Jack Straw SoundPages

Troy Osaki’s project for the 2020 Jack Straw Writers Program is a chapbook manuscript of poems that he began writing after visiting the Philippines for the first time in 2017. In his conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss poetry’s ability to create social change, his history with Youth Speaks, and cultural and familial connections. “I […]

Mabuhay - Troy Osaki [ 23:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2020 Jack Straw writer Jose Trejo-Maya’s project is an extract of his poetry that is intended for a three-dimensional museum exhibit based on the Tonalpohualli, a Mesoamerican conception of time. In his conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss his organic writing process, his connection to the immigrant experience, and listening to the voices of his […]

Iktome - Jose Trejo-Maya [ 20:44 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Arianne True’s project for the 2020 Jack Straw Writers Program is a poetic “museum” that creates a safe space to engage in difficult subjects such as childhood sexual abuse. In her conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss the ritual of writing, engaging with experimental forms, and creating visceral experiences with words. “Through poetry, you can […]

Exhibits - Arianne True [ 21:50 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2020 Jack Straw writer Jeffrey Lee Cheatham II’s project is a graphic novel titled Uhuru, a pirate adventure story centering Black characters. In his conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss the lack of Black representation in children’s literature, professional wrestling and Archie comics, and creating Black stories that expand beyond a monolithic experience. “One of […]

Uhuru - Jeffrey Lee Cheatham II [ 22:18 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2020 Jack Straw writer Helen K. Thomas’s project is a collection of short stories that feature Black girl protagonists from the Pacific Northwest. In her conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss Young Adult fiction and expanding representation of young Black girls in those stories. “To be a part of that and to choose to be […]

Naia - Helen K. Thomas [ 21:39 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Rob Arnold’s project for the 2020 Jack Straw Writers Program is a poetic memoir that tackles the complex legacies of familial trauma. In his conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss cross-genre writing, the distance and connection created by language, and matching linguistic precision with visual expansion. “I started thinking about these things in a much […]

A Resurrection - Rob Arnold [ 24:44 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2020 Jack Straw writer Ching-In Chen’s project is a series of experimental prose poems inspired by their relationship to breath, and the Texas Tax Day Flood of 2016. In their conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss their process of creating in a hybrid genre, representation in art, and creating within community. “What surprised me is […]

Breath - Ching-In Chen [ 21:07 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Michelle Goodman’s project for the 2020 Jack Straw Writer’s Program is a creative nonfiction piece that deals with dying and grief. In her conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss navigating the balance between telling the truth and what remains untold, shaping nonfiction, and writing as an act of understanding. “I’ve always liked telling true life […]

Giant - Michelle Goodman [ 22:19 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2020 Jack Straw writer Ebo Barton’s poetry project is both a printed work and an audiobook. In their conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss the differences between spoken word and page poetry, the pressure on artists to constantly produce, and what it means to share work aloud. “When I say the stage is my church, […]

Insubordinate - Ebo Barton [ 23:22 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Wryly T. McCutchen’s project for the 2020 Jack Straw Writer’s Program is part of a “drag-a-licious” show of “of weird, solo, interdisciplinary, poetry-fueled content.” In their conversation with curator Anastacia-Renée, they discuss the physical nature of their work, their destructive poetry practice, and the importance of sharing one’s work. “Poetry offers the opportunity to use […]

Body - Wryly T. McCutchen [ 20:42 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download