Welcome to There’s a Poem in That. It’s a podcast inspired by my practice of writing poems on private commission. For 15 years, I’ve made myself available to individual strangers who feel the need for a poem to be written just for them. One man wanted a love poem capable of saving a marriage. Another wanted a poem of tribute for a lifelong friend with a terminal illness. You can explore several of these commissioned projects in my creative portfolio at toddbossoriginals.com.
In 2022, I told my girlfriend about these projects. When she exclaimed, “If that was a podcast, I’d listen,” There’s a Poem in That was born. My standard commission fee was waived and a phone line was established — (808) 300-0449 — where strangers could leave their stories for me.
Since then, I’ve written poems for people searching for meaning in tragic losses, profound emotions, and momentous occasions. This is what poetry is best at: putting words to the unsayable. And it’s a terrific honor for me to do this work, and to have this newly public platform for it.
These are not street fair sideshow poems-while-you-wait, but standalone works of art meant to endure. They attempt to make the personal universal. They aspire to be gifts of the highest order. I am that rare, lucky poet who counts Poetry and The New Yorker among my publication credits, along with a major New York publisher, and I endeavor to bring that same level of artistry to the poems I write for my guests.
I welcome you to this new way of listening, learning, and collaborating.
