What is a poem? When does a poem become an essay, or an essay a poem? When is it effective or necessary for a piece of writing to break the rules; of form, of grammar, of genre? Regardless of what it is, what makes it good?
These questions are why we keep our submission guidelines loose. As editors of an independent journal, we keep our minds open. We want to leave room for writing that transgresses boundaries. We want to be surprised. We never know where the right piece will come from, or what it will say. More than any insistence on form, we want work that obscures the line between word and embodiment–that reaches into us and changes us from within.
We're the editors of the samfiftyfour literary journal. Welcome to our podcast. Here we take an editor's eye to literary craft, curation, and publishing. We discuss works we've published, works that influenced us, and more. We break down pieces of writing and allow them to break us down too. It's a freeform conversation with loose criteria.
Find us at samfiftyfour.com or on instagram @samfiftyfour
Submissions are always open
Did we lose something or did we get something new?
In this episode Adam, Dylan, and Abigail discuss fragments as a literary form, touching on; Anne Carson (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/anne-carson)'s Sappho (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/sappho), Maggie Nelson (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/maggie-nelson), Roland Barthes (https://monoskop.org/images/b/b3/Roland_Barthes_by_Roland_Barthes.pdf), Kubla Khan (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43991/kubla-khan), Michael Crighton/James Patterson, CS Lewis, Richard Brautigan (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48577/san-francisco), Annie Ernaux, Joseph Cornell (https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/joseph-cornell-papers-5790), Sei Shonagon, Mary Oliver (https://allpoetry.com/poem/15374240-The-summer-day-by-Mary-J-Oliver), Lydia Davis, and Sheila Heti.
Become a patron on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/samfiftyfour) for bonus content and be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Issue XI out soon, submissions open for Issue XII (https://samfiftyfour.com/submit)
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
10 Apr 2025
The Page Ought to Stay Blank
I actually take things way too seriously
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss Deleuze (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhizome_(philosophy)), Whitman (https://poets.org/poem/song-myself-6-child-said-what-grass), Doty (https://poets.org/poem/what-grass-0), Nezhukumatathil (https://milkweed.org/author/aimee-nezhukumatathil), Duras (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lover_(Duras_novel)), and Eliot (https://poetryarchive.org/poem/journey-magi/). Plus get a sneak peak of our most elusive editor who you may be hearing more from soon.
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
27 Mar 2025
A True Admiration Episode
We could get into the craft of it or we can just let the story take us away.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss the short stories of Emily Dixon from Issue I (https://samfiftyfour.com/shop/ols/products/samfiftyfour-issue-1-download), Issue V (https://samfiftyfour.com/shop/ols/products/issue-v-download), and our 2020 scary story contest (https://samfiftyfour.com/scary-story-contest-2020) as well as one published in East of the Web. (https://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/SainLiza1214.shtml)
Read Lockdown Baby and the Death of Liza Minelli (https://files.captivate.fm/library/e545eef4-2ab7-45ea-8362-59329f797915/Lockdown-Baby-And-The-Death-of-Liza-Minnelli.pdf), The Jelly and the Stars (https://files.captivate.fm/library/b0ec9023-8ed0-49bd-a983-60bfbb44d718/The-Jelly-and-the-Stars.pdf), and Witch Jesus (https://files.captivate.fm/library/eb1b5fc7-11de-48b9-bc8d-c14f1de54735/Witch-Jesus-corrected.pdf).
Emily Dixon lives in London where she works in education, alongside writing and comedy. During her degree in medieval studies, she came to writing through epics and dream visions, and wondering where lost or dormant genres have gone in the twenty first century. Her writing has been published in samfiftyfour and East of the Web, and featured on BBC radio and several podcasts.
Follow Emily Dixon on Instagram. (https://www.instagram.com/emilymdxn?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
20 Mar 2025
Clearly Not Suited for an English Class
This is a poetry podcast, its not therapy.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss their early introductions into poetry including Sonnet 18 (https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45087/sonnet-18-shall-i-compare-thee-to-a-summers-day&ved=2ahUKEwihnJ7p8JmMAxV6PbkGHc3AFXEQFnoECBYQAQ&usg=AOvVaw2a0Gc1xLgUem0rXtBvRCTO), Richard Brautigan (https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48585/the-pill-versus-the-springhill-mine-disaster&ved=2ahUKEwi6h-L58JmMAxUzEbkGHReoKhkQFnoECEgQAQ&usg=AOvVaw1zi_dJRU6Cxb4hpWSzTQkE), and Claude McKay (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44694/if-we-must-die); plus divorce, spiritual blockages, the revelation of writing, and the American public school system
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
27 Feb 2025
That There's a Shit Load of Lumium
In submitting, one edits.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss all of Tim Wilson's work that has appeared in samfiftyfour; plus Old Man Curtis (https://files.captivate.fm/library/bbbe7e16-5ba5-4019-aef6-a04f45684a84/Tim-old-man-Curtis.pdf) and Philip K Dick. Become a patron on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/samfiftyfour) for more discussion and a line by line reading of Lumium.
Tim Wilson Lives in the Suburbs with his wife and 3.5 sons; Tim Wilson has lived many lives, but he prefers this one; Everyone agrees that Tim Wilson married up; Tim Wilson has a cold.
Follow Tim Wilson on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/timwilsonnz?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==).
Read all the poems here. (https://files.captivate.fm/library/5fb80cdd-e4d8-4128-93d0-4f13e2458519/Tim-Wilson-Total.pdf)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
20 Feb 2025
FAQ Part 2 - To Be Seen Through the Eyes of Another
Writing and submitting are two different things.
In this episode Adam and Dylan answer some frequently asked questions relating to cover letters, turnaround time, form rejections, best practices, and what we ask for in our contracts. Also a brief interlude about Wilkins Cider (https://wilkinscider.com) as referenced by Tim (Old Man) Curtis in Issue III (https://samfiftyfour.com/shop/ols/products/issue-iii-download). Please get in touch and let us know any other publishing questions you might have.
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
13 Feb 2025
FAQ part 1 - Submission Fees - PT2SFS
Why might a lit mag charge submission fees?
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss the various thought processes behind submission/reading fees, why editors have to love what they do, as well as a few tips for submitting your work. The rest of this conversation with more FAQs will be out next week.
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
6 Feb 2025
The Curse of the Mud Ball Kid
Palestine +100: Stories From a Century After the Nakba
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss The Curse of the Mud Ball Kid by Mazen Maarouf, the nature and definitions of sci-fi, C.S. Lewis, P.K. Dick, and what makes a story beautiful.
Find the collection from Deep Vellum. (https://store.deepvellum.org/products/palestine-100)
Watch Al Jazeera's Poets of Protest (https://www.aljazeera.com/program/artscape-poets-of-protest/2014/4/11/mazen-maarouf-hand-made).
Check out Walden Pond Books (https://www.waldenpondbooks.com)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
30 Jan 2025
This Great Tradition of Writing
Weird things happen weird places and then those places continue to exist.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss the concept of literary pilgrimages including City Lights bookstore, hitchhiking, Hemingway in Spain, and the graves of Oscar Wilde and F. Scott Fitzgerald; plus Lincoln in the Bardo, John Keats's Ode on a Grecian Urn (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44477/ode-on-a-grecian-urn), and Annie Dillard's Holy the Firm. Become a patron on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/samfiftyfour) for a bonus discussion of Dylan's Thomas Merton pilgrimage.
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on bluesky, (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social) instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
23 Jan 2025
Executive Orders - Essay Contest
The political moment and all of that.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss the nature of being a creative in turbulent times, the effects of public discussion on personal life, Jericho Brown's Hustle (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57692/hustle), Hannah Grace Nemetz Todd's Eli Dreams Nos 1-9, the ghazal as a self-incriminating form, as well as what we're looking for in our now-running essay contest. (https://samfiftyfour.com/executive-orders)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==), bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/samfiftyfour.bsky.social), and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
16 Jan 2025
Almost Unimaginable Suffering
This is a piece that Reeaallyy explains itself.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss the experimental form and function of Greg Sendi's poem "Prayer for a Lost Child (with notes)"; plus advice for new poets, the Rime of the Ancient Mariner (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43997/the-rime-of-the-ancient-mariner-text-of-1834), and Maggie Nelson (https://www.wavepoetry.com/products/bluets). Become a patron on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/samfiftyfour) to get bonus episodes and help support samfiftyfour.
Greg Sendi lives in and writes from the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. Recently his poetry, fiction and essays have appeared in variety of literary magazines. His 2020 short story “Two Not Touch” was shortlisted for the 2021 Driftwood Press Adrift short story competition. His 2022 poems “A Compass for Ariadne” and “Bottom” were finalists for the 2023 Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival Poetry Contest.
Read the full text here. (https://files.captivate.fm/library/e8601e95-6663-4e2c-9232-8de545ae62ff/Prayer-for-a-Lost-Child-with-notes.pdf)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com/), follow us on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
9 Jan 2025
Poets Need to Shut the Fuck Up
You don't have to do much, you just have to write the poem.
In this episode Adam and Dylan discuss all of Steve Denehan's work that has appeared in samfiftyfour; plus the Issue II cover (https://files.captivate.fm/library/933bfca3-0899-4c06-94aa-5e1c22a571c6/issue-2-cover.jpg), Pablo Neruda's Ode to my Socks (https://poets.org/poem/ode-my-socks), and asmr with frida the cat. Become a patron on patreon (https://www.patreon.com/c/samfiftyfour) for a bonus line by line reading of Leaving Winter Behind.
Steve Denehan (https://www.stevedenehanpoetry.com/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAabN7rBMnDrfz5Nq1yVyhMVCIRmOyrPVeou9x2d6mWQjAC2QAkW4BfOAlco_aem_bS1ZpFglYgKzGjHfEnUStQ)lives in Kildare, Ireland with his wife Eimear and daughter Robin. He is the author of two chapbooks and four poetry collections; winner of the Anthony Cronin Poetry Award and twice winner of Irish Times' New Irish Writing, his numerous publication credits include Poetry Ireland Review and Westerly.
Follow Steve Denehan on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/steverinod?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==) and Twitter. (https://x.com/SteverinoD)
Read all the poems here. (https://files.captivate.fm/library/3783a57f-0c16-4cf9-97b9-0ba4793fb3ed/Steve-Denehan-VIII-IX-X.pdf)
Be sure to visit us at samfiftyfour.com (https://samfiftyfour.com), follow us on instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CxaYL5Fr1hd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) and twitter (https://x.com/samfiftyfour1), and support us on patreon (https://patreon.com/samfiftyfour).
Deadline for Issue XI submissions is February 25th, 2025
Closing music courtesy of SculptyWorks (https://youtu.be/ib5tu2k4vBU?si=kk4IQ8YDrhGMh53R)
30 Dec 2024
Open Mics are for Making People Sad
Adam and Dylan discuss The Twelfth Station, a poem that first appeared in Issue I of samfiftyfour in September 2020. Written by Maria Harkin of Belfast, this poem deals with some heavy themes including religion and suicide. Read the full poem here. (https://files.captivate.fm/library/981d943a-cc9c-4075-8888-d20a701eec0f/The-Twelfth-Station-PDF.pdf) Get a copy of the issue this poem appears in here. (https://samfiftyfour.com/shop/ols/products/samfiftyfour-issue-i)
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
6 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 17 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
21
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
32
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