Your Favorite Poet's Favorite Poet Anthology

This fundraiser is one in a series going toward Your Favorite Poet's Favorite Poet.

Your Favorite Poet's Favorite Poet will be an anthology composed of poems and interviews with 25+ contemporary poets, highlighting the authors who inspired them to find their voice. The book, paired with a corresponding curriculum, proves that every poet has to start somewhere – and that behind every good writer, is a good reader.

The project is being created to be used in classrooms and community spaces with an eye toward social justice and projects that further the poets' legacies and reach. It will offer a peek behind the scenes into your favorite poet's creative process and early inspiration – showing how readers can find their own path toward self-expression. With poems, interviews, close-reads and prompts, the materials are being designed to give dimensional introductions to the work and legacies of poets featured, paired with tools to bring the voices of new generations of writers forward.

The line up includes:

Ada Limón on Muriel Rukeyser

Tyehimba Jess on Sterling D. Plumpp

Sharon Olds on Ruth Stone

Airea D. Matthews on Margaret Walker

Gregory Pardlo on Sharon Olds

Dorianne Laux and Tina Chang on Carolyn Forché

Dunya Mikhail on Wisława Szymborska

Nikky Finney on Lucille Clifton

Patricia Smith on Gwendolyn Brooks

Joseph Millar on James Wright

Tongo Eisen-Martin on Audre Lorde

Hanif Abdurraqib on Mari Evans

Mahogany Browne on Sonia Sanchez

Naomi Shihab Nye on W.S. Merwin

Vievee Francis on Janice Harrington

Gabrielle Calvocoressi on Elizabeth Bishop

Ross Gay on Steve Scafidi

Toi Derricotte on Sylvia Plath

Tarfia Faizullah on Ai

Ladan Osman on Brigit Pegeen Kelly

Arthur Sze on Josephine Miles

Ellen Bass on Anne Sexton

Mark Doty on Walt Whitman

Kimiko Hahn on Richard Wright

Campaign rewards

$15: Curated Playlist by Hanif Abdurraqib

$20: "B.B. King" close read w/ Tyehimba Jess

$25 Sharon Olds reading Ruth Stone poems

$35 Ross Gay mini lecture on Steve Scafidi

$50 Your own copy of the anthology

$250 Dorianne Laux mini video lesson

$500 Gabrielle Calvocoressi mini video lesson + Laux

$750 Ada Limón mini video lesson + Laux + Calvocoressi

$1000 Nikky Finney mini video lesson + Limón, Laux, Calvocoressi

Funds raised through this event will support photo, art and poem permissions for the 50+ poets featured in the Your Favorite Poet's Favorite Poet anthology, ebook, digital curriculum and additional materials (in development).

Fundraising for this project has been taking place via a successful Kickstarter in 2022 ($26k raised!), a series of Eventbrite classes in 2023-2024 (present), and this GoFund Me page.

This project is very much in the spirit of gratitude and community - and is possible through these fundraisers. Thank you for your support!