Paul E Nelson presenting at Cascadia Poetry Festival 8, photo by Leszek Chudzinski
“Paul formally received the Mahayana precepts of Zen Buddhism in 2023, becoming a lay practitioner within the tradition, but I believe he had long lived in accord with them. His poetry, in its sensitivity, its humility, and its deep listening, embodies practice-realization — the understanding that practice and awakening are not separate. His writing was his zazen. This collection, FLEXIBLE MIND, is more than a book. It is a continuation of that practice. A testament to a man who lives by attention, who bows to language but does not cling to it, who seeks what lays beyond words by walking straight into them.”– Kosho Itagaki, Soto Zen Priest
Brenda Hillman Interview (Letters on Fire)
I caught up with Brenda Hillman at her Northern California home August 4, 2017, and we had a lively discussion about her last book: Seasonal Works with Letters on Fire. In the first segment she...
Earshot Jazz Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal
Earshot Jazz is in full swing, no pun intended. Seattle's long-running annual festival is an orgy for the ears and soul and I missed most of the Thelonious Monk @ 100 events, which is a shame, but...
Launch of 56 Days
The anthology 56 Days of August: Poetry Postcards is out in the world and the three co-editors were among the poets reading from the book and discussing their practice of creating, composing and...
Why Cascadia? Why Poetry?
I am re-publishing this on the day of the 5th Cascadia Poetry Festival in Tacoma, WA, at the Washington State History Museum. SCHEDULE REGISTRATION. Why Cascadia? Why Poetry? “Man...
Death Rattle, Day One
This I posted on Facebook, but thought I should post here: The Death Rattle Writer's Festival Day One happened and Janet Holmes had the highlight, for me, a touching poem about grieving the loss of...
Death Rattle, WA 129, Postcards, Cascadia Po Fest
It used to be that the summer in Seattle had very little in the way of literary arts events. When Labor Day weekend came around, poets got caught up at Bumbershoot at the Bookfair and the Sunday...
Death Rattle, Postcard Panel, IndieGoGo Request
Some events of note for those interested in my work: Monday, October 2, 2017, I have been invited to read for the Striped Water Poets in Auburn, Washington at the Rainbow Cafe, 7pm, 112 E. Main...
Cascadia in Cumberland
A comprehensive review of what I experienced in Cumberland, BC, at the first Cascadia Poetry Festival requires more bandwidth than I have right now, but a few thoughts. I as delighted to have Jared...
Postcards Never End
Although the August Poetry Postcard Fest is over (it IS September after all) cards I sent out on the 31st have probably not arrived at their final destination and the APPF Facebook group is still...
CPF-Cumberland
Brenda Hillman Interview on In A Few Minutes Before Later
On December 12, 2022 I had the honor to again interview Brenda Hillman. This time it was on Zoom about her new book In A Few Minutes Before Later. The audio is available as part of the Cascadian...
For Mary Norbert Körte
I have finished creating podcasts with my two interviews conducted in October 2019 with the former Nun and poet Mary Norbert Körte. She died on November 14 at age 88 at her home near Willits,...
A Winter Solstice Reading
Over the past ten+ years my friend the poet and librarian Greg Bem has created some of the most inventive poetry gatherings I have ever experienced. One that involved divination and chance...
The interview I conducted with Sam O’Hana, a Ph.D. student at CUNY, is immensely critical and immensely validating for the work we do at the Cascadia Poetics Lab. At its core, the discussion is about whether writing is for people of means, or if it can be people who have skill and something to say. It means the literary gatekeepers have failed us and have a role in perpetuating neoliberalism in North America which has paved the way for authoritarianism. The interview is available as a podcast here and as a YouTube video here. Below, I have pasted in the transcript and here is my introduction to Sam O’Hana and his topic.