still talking

No matter how it started, no matter where it went, he could talk his way out of any poem.

all seen and all said

Poem of an omniscient narrator versus a poem of an overknowledgeable orator.

poet output

The two-volume too much Ammons by half.

talk it out, way out

The poem crossed over from talk poetry to just crazy talk.

long flight

Reading the talk poet’s book all the way through was similar to getting stuck in an airplane seat next to an idle chatterer on a three-hour flight.

one-sided conversation

I got buttonholed by another talk poet today…couldn’t get a word (or even a thought) in edgewise.

person of interest

Perhaps when we speak of ‘voice’ what we’re hearing through the language is the poet’s character. In ‘talk poetry’ what we too often get is caricature or the cartoon outline of a person behind the poem.

natter manner

The natter mannerists: the ‘talk poets’.