The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast September submitted poems episode features six wonderful contributions read by six poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Dana Gioia, Yanyi, Olivia Gatwood, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Jered’s Pottery Welcomes Bay Area Poets for Poetry at the Pottery [Sunday Aug 27 – 3pm]
Jered’s Pottery (Emeryville, CA), recognized as “the top choice for hand-crafted custom dinnerware for some of the world’s top chefs and designers,” will be hosting an afternoon of poetry on Sunday Aug. 27 – 3pm, featuring Heather Bourbeau, Brennan DeFrisco, and James Morehead. Free tickets for the event are available here.
Continue reading “Jered’s Pottery Welcomes Bay Area Poets for Poetry at the Pottery [Sunday Aug 27 – 3pm]”A Poetic Journey by Cable Car (from Exploring San Francisco)
This week’s episode of the Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast features a special excerpt from the Exploring San Francisco podcast by San Francisco Travel. Award-winning host and travel writer Aaron Millar invited Viewless Wings founder and City of Dublin Poet Laureate James Morehead to recite his poem “nine point five miles per hour”, recorded while riding a San Francisco cable car. Aaron also interviews James about his work with the City of Dublin and how he discovered the art of poetry.
Five Poets Recite (Sinead McGuigan, Heather MacKechnie, Lawrence Bridges, Denise Alden, Dana Kinsey)
The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast June submitted poems episode features five wonderful contributions read by five poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Dana Gioia, Yanyi, Olivia Gatwood, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Please note that this episode contains adult language and includes poetry that touches on suicide, and is not suitable for children. If you are having suicidal thoughts please reach out for support resources in your area.
Continue reading “Five Poets Recite (Sinead McGuigan, Heather MacKechnie, Lawrence Bridges, Denise Alden, Dana Kinsey)”Becoming Poet Laureate: James Morehead’s Experience Bringing Poetry into the City of Dublin
DUBLIN, CA–As the current poet laureate of the City of Dublin, California, in my second two-year term, I feel privileged to share my insights about making the most of this role. Being poet laureate isn’t just about writing and reciting poetry at civic events when requested, but about understanding the soul of your city and finding ways to connect the community through the literary arts.
I view poetry is a vehicle for capturing Dublin’s narrative, embodying its heritage, its struggles, its triumphs, and its hopes. Just as Tracy K. Smith, the 22nd United States Poet Laureate used her position to connect rural communities through poetry, I am seeking to capture the rich diversity of Dublin, a city with a large immigrant population from around the world.

“The Plague Doctor” by James Morehead Explores the Fleeting Nature of Existence and Friendship
The Plague Doctor, the third collection of poetry by James Morehead (Poet Laureate – Dublin, California) is a mesmerizing collection of eerie, image-rich poems that explore the fleeting nature of existence and friendship, inspired by the world of art and artists. The poetry is accompanied by hand drawn ink artwork by Natalia Ardus, art by Mark Kulas and Tony Rubino, and photography by the author. Poet and singer-songwriter Lisa Marie Simmons writes in her foreword to the collection, “I’ve read this collection three, four, then five times. In my office, in the tour van and the green room, after yoga, and once bundled up beneath an ancient olive tree. Despite those many deep dives, it never seems enough to complete this foreword. So I returned; six, seven, ten times. Each reading has me focusing on something new, and a year from now, I know more discoveries will be made as my perspective shifts with my own experiences.”
Continue reading ““The Plague Doctor” by James Morehead Explores the Fleeting Nature of Existence and Friendship”Seven Poets Recite (Cathy Wittmeyer, Kristen Gundlach, Emma Paris, Joanne Jagoda, Jaime Lam, Sophia Zhang, Phynne~ Belle)
The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast April submitted poems episode, for National Poetry Month features seven wonderful contributions read by seven poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Dana Gioia, Yanyi, Olivia Gatwood, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Continue reading “Seven Poets Recite (Cathy Wittmeyer, Kristen Gundlach, Emma Paris, Joanne Jagoda, Jaime Lam, Sophia Zhang, Phynne~ Belle)”James Morehead Premieres “When no one else will” at City of Dublin Volunteer Recognition Event
DUBLIN, CA–The City of Dublin filled the Shannon Community Center last night to celebrate volunteers who contributed to the Dublin community in 2022. Mayor Melissa Hernandez and other elected officials recognized Dublin’s Young Citizen of the Year, Citizen of the Year, Organization of the Year, and special Mayor’s awards. James Morehead, Poet Laureate – Dublin, CA (recently confirmed for a second two-year term) opened the celebration with an original poem “When no one else will”.
Continue reading “James Morehead Premieres “When no one else will” at City of Dublin Volunteer Recognition Event”James Morehead’s Poem “Gallery” to be Featured in Program of Deon Nielsen Price’s Music
SAN FRANCISCO, CA–The music of Deon Nielsen Price will be featured in a concert at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio, in the Presidio Chapel (130 Fisher Loop, San Francisco), on Sunday March 19, 2023 – 2pm. James Morehead, Poet Laureate of Dublin, California, will recite two poems as part of the program, Gallery (set to music for baritone and piano by Price) and Flickering Through Stained Glass (inspired by the Presidio Chapel). The concert is open to the public and will also be livestreamed.
Continue reading “James Morehead’s Poem “Gallery” to be Featured in Program of Deon Nielsen Price’s Music”Six Poets Recite (Maddy Robinson, George Yatchisin, Mara Scrupe, Karin Krieger, Yael Valencia Aldana, Rachel Richmond)
The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast February submitted poems episode features six wonderful contributions read by six poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Yanyi, Olivia Gatwood, Regina Harris Baiocchi, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Continue reading “Six Poets Recite (Maddy Robinson, George Yatchisin, Mara Scrupe, Karin Krieger, Yael Valencia Aldana, Rachel Richmond)”San Francisco Chronicle’s TotalSF Podcast Premieres “At the barricade” by James Morehead
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (February 17, 2023). James Morehead (Poet Laureate – Dublin, California) was the featured guest on the San Francisco Chronicle’s TotalSF podcast “The 9 best live music venues in S.F.” episode (Feb 17, 2023, hosted by Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight). The episode featured a lively debate of San Francisco’s top live music venues with Peter, Heather, and James debating their top three picks, round robin-style. The episode also included the world premiere of James Morehead’s poem “At the barricade”, the title poem from his upcoming book of poems and photographs inspired by San Francisco Bay Area live music venues.
Continue reading “San Francisco Chronicle’s TotalSF Podcast Premieres “At the barricade” by James Morehead”Playing with Found Poetry from Björk and the Limits of ChatGPT
Waking up and feeling poetry blocked, and having just received a wonderfully bizarre 1988 Björk video in my YouTube feed, I decided to play with found poetry and ChatGPT.
Found poems, as defined by the American Academy of Poets, “take existing texts and refashion them, reorder them, and present them as poems. The literary equivalent of a collage, found poetry is often made from newspaper articles, street signs, graffiti, speeches, letters, or even other poems.”
Continue reading “Playing with Found Poetry from Björk and the Limits of ChatGPT”Will ChatGPT Replace Poets with AI-generated Poetry?
Can computers replace poets? I’ll share my thoughts, as a published poet, with a few ChatGPT-generated poems. ChatGPT, the AI-driven chat app that generates machine responses from human-provided prompts, has gone viral the past week (to the point where the free service is frequently unavailable due to server overload). We’ve recently updated this article at the bottom with additional sponsored content from Originality.AI (an AI and plagiarism content detector).
Continue reading “Will ChatGPT Replace Poets with AI-generated Poetry?”Six Poets Recite (Linda Eve Diamond, Alex Stanley, Angela Sucich, Cynthia Dorfman, Ipsheeta Furtado, Rosanne Ehrlich)
The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast December submitted poems episode features seven wonderful contributions read by six poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Olivia Gatwood, Regina Harris Baiocchi, Kari Byron, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Continue reading “Six Poets Recite (Linda Eve Diamond, Alex Stanley, Angela Sucich, Cynthia Dorfman, Ipsheeta Furtado, Rosanne Ehrlich)”Writing Ekphrastic Poetry – the Skill of Crafting Poems Inspired by Art
“Ekphrastic” is a terrific poetry word. Distinct, fun to say, visually interesting. The Poetry Foundation provides this definition: “An ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art. Through the imaginative act of narrating and reflecting on the “action” of a painting or sculpture, the poet may amplify and expand its meaning.”
Continue reading “Writing Ekphrastic Poetry – the Skill of Crafting Poems Inspired by Art”Poet Donald Platt Explores Beauty, Dark Matter, and the Love of Family in Swansdown [INTERVIEW]
The latest episode of the Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast interviews Donald Platt. Donald is the author of eight volumes of poetry, his most recent is Swansdown (Grid Books, 2022). His poems have appeared in many journals, including The New Republic, American Poetry Review, Paris Review, Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, New England Review, and Yale Review, as well as in The Best American Poetry 2000, 2006, and 2015. He is a recipient of two fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, three Pushcart Prizes, and the Center for Book Arts Chapbook Prize.
Continue reading “Poet Donald Platt Explores Beauty, Dark Matter, and the Love of Family in Swansdown [INTERVIEW]”James Morehead’s “Twilight in the Sculpture Forest” Brought to Life in New Poetry Film
HALIBURTON, ONTARIO (CANADA)–The Haliburton Sculpture Forest, nestled in the Canadian wilderness, features forty sculptures created by artists from around the world, installed along 1.4 kms of hiking trails. The setting inspired a new poem by James Morehead (Poet Laureate – Dublin, California) and a film based on the poem, created by Brad Brown. We’re excited to share both the film and the poem that inspired the film.
Continue reading “James Morehead’s “Twilight in the Sculpture Forest” Brought to Life in New Poetry Film”Seven Poets Recite (Rebekah Bartlett, RA Pavoldi, Rose Oliver, Rosanne Ehrlich, Simon Constam, Mon Malanovich-Gallagher, Marie Chambers)
The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast October submitted poems episode features seven wonderful contributions read by the poets. Different forms and themes are featured. The Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast explores the art of poetry through interviews with poets and artists including Safia Elhillo, A.E. Stallings, Olivia Gatwood, Regina Harris Baiocchi, Kari Byron, Lisa Marie Simmons and more. Subscribe today.
Continue reading “Seven Poets Recite (Rebekah Bartlett, RA Pavoldi, Rose Oliver, Rosanne Ehrlich, Simon Constam, Mon Malanovich-Gallagher, Marie Chambers)”Poets Take the Mic at the City of Dublin’s Splatter Festival 2022 [REPLAY]
On this week’s episode of the Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast we feature finalists and honorable mention poets from the recent City of Dublin Splatter Festival Poets Take the Mic celebration of poetry in the San Francisco Bay Area. This episode features performances from eleven wonderful poets.
Continue reading “Poets Take the Mic at the City of Dublin’s Splatter Festival 2022 [REPLAY]”SF Chronicle TotalSF Premieres James Morehead’s Cable Car Museum Inspired Poem
The San Francisco Cable Car system celebrates its 150th anniversary in August 2023. The Andrew Smith Hallidie invention, a visit to the San Francisco Cable Car Museum, and a ride on the Powell-Mason line inspired the poem “nine point five miles per hour” by James Morehead (Poet Laureate – Dublin, California). The poem premiered at the SF Chronicle TotalSF Movie Night on August 25, 2022, hosted by the SF Chronicle’s Peter Hartlaub and Heather Knight. The September 23 episode of the TotalSF Podcast featured an interview with a Cable Car Gripman. Below is the poem “nine point five miles per hour”.
Continue reading “SF Chronicle TotalSF Premieres James Morehead’s Cable Car Museum Inspired Poem”