Interview with Kevin Simmonds

“This distinct lived vernacular of New Orleans is poetic. It just is. I used to resent the mythologizing of my hometown, but its history is epic and felt in the present. I see why people want and need it as a totem,” says Kevin Simmonds in James Redd’s interview with the New Orleans poet, editor, and musician. Check out the full interview here.

Crooked Letter Year in Review

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed, but what a year! Take a look back at the authors Redd has interviewed who have lived in the Crooked Letter state. His year-in-review post recollects the conversations featured on the Prairie Schooner blog, but, of course, there are others: Michael Farris Smith in the New Orleans Review and Chris Offutt  in the Oxford American. Find out exciting about the next year in conversation, too.