Strange Bedfellows: Intersections Between Poetry and Fiction Writing with Leona Sevick and Snowden Wright

Strange Bedfellows: Intersections Between Poetry and Fiction Writing with Leona Sevick and Snowden Wright. Batman and the Joker. Grendel and Beowulf. Steve Urkel and Carl Winslow. Feuds have been around since time immemorial, but never has one existed more contentious, more heated, more blood-soaked and world-ravaging than the eternal struggle between poets and fiction writers.

A truce is within reach. Too often, we make arbitrary distinctions between poetry and fiction. Poets speak of “line breaks,” “white space,” and “lyrical modes” to describe what they put on the page, whereas fiction writers speak of “setting,” “plot,” “dialogue,” and “characterization.” In truth, poets and fiction writers share a great deal in common. Attention to language, a focus on the interiority of their subjects, and the careful selection of details are common to writing both poetry and fiction.  In this panel discussion, hear how a poet and a fiction writer approach these commonalities and support each other’s work across genres.