Episode 12: Poet and Activist, Words and Names, Marks and Meaning: Jim Lavilla-Havelin

Jim Lavilla-Havelin says he can’t remember a time when he wasn’t writing. As a child he wrote puppet plays, poems, and stories. He began writing poetry seriously in high school. He also wrote a novel, which he lost. If anyone finds it, he has two words for them, “Burn it!”

Jim has written six collections of poetry, with several more in the works. His work has been anthologized widely, and he has been nominated for Poet Laureate of Texas, where he has lived for the last few decades.

 
 

This episode of Studio Aesculapius is different. Jim reads three poems and has a wide-ranging discussion with co-host, Eddie Dupuy: about the poems, about poetry, about art and activism, about language and knowing and finding patterns, about the human desire to make marks and the attempt to make meaning.

We think you’ll enjoy this conversation as much as we enjoyed recording it!

 
 

Jim reads his poems

 
 
 
 

Jim’s collections of poetry

TALES FROM THE BREAKAWAY REPUBLIC / Moonstone Press / Philadelphia PA / 2022

WEST / Wings Press / San Antonio TX / September 2017

 COUNTING / Pecan Grove Press / San Antonio TX / 2010

SIMON’S MASTERPIECE / White Pine Press / Buffalo NY / 1983

WHAT THE DIAMOND DOES IS HOLD IT ALL IN / White Pine Press / Buffalo NY / 1978

RITES OF PASSAGE / Charon Press / Boston, MA / 1969

 

Photo Credit: Karl Franklin

 
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Episode 13: Artists Telling Stories 2024 Extended Trailer

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Episode 11: Joe Harjo and Native Visibility: Not Monolithic, but Extraordinarily Diverse