• Ep 250: Listener Crit #12
    Jun 12 2026
    SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Steve Knepper's Thomist Poets readingIn the Waiting Room by Elizabeth BishopJiro Dreams of Sushi (2011)A Letter by Anthony HechtCouples TherapyClipseLament by Thom GunnSecret Show notesWe Hogs Need This, Pt. 2On Being Butthurt by Elif BatumanJoan DidionMatthew's appearance on the RattlecastAugust WilsonFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Ep 249: We Hogs Need This, Pt. 1
    Jun 5 2026
    SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Join the Zoom conversation I’m having with Jimmy Pappas this Monday, June 8, at 7:00 p.m. US Eastern: Poems Against HopeZina Gomez-LissCan Art Teach? by David S. WallaceMichel de MontaigneThe PittSuitsAnthony LaneJ. M. Coetzee A Few Words OnImproving Your Life Through the Great Books by Ethan McGuireSecret show notesEp 246: A Case for Didactic Poetry, ft. Daniel CowperWhy Don't People Like Poetry? What Poetry Do They Like? by Daniel CowperNight by Elie WieselNever Let Me Go by Kazuo IshiguroNarrative of the Life of Frederick DouglassThe Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du BoisPlato's RepublicGiovanni’s Room and Notes of aNative Son by James BaldwinGoodnight Moon by Margaret Wise BrownThe Giving Tree by Shel SilversteinFancy Nancy by Jane O'ConnorThe Varieties of Religious Experience by William JamesFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: brianplatzer [at] gmail [dot] comCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Ep 248: The Montreal Fiasco, ft. Ernest Hilbert, Pt. 1
    May 29 2026
    SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good! Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!Ep 122: The Sore Thumb Crisis, ft. Ernie HilbertPoetry readings I have known by Ernie HilbertThe Red Tower by Thomas LigottiThis Lime-tree Bower my Prison by Samuel Taylor ColeridgeEaston PressFranklin LibraryFallingwaterThe Henry Heckelbeck Collection by Wanda CovenEyes Wide Shut (1999)Caligulan by Ernie HilbertContraPoints: CringeToynbee tilesPoetry for DummiesSavage Night at the Opera by DestroyerFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Ep 247: Listener Crit #11
    May 23 2026
    NB: Apologies to all the people to whom I owe emails! Solo with the girls and trying to meet some deadlines, so I’ve been a zombie. I promise I’ll write you soon!SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good!Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– The Frost Farm Prize results– Why Don’t People Like Poetry? What Poetry Do People Like? by Daniel Cowper– Ep 246: The Case for Didactic Poetry Part 1 & Part 2– L’Allegro, Il Penseroso, and Lycidas by John Milton– Odysseus’ Last Return to Ithaca by Pedro Poitevin– XXIV by Philip Larkin– Dune by Frank Herbert– Dune (2021)Frequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Ep 246: A Case for Didactic Poetry, ft. Daniel Cowper, Pt. 1
    May 16 2026
    NB: Another poem (one of Jonathan’s favorites) about having an orange and not wanting to kill yourself.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good!Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Why Don’t People Like Poetry? What Poetry Do People Like? by Daniel Cowper– Kingdom of the Clock by Daniel Cowper– A Review of The Soft Black Stars by Sunil Iyengar– On Not Knowing How to Start by Sunil Iyengar– What He Really Wanted by Zina Gomez-Liss– If by Rudyard Kipling– Ep 245: The Tuna Incident, ft. Nida Sophasarun– Giving the Devil His Due by Elijah Perseus Blumov– September 1, 1939 by W. H. Auden– On the Inner Nature of Art by Arthur Schopenhauer– On the origin of poetry by Friedrich NietzscheFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– MattWall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    1 hr and 27 mins
  • Ep 245: The Tuna Incident, ft. Nida Sophasarun
    May 9 2026
    SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good!Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!Novice by Nida SophasarunAn Incomplete Mentorship by Rachel Jamison WebsterEllen Bryant VoigtAdvice from an Unknown Poet Ep 05. Bad AdviceEp 244: Possible Horrible Truth, Pt. 1Nida's poem Violent FemmesCorniche by Les MurraySecret show notesDead Poets Society (1989)Paterson (2016)A Quiet Passion (2016)Yasujiro OzuLast Chance U (2016)Friday Night LightsI Walked with a Zombie (1943)Reality Bites (1994)Matthew's essay Where the Money IsThe Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)Film QuarterlyFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– Matt Wall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Ep 244: Possible Horrible Truth, Pt. 1
    May 3 2026
    NB: Sideways was actually co-written by Jim Taylor and Alexander Payne.SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good!Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– Poems Beautiful and Useful, ed. Victoria Moul– To Lucasta, Going to the Wars by Richard Lovelace– Greater Metropolitan Shatador, ft. Victoria Moul– The Matrix (1999)– Jenny, the Halloween Spy by Lillie Patterson– The Statue of Responsibility (the one about Man’s Search for Meaning) – The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker– Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace– The Razor’s Edge by W. Somerset Maugham– The Optimists by Brian Platzer– The Mattering Instinct by Rebecca Newberger Goldstein– The Last Messiah by Peter Zapffe– The Conspiracy Against the Human Race by Thomas Ligotti– Inferno I, 32 by Jorge Luis Borges– Sideways (2004)– The Gay Science by Friedrich Nietzsche– Big in Romania, ft. Versecraft (the one where Elijah talks with Alice about The Denial of Death)– St. Judas by James Wright– The Mountain Pass, ft. Philip Metres, Part 1 & Part 2– Tichborne’s Elegy by Chidiock Tichborne– Happy were he could finish forth his fate by Robert Devereaux– Ode on Solitude by Alexander Pope– Ars Poetica by Horace– Epode ii by Horace– The Fall of Rome by W. H. Auden– Riddley Walker by Russell HobanFrequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– Matt Wall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip Metres– Helena Feder– Nida SophasarunOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    1 hr and 33 mins
  • Ep 243: Literary Matters 18.2
    Apr 26 2026
    SLEERICKETS is a podcast about poetry and other intractable problems. Make a one-time donation (not tax-deductible)For more SLEERICKETS, subscribe to SECRET SHOW!Leave the show a rating here!SLEERICKETS is now on YouTube!For a frank, anonymous critique on SLEERICKETS, subscribe to the SECRET SHOW and send a poem of no more 32 lines to sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comSome of the topics mentioned in this episode:– Order Brian’s book The Optimists! It’s so good!Now give Brian’s book a 5-star review!– My chapbook The Soft Black Stars is out now!– On Marriage by Victoria Moul– Literary Matters 18.2– Not the Greatest Time to Be a Poet, ft. Horace & Friends, Part 1 & Part 2– Handbook for the Recently Deceased Poet– A dolphin for the Dutch; or, is there any verse culture without occasional poems? by Victoria Moul– Merrily We Roll Along by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth– The Lower Depths by Maxim Gorky– Rachel Getting Married (2008)– Glee (2009–2015)– Sinners (2025)Frequently mentioned names:– Joshua Mehigan– Shane McCrae– A. E. Stallings– Ryan Wilson– Morri Creech– Austin Allen– Jonathan Farmer– Zara Raab– Amit Majmudar– Ethan McGuire– Coleman Glenn– Chris Childers– Alexis Sears– JP Gritton– Alex Pepple– Ernie Hilbert– Joanna Pearson– Matt Wall– Steve Knepper – Helena Feder– David Yezzi– Victoria Moul– Katie Dozier & Tim Green– George David Clark– Tristram Fane Saunders– Philip MetresOther Ratbag Poetry Pods:Poetry Says by Alice AllanI Hate Matt Wall by Matt WallVersecraft by Elijah Perseus BlumovAdvice from an Unknown Poet by Alice Allan & Jonathan FarmerRatbag Poetics By David Jalal MotamedAlice: In Future PostsBrian: @BPlatzerCameron: Minor TiresiasMatthew: sleerickets [at] gmail [dot] comMusic by ETRNLArt by Daniel Alexander Smith
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    1 hr and 28 mins