Caroljean Gavin is a writer and editor whose work is forthcoming from Best Small Fictions 2021. Justin Phillip Reed is an American writer and amateur bass guitarist. Robert Olen Butler has published 18 novels and 6 collections of short stories, one of which won the Pulitzer Prize.
(Transcript)
Welcome to Micro, a podcast for short but powerful writing. I’m your host, Drew Hawkins
Caravaggio, Walt Whitman, and stories as objects: with pieces that pay tribute to and reference other forms of art, even questioning their own form, this episode is a nod to art that’s come before, and art that is yet to come. It’s not an episode, it’s a love letter. It’s art criticism. It’s a piece of fruit.
Up first is a piece that demands attention from all your senses. It’s called “Once Tasted.” It was written by Caroljean Gavin and published by Milk Candy Review on April 22, 2021. Enjoy.
“Once Tasted” by Caroljean Gavin in Milk Candy Review
Caroljean Gavin is a writer and editor whose work is forthcoming from Best Small Fictions 2021 and has appeared in places such as Stone of Madness Press, Rejection Letters, and Barrelhouse. You can find her on Twitter at @caroljeangavin, or on her website at caroljeangavin.com.
Next up is a poem that pairs Caravaggio with an icy horror movie, itself both art—and criticism. It’s called “Adam Green’s Frozen,” and it was written by Justin Phillip Reed. Enjoy
“Adam Green’s Frozen” by Justin Phillip Reed
Justin Phillip Reed is an American writer and amateur bass guitarist whose preoccupations include horror cinema, poetic form, morphological transgressions, and uses of the grotesque. You can find him on his website at justinphillipreed.com.
Our final piece features two literary figures you may know, and pairs them together in a bedroom. From his book titled Intercourse, comprised of pairs of short short stories recording the internal monologues transpiring within fifty couples in the midst of having sex comes a scene between Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde from Robert Olen Butler, who notes that the fact that Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde had intimate relations on the latter’s American tour in 1883 was previously undocumented. Enjoy.
“Walt Whitman and Oscar Wilde” by Robert Olen Butler from Intercourse (Chronicle Books)
Robert Olen Butler has published 18 novels and 6 collections of short stories, one of which won the Pulitzer Prize. You can find him on Facebook at Robert Olen Butler, on Twitter at @RobtOlenButler, or on Instagram at @robertolenbutler.
Micro is edited and curated by Dylan Evers, our social media is managed by fellow curator M.M. Kaufman, and the show is produced and hosted by me, Drew Hawkins. Our theme song is by Matt Ordes. You can find all of the information about this episode’s writers, their featured work, and the publications where they were published, as well as a transcription of this episode in the show notes.
Find more of our shows wherever you listen to podcasts, check out our website at micropodcast.org, and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at podcastmicro.
Thanks for listening.