Maggie Smith on Despair, Hope, Divorce, and Poetry

Right now, in our society, there is so much to be anxious about.
There are many factors that could lead one to feel depressed and
defeated. If one already has a tendency toward anxiety and
depression, that path can be even shorter. But as a member of
that society, one must look for hope anyway. It’s that dynamic
relationship between despair and hope that led us to reach out to
Maggie Smith. The American poet Maggie Smith, not the British
actor Maggie Smith.


Maggie is the author of several volumes of poetry and her work
has appeared in the New Yorker, the Paris Review, the New York
Times, and the Best American Poetry anthology. She became very
well known in 2016 when her poem “Good Bones”, about the
bleakness of the present and the possibility of a better future,
became a viral hit.


In this interview, she talks about her anxious childhood, the
pessimism people knew her for as an adult, a divorce that changed
her significantly, and how to unleash your inner weirdness for
the benefit of yourself and your writing.


For books, events, and more poems, visit Maggie's website at
www.MaggieSmithPoet.com. Follow Maggie on Twitter
@maggiesmithpoet.


Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly
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Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear
what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you
like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at
depreshmode@maximumfun.org.


Help is available right away.


The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255,
1-800-273-TALK


Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.


International suicide hotline numbers available
here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines


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John's acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is
available
here. https://read.macmillan.com/lp/the-hilarious-world-of-depression/


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