"Poetry is the Third Tool." A Chat With Tim Green, Editor of Rattle

Editor of one of the nation's leading poetry magazines shares his editorial vision

A brand new editor interview has just wrapped!

Today I had the pleasure of speaking with Tim Green, Editor of Rattle. Rattle is one of the country’s most well-known literary magazines with a circulation of 10,000 and an average of 200,000 poems submitted each year.

Tim and his wife Megan run the entire operation, which includes not only reading submissions and publishing great poetry but also a weekly Critique of the Week, Ekphrastic Challenge, a series for young poets, contests, a regular podcast and more.

Tim comes across as a kind and extremely generous editor who is passionate about both poetry and connecting poems with as wide an audience as possible. The magazine’s ethos is one of accessibility, egalitarianism and representing the voices of all people, across the political and social landscape.

We talked about many things in today’s interview, including what the editor’s role is in curating material, how poetry can serve as an “empathy bridge,” how poetry functions as a way to create meaning, and how writing actually boosts a human’s T-cells!

Tim also shared the most exquisite metaphor likening characters in Dune to poets. You’ll have to watch the video yourself to catch it.

Submissions to Rattle are open year-round. Non-contest submissions are free. Response time varies.

Thank you so much to Tim for spending this time with us today. And thanks to all of you who came out to attend the interview. It’s always great to see your faces! Excerpts from the chat are included below.

Happy viewing, everyone.

From the chat in today’s interview:

“I love the Young Poets work in RATTLE!”

“I love the Ekphrastic Challenge”

“I love that you are not what people label ‘academic poet’ Tim! I did not know that!”

“Tim makes a ‘renaissance man’ look narrowly focused, and he would have competed with James Brown for the title of ‘hardest working man in show business.’“

“Are you and Tim Green familiar with Planet Word Museum in Washington, DC. It offers all kinds of word experiences and lectures. I think you could make a wonderful contribution to this museum.”

“Tim, I love your acceptance letters but your rejection letters are equally unique - so kind.”

“I can't imagine reading so many poems day after day and having to choose, for work or enjoyment. I'm amazed!”

“Tim explains poetry in a most interesting way”

“The more I listen to Tim, the more I understand why I love Rattle - and why it feels so much more accessible than many other lit mags.”

“I'm amazed, just awed by Rattle's huge reach with dedicated ‘lean’ staff!”

“Any time one pays to enter a Rattle contest they automatically get a free subscription to Rattle.”

“I love getting my Rattle and the chapbooks are amazing….so well done. Thanks, Tim!”

*

Got a comment, question, idea or suggestion?

Know people who need to see this video right now?

Want to have access to the full archive of posts, attend upcoming Submissions Q & A sessions, and support this ongoing endeavor to demystify the world of literary magazines?