POETRY AS THERAPY?
Could "clinical poetry" be the answer to the mental health crisis?
Award-winning poet Todd Boss thinks so. His 15-year practice of writing poems for complete strangers is the format of a new podcast, THERE'S A POEM IN THAT, every episode of which ends in happy tears of healing, revelation, and inspiration.
So far, Todd has written beautiful custom poems for trauma survivors, a stroke victim, parents who've lost children, and others seeking the synthesis, depth, and creative power that great poetry can impart.
SO... "POETIC HELP 5 CENTS?"
There's a time-tested structure to Todd's practice. He does three hours of interviews with each guest client, and takes up to three months to write a custom poem that transforms their stories. His goal is to use all his MFA training to craft a poem as good as any poem in the four collections he has in print from W. W. Norton & Co. The podcast is the culmination of 15 years of one-on-one client poetry practice.
THE BIG VISION
Todd says: "I envision a future in which poets are trained to work clinically and "poeticare" is available to all. I believe that what’s at the heart of many of our struggles is a 'pervasive modern meaningless' and a lack of authentic connection with the world. Poetry can help address both through introspection, conversation, and community. Poetry has always been powerful medicine, but when Gutenberg relegated it as a mere "literature," it lost much of its power. Whitman nursed soldiers, but many contemporary poets still write primarily for the academy and the publishing community, and the result is a narrowing vision. The podcast is challenging that."
Todd dreams of a day when "Poetry Therapy" is supported by insurance, available by global network, and accessible through every health care system.
CASE IN POINT
In a recent episode of THERE'S A POEM IN THAT, when a Mexican immigrant named Phillip seeks a poem to celebrate his new US citizenship, I call Obama's inaugural poet Richard Blanco to write it; choking tears result, and Blanco, who once wrote for millions, calls it "one of the most extraordinary experiences of his career."
SPINOFFS: AN AGENCY + A POP-UP
The podcast has spun off a mobile poetry clinic that pops up at festivals and invites passersby to reflect, into a live mic, on whether their lives are "poetic"... and an "international bureau of custom poetry" that serves as the world's first poetry commissioning agency. The Bureau has enrolled an inaugural class of writers that include some of the nation's best, including Richard Blanco, Pulitzer finalist Dorianne Laux, Major Jackson, Philip Metres, and more.
"This work is so rewarding," says Todd, "that I plan to do it for the rest of my life. So I'm gearing it up. I'm committed to training poets in this modality and bringing it to as many people as possible."
HELP BUILD IT
Up until now, this $100,000 a year project has been bootstrapped by Todd and supported by volunteer efforts... but now you can be part of the story.
Contribute what you can today, and you'll be sending a powerful message to potential sponsors and funders: This work matters.
This work matters because of the impact it has on clients.
This work matters as a pioneering alternative healthcare solution.
This work matters because of what it could mean to society.
THANK YOU
Many of our past guests have been the first to contribute, and that's because they see the value clearest.
By contributing today, you make the podcast and its services available to those who need it, for another year.
Choose from among the many rewards listed below, or skip past them to make a simple monetary gift.
All of us at the podcast are grateful for our guests, our growing listenership, and the good work we're able to do.
Perks
Get thanked online at poeminthat.com, the official website of There's a Poem in That!
We'll thank you by name during the closing credits of an upcoming episode!
It's inevitable: TAPIT is doing such groundbreaking work, it's bound to become a book. And when it does, you'll get a signed first edition before anybody else!
Get your own personal box of 100 TAPIT calling cards, and become an ambassador of the show! Your box will arrive with 100 cards printed with the TAPIT logo on the front and guest instructions on the back, explaining the opportunity with the 808 number to call. When you're out and about, and you see or meet someone who seems like they'd make a great guest on the show -- anyone at all! -- hand them a card and encourage them to call. You could be the agent of something truly transformative in the life of a stranger -- or 100 strangers. Listen to the podcast, and you'll agree: there's a poem in everything, if you're paying attention. Double your gift at this level and get 200 cards! Plus prior rewards.
Skip the line and become (or nominate) a guest on the show! This express pass will bring you straight to the attention of host Todd Boss. Just remind Todd you're a VIP ticket holder when you leave your pitch message on TAPIT's Haiku, Hawaii listener line: 808-300-0449. You (or your nominee -- a loved one, a treasured colleague, a best friend, or a total stranger) will sail straight into the interview process. Three hours of interview, plus a realtime reveal of a completed custom poem, and the whole thing taped for broadcast. Listen to TAPIT for a clearer understanding of what being a guest entails. What a gift this will make for that special someone!
Hang this sign in your hall, office, or reception area, and you've become an affiliated Poetry Therapy Clinic! Endorsed by the National Association of Poetry Therapists, this affiliation requires no further resources on your part, but encourages visitors to call TAPIT's guest line at 808-300-0449 and enroll in our free or fee-based custom poetry services. They may become a guest on the show, or they may engage privately with a poet in the International Bureau of Custom Poetry. Listen to the podcast to understand how healing this work can be. This sign makes a great conversation starter about the extraordinary opportunity this alternative healthcare pathway can represent. Perfect for colleges, hospitals, schools, long-term care facilities, clinics, libraries, museums, performance halls... Comes with a complete set of 100 TAPIT ambassador cards.
Work directly with one of the world-class poets in the (TAPIT spinoff) International Bureau of Custom Poetry, and they'll write a custom poem just for you. Listen to There's a Poem in That for a demonstration of how this works. Make literary history and come as close as anybody can to the creative process of a rich poetic mind: Sasha LaPointe, Richard Blanco, Samiya Bashir, Dorianne Laux, Nick Flynn, Major Jackson, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Philip Metres, or Brian Turner. You'll get 3 hours of interview time with your choice of poet, plus an in-person reveal of the completed poem, private or taped for broadcast on TAPIT. A keepsake unlike any other.
Work directly with any world-class poet you choose, whether or not they are enrolled members of the (TAPIT spinoff) International Bureau of Custom Poetry, and they'll write a custom poem just for you. Listen to There's a Poem in That for a demonstration of how this works. Make literary history and come as close as anybody can to the creative process of your favorite poet. You'll get 3 hours of interview time with your poet, plus an in-person reveal of the completed poem, private or taped for broadcast on TAPIT. Subject to availability. A keepsake unlike any other.
A real conversation starter! Pick a date (during book fair, street festival, concert, or event) and The Pop-Up Poetry Therapy Clinic will mobilize, straight to you! It's a 5x5' medical tent emblazoned "Poetic Help 5¢" and it's equipped with a live mic into which passersby are invited to tell Todd "what's poetic" about their lives, for a chance to be a guest on TAPIT! It's a one-of-a-kind installation that's sure to spread joy. Double your gift for a 2-day experience!
Highlights
See all activity5Activity
Get thanked online at poeminthat.com, the official website of There's a Poem in That!
We'll thank you by name during the closing credits of an upcoming episode!
It's inevitable: TAPIT is doing such groundbreaking work, it's bound to become a book. And when it does, you'll get a signed first edition before anybody else!
Get your own personal box of 100 TAPIT calling cards, and become an ambassador of the show! Your box will arrive with 100 cards printed with the TAPIT logo on the front and guest instructions on the back, explaining the opportunity with the 808 number to call. When you're out and about, and you see or meet someone who seems like they'd make a great guest on the show -- anyone at all! -- hand them a card and encourage them to call. You could be the agent of something truly transformative in the life of a stranger -- or 100 strangers. Listen to the podcast, and you'll agree: there's a poem in everything, if you're paying attention. Double your gift at this level and get 200 cards! Plus prior rewards.
Skip the line and become (or nominate) a guest on the show! This express pass will bring you straight to the attention of host Todd Boss. Just remind Todd you're a VIP ticket holder when you leave your pitch message on TAPIT's Haiku, Hawaii listener line: 808-300-0449. You (or your nominee -- a loved one, a treasured colleague, a best friend, or a total stranger) will sail straight into the interview process. Three hours of interview, plus a realtime reveal of a completed custom poem, and the whole thing taped for broadcast. Listen to TAPIT for a clearer understanding of what being a guest entails. What a gift this will make for that special someone!
Hang this sign in your hall, office, or reception area, and you've become an affiliated Poetry Therapy Clinic! Endorsed by the National Association of Poetry Therapists, this affiliation requires no further resources on your part, but encourages visitors to call TAPIT's guest line at 808-300-0449 and enroll in our free or fee-based custom poetry services. They may become a guest on the show, or they may engage privately with a poet in the International Bureau of Custom Poetry. Listen to the podcast to understand how healing this work can be. This sign makes a great conversation starter about the extraordinary opportunity this alternative healthcare pathway can represent. Perfect for colleges, hospitals, schools, long-term care facilities, clinics, libraries, museums, performance halls... Comes with a complete set of 100 TAPIT ambassador cards.
Work directly with one of the world-class poets in the (TAPIT spinoff) International Bureau of Custom Poetry, and they'll write a custom poem just for you. Listen to There's a Poem in That for a demonstration of how this works. Make literary history and come as close as anybody can to the creative process of a rich poetic mind: Sasha LaPointe, Richard Blanco, Samiya Bashir, Dorianne Laux, Nick Flynn, Major Jackson, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Philip Metres, or Brian Turner. You'll get 3 hours of interview time with your choice of poet, plus an in-person reveal of the completed poem, private or taped for broadcast on TAPIT. A keepsake unlike any other.
Work directly with any world-class poet you choose, whether or not they are enrolled members of the (TAPIT spinoff) International Bureau of Custom Poetry, and they'll write a custom poem just for you. Listen to There's a Poem in That for a demonstration of how this works. Make literary history and come as close as anybody can to the creative process of your favorite poet. You'll get 3 hours of interview time with your poet, plus an in-person reveal of the completed poem, private or taped for broadcast on TAPIT. Subject to availability. A keepsake unlike any other.
A real conversation starter! Pick a date (during book fair, street festival, concert, or event) and The Pop-Up Poetry Therapy Clinic will mobilize, straight to you! It's a 5x5' medical tent emblazoned "Poetic Help 5¢" and it's equipped with a live mic into which passersby are invited to tell Todd "what's poetic" about their lives, for a chance to be a guest on TAPIT! It's a one-of-a-kind installation that's sure to spread joy. Double your gift for a 2-day experience!
