The Unruly Muse

Song 1:   “Lost Soul” (by Dave Merrill) Poem 1: “Rock, Scissors, Paper, the Anniversary Edition, 11 September 2020”        by Sandra Yannone. This poem comes from her recent collection, The Glass Studio. Since March 2020, she's hosted the international online reading series Cultivating Voices LIVE Poetry. Her newest collection is Fire at the Big Top. Visit her at www.sandrayannone.com Fiction: “An...

Song 1: “Peace” (by Larry Modaff with Good Enough ) Poem 1: “For a Long Time I Have Wanted to Write a Poem About Happiness” by Susan Aizenberg. This poem, from her second collection, Quiet City (BkMk Press 2015); her newest collection is A Walk With Frank O’Hara (Mary Burritt Christiansen Poetry Series/University of New Mexico Press 2024). Fiction: excerpts from “David’s Harvest: Stories,” a colle...

Song 1: “Before the Magi” (John V. Modaff, sung by The Woman of Mystery) Poem 1: “Occupied” by Scott Wiggerman. His new collection, Beginning and Ending with Emily , came out Spring of 2026 with Casa Urraca Press. Scott lives in Albuquerque and is a painter and a poet.  https://scottwiggerman.myportfolio.com/ Fiction: excerpt from The Surrogate by Lynn C. Miller, published March 31, 2026 from Univ...

Song 1: “Say Hello” (composed and performed by John V. Modaff) Poem 1: “Narrative Without People” by Hilda Raz, from Divine Honors.  Author of eight collections of poems. The epigraph to this book is by Cynthia Macdonald: “May I see what I have tried not to see.” Hilda’s collected poems are published by the University of Nebraska Press (2021). Fiction: “Hello Hello,” a story by Lynn C. Miller. Her...

Song 1: Ride Downtown (composed & performed by John V Modaff, with Dave Merrill on 2nd & 3rd guitars and harmonica)        Poem 1: “Eleanor Remembers” by Susan Aizenberg, published in 2025 in  On the Seawall , a community gallery of new writing, art, and commentary. Susan is a poet living in Iowa City; her latest book is: A Walk With Frank O’Hara (U of New Mexico Press, 2024.) Fiction: “She Always...

Song 1: “Like They Did” (composed and performed by John V. Modaff with Dan Modaff on mandolin and 2nd/3rdguitars) Poem 1: “Bringing Back the Dead” by Julie Williams, a poet and visual artist. Author of Escaping Tornado Season and Drama Queens in the House.  Her new poetry collection is in process.  Prose Fiction: “The Home Place,” excerpt of a short story by Lynn C. Miller, whose fifth novel, The...

Song 1: “You Can’t Do That” (composed and performed by John Modaff) Poem 1: “Vegetable Medley” by Mikki Aronoff, a much-published Albuquerque poet, Pushcart nominee, and animal advocate .  Poem first published in The Dribble Drabble Review.  Fiction: excerpt from Death of a Department Chair by Lynn C. Miller. Her fifth novel, The Surrogate , comes out in Spring, 2026 from the University of Wiscons...

Song 1: “Homeless” (by Daniel P. Modaff with  Good Enough ) Poem 1: “Burned” by Jack Cooper, author of Silly Lily’s Rhyming Adventures In Nature (2023) and Across My Silence (2007) World Audience, Inc.  https://sillylilysadventures.com/ Fiction: “Displaced,” a short story by Lynn C. Miller. Her fifth novel, The Surrogate , comes out March 31, 2026 from the University of Wisconsin Press. To pre-ord...

Song 1: “Is That Love” (John V. Modaff) Poem 1: “Little Histories” by Scott Wiggerman whose new book of poems comes out in Spring of 2026 with Casa Urraca Press. Scott lives in Albuquerque and is a painter and a poet among other things. https://scottwiggerman.myportfolio.com/ Fiction: from the novel The Surrogate by Lynn C. Miller. Coming out March 31, 2026 from the University of Wisconsin Press....

Song 1: “Disappear” (Daniel P. Modaff with Good Enough on the CD Dakota Plains ) Poem 1: “For the Dark Girl” by Susan Aizenberg. Published in her first full-length collection, Muse. Susan lives in Iowa City, IA. Her most recent book is A Walk With Frank O’Hara (U of New Mexico Press, 2024.) Fiction: “Shock Without Awe,” a short story by Lynn C. Miller. Her most recent book is The Lost Archive: Sto...

Song 1: “Twenty Wishes” (John V. Modaff, w/ lead guitar and mandolin by Dan Modaff) Poem 1: “You Weary Listening To Their First World Complaints” by Mikki Aronoff. Published in Gooseberry Pie . Mikki is featured this year in Best Microfiction 2025 and Best Small Fictions 2025. Fiction excerpt: Scene from the novel The Unmasking by Lynn C. Miller, published by UNM Press, 2020. www.lynncmiller.com F...

Song 1: “Speak Up,” (composed and performed by John V. Modaff, with guitars by Dan Modaff and Dave Merrill) Poem 1: “Sound Barrier” by Scott Wiggerman from the “Fire” chapter of Presence (San Antonio TX: Pecan Grove Press, 2011), a book arranged around the elements. Fiction excerpt: from the novel Death of a Department Chair by Lynn C. Miller. University of Wisconsin Press, 2006. https://uwpress.w...

Song 1: “The Eyes Have It,” composed and performed by John V. Modaff Poem 1: “In Hurricane With Horses” by Mark Sanders. Mark lives in Nacogdoches, TX and teaches at Stephen F. Austin University. https://sandersme1.wixsite.com/mark-sanders/ Fiction excerpt: from the novel Death of a Department Chair by Lynn C. Miller. University of Wisconsin Press, 2006. https://uwpress.wisc.edu/Books/D/Death-of-a...

Song 1: “Day Never Comes,” composed and performed by David R. Merrill. Poem 1: “Leda and the Swan” by Nobel prize-winning poet W. B. Yeats, composed in 1923 and first printed in 1924. Fiction: “The Secret Pool,” by Lynn C. Miller, excerpted from her first novel The Fool’s Journey , 2002 (Winedale Press). In press is the novel The Surrogate for 2026.   www.lynncmiller.com Feed the Cat Break: “The L...

Song 1: The God Machine (Dave Merrill and John V. Modaff) Poem 1: “To the Mother of the Sixteen-Year-Old Boy Shot Dead by the Police After She’d Called Them” by Susan Aizenberg. From Quiet City , BkMk Press 2015. Her most recent book is A Walk With Frank O’Hara (U of New Mexico Press, 2024). Fiction: Excerpt from The Surrogate by Lynn C. Miller, in press with U of Wisconsin Press, 2026. www.lynncm...

Song 1: “The Swing Set Song” by Andrew Preston and AP Harbor, from the album Mildepond Poem 1: “Contemplating Eternity While Sticking Its Neck Out” by Julie Williams, author of Escaping Tornado Season and Drama Queens in the House. A poetry collection is under review. Story excerpt: “Neighbors” by Lynn C. Miller, from David’s Harvest, stories, in process. Her latest book is The Lost Archive: stori...

Song 1: “The Young & The Old” (composed by David R. Merrill, performed with John Modaff) Poem 1: “Cousin Judy Paints” by Mikki Aronoff, a much-published Albuquerque poet, Pushcart nominee, and animal advocate. Short Story: “Satisfaction” by Lynn C. Miller. Her novel THE SURROGATE is in process with the University of Wisconsin Press for 2026. www.lynncmiller.com Feed the Cat Break: “Bouree” (JS Bac...

Song 1: “I Can’t Sing That Song” (John V. Modaff) Poem 1: “Ecdysis Sonnet” by Sandra Yannone. Sandy’s new collection is the glass studio (Salmon Poetry, 2024). Fiction: excerpt from the novel in progress, “The Angel of Devastation.” Her latest book is The Lost Archive: stories , https://uwpress.wisc.edu/books/6155.htm Feed the Cat Break:  “Different Same,” by Jonathan A. Modaff Poem 2: “Sympatheti...

Song 1: “Clever Brilliant Mind” (by David R. Merrill with John Modaff) Poem 1: “I’m” by Jack Cooper, author of Silly Lily’s Rhyming Adventures In Nature (2023) and Across My Silence (2007) World Audience, Inc. https://sillylilysadventures.com/   Fiction: three short excerpts from her third novel The Day After Death by Lynn C. Miller, published by the University of New Mexico Press, 2016. www. lynn...

Song 1: “I’m Not Your Maybe” (Daniel P. Modaff, performed with GOOD ENOUGH from the album Saturday’s Child ) Poem 1: “Conditional Love Story” by Barbara Rockman, author of the poetry collections To Cleave and Sting and Nest . Barbara is a poet and teacher whose homebase is Santa Fe. Fiction: Excerpt from “The Surrogate,” a novel in process by Lynn C. Miller, whose latest book is The Lost Archive:...

Song 1: Glimpses by Daniel P. Modaff, Jennifer Butler Modaff & Mark E. Collins, performed by GOOD ENOUGH from their new album, Saturday’s Child (2024) . Poem 1: “Remember the Boneyard,” by Julie Williams from a collection in progress. Author of Escaping Tornado Season and Drama Queens in the House . Fiction: “Near Death,” a short story by Lynn C. Miller.  www.lynncmiller.com FEED THE CAT BREAK: “J...

Song 1: “Long Road” (Mark E. Collins & Daniel P. Modaff, BMI) Poem 1: “Breath” by Sarah Kotchian, from her new collection Light of Wings , UNM Press (2024): https://www.unmpress.com/9780826365972/light-of-wings/ Fiction: excerpt from “Curiosities” a short story by Lynn C. Miller, from The Lost Archive by (2023) https://uwpress.wisc.edu/books/6155.htm     www.lynncmiller.com Feed the Cat Break: cut...

Song 1: You Told , composed and performed by John V. Modaff. Poem 1: “The Wicked Stepmother Tells Her Story,” published in bosque journal and later in We Were Meant to Carry Water as “Frail Cradle.”  https://tinacarlsonpoetry.com/ Fiction: “Cautionary Tale” by Lynn C. Miller, author of, most recently, The Lost Archive : Stories (2023), from a novel in progress.  www.lynncmiller.com Feed the Cat Br...

Song 1: "Old Truck" composed by David R. Merrill, performed by D.R. Merrill & John Modaff Poem 1: “Data Affirmative” by Scott Wiggerman, Albuquerque poet, artist, and editor https://scottwiggerman.myportfolio.com/ Fiction: excerpt from The Unmasking , a novel by Lynn C. Miller ( www.lynncmiller.com ) Published by University of New Mexico Press: https://www.unmpress.com/9780826361714/the-unmasking...

Song 1: “Family at the Door,” (by John V. Modaff with Good Enough ) Poem 1: “Midnight, with Dogs” by Mark Sanders. Mark lives in Nacogdoches, TX and teaches at Stephen F. Austin University. https://sandersme1.wixsite.com/mark-sanders/ Fiction: Excerpt from “Words Shimmer,” from The Lost Archive by Lynn C. Miller (2023) https://uwpress.wisc.edu/books/6155.htm   www.lynncmiller.com Feed the cat brea...