In this episode, we discuss the life and legacy of poet and essayist Louise Glück. To quote from the Poetry Foundation’s website: “Considered by many to be one of America’s most talented contemporary poets, Glück was known for her poetry’s technical precision, sensitivity, and insight into loneliness, family relationships, divorce, and death. In 2020, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature ‘for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal.'”
Glück penned 13 poetry collections during her career that spanned more than five decades. Some of her award-winning titles include The Triumph of Achilles, National Book Critics Circle Award in 1985; The Wild Iris, Pulitzer Prize in 1993; Poems 1962–2012; Los Angeles Times Book Prize in 2012; and Faithful and Virtuous Night, National Book Award in 2014, among many others. Additionally, her nonfiction collection, Proofs & Theories: Essays on Poetry, won the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for First Nonfiction in 1995.
In addition to the Nobel Prize, Glück’s lifetime achievement awards include the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal in Poetry and the National Humanities Medal, both awarded in 2015. And from 2003-2004, Glück served as the Poet Laureate of the United States.
For this episode, we are joined by two writers whose work has been influenced by Glück. Julia Cohen is a poet, essayist, and writing instructor whose latest work, Freak Lip, engages with Glück’s ideas. Peter Streckfus is a poet, writing instructor, and the author of two poetry books. One of them, The Cuckoo, won the Yale Series of Younger Poets competition in 2003, which was judged by Glück. You can read their full bios below.
Julia and Peter are interviewed by Nate King, Content & Exhibits Manager at the American Writers Museum. This conversation originally took place October 30, 2026 and was recorded over Zoom.
About our guests:
JULIA COHEN’S latest book is Freak Lip (TRP, 2026). She is the author of I Was Not Born (Noemi Press, 2014), a collection of lyric essays, which was translated into German and released by Literaturverlag Droschl. She’s also written two books of poetry, Collateral Light (Brooklyn Arts Press, 2014) and Triggermoon Triggermoon (BLP, 2011). Her nonfiction and poetry appear in issues of The Georgia Review, Southeast Review, The New England Review, Fugue, Heavy Feather Review, Boston Review, and BOMB. Julia has a BA from Wesleyan University, an MFA from The New School, and a PhD from the University of Denver. She’s an Associate Professor of English and Literature at Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design. She teaches creative writing, literature, and composition courses. She lives in Colorado Springs with her husband and fellow writer, Noel Black, and their kids.
PETER STRECKFUS is the author of two poetry books: Errings, winner of Fordham University Press’s 2013 POL Editor’s Prize, and The Cuckoo, which won the Yale Series of Younger Poets competition in 2003. His poems appear in journals such as the Bennington Review, The Chicago Review, The New Republic, and the Academy of American Poets’ poem-a-day. His awards include fellowships and grants from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, the Peter S. Reed Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the American Academy in Rome. He lives in the Washington DC area and is on the faculties of the Creative Writing Program at George Mason University and the Low-Residency Pan-European MFA in Creative Writing at Cedar Crest College. He is an editorial co-director of Poetry Daily.