Access to the following interviews are provided free of charge by the Soldner Center, however we welcome donations through this link:
October 9th, 2025
Heather Swan and James Crews discuss the writer's journey, writing as a practice of engagement with the world, audience, the coexistence of joy and grief, and how James feels “creating something out of my everyday life that others respond to [is] a magical thing that we get to do.”
James is the author of four collections of poetry, including Telling My Father, winner of the Cowles Prize, and two collections of prose, and has edited several poetry anthologies with Storey Press, including The Path To Kindness: Stories of Connection and Joy. Love is For All of Us, an anthology edited by James and his husband Brad Peacock, celebrates LGTBQ+ writers. His newest collection Turning Toward Grief: Reflections on Life, Loss, and Appreciation will be available in late October.
September 11th, 2025
Heather Swan and Cynthia Marie Hoffman-Studner discuss writing from obsessions, form, and writing for large projects, writing as a way of healing, and much more. Cynthia is the author of five books of poetry and has had essays appear in such places as The Sun and Time Magazine. Her most recent book, Exploding Head, narrates her experience growing up with OCD.
August 14th, 2025
Heather Swan and Nickole Brown discuss poetry as prayer, Nickole's fierce love of the more-than-human world, poetry after disaster, the courage to love in difficult times, and much more.
Nickole is the author of several books of poetry including To Those Who Were Our First Gods and Sister, and is the Executive Director and President of the Hellbender Gathering of Poets.