A Conversation with Joanne Kyger

Abstract

Paul Watsky interviews Joanne Kyger, a poet identified with US avant-garde poetry of the mid-twentieth century. Their conversation explores the cultural milieu out of which her life and poetry grew: from mid-twentieth-century San Francisco to Kyoto, Japan, to Desecheo Island to Bolinas, California; from Jung and dreams to Zen and psychedelics. They delve into poetry, teaching, and the process of writing and letting “mistakes” guide the poem.