from the Jack Straw 2021 poets, S. Erin Batiste, Patrycja Humienik, and Abi Pollokoff.  Three brilliant and dynamic poets!  In this episode, we discuss Patrycja Humienik’sContinueContinue reading “Poetry Club Talks…Jack Straw Fellows 2021 Part 2”

Poetry Club Talks…Jack Straw Poets 2021

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-scnqc-100b396 Topic: Jack Straw Writers 2021 Host: Shannon Poem: “The Yellow Jackets” and “At Trader Joe’s in South Pasadena​” Recorded: April 10, 2021 2021 Jack Straw Poets This week Poetry Club discusses two poems from each of the three Jack Straw 2021 poets, S. Erin Batiste, Patrycja Humienik, and Abi Pollokoff.  Three brilliant and dynamic poets!  FirstContinueContinue reading “Poetry Club Talks…Jack Straw Poets 2021”

Poetry Club Talks…Wallace Stevens poem The Snow Man

This week at Poetry Club we ask what Is poetry analysis? Poetry analysis is examining the independent elements of a poem to understand the literary work in its entirety.  Poetry Club member Lynn will host the discussion on the poem “The Snow Man” by Wallace Stevens  (1879 – 1955) and we analyze the heck out of it.