BCC Shines a Light On: Bill Hollands
Name of the piece published by BCC:
When/where was it originally published:
The American Journal of Poetry (now defunct), 2021
Tell us more about your piece! What is the background of the piece? What led you to write it? What’s your process?
This poem is based on the most famous episode of the 1970s sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show. At about the same time that I composed this poem I also wrote a couple more inspired by television shows from my youth (Gilligan’s Island, The Love Boat). I watched a lot of TV when I was a kid, and these poems were a way to explore my childhood and also honor the impact that those shows had on me. A fellow poet called them ekphrastic poems, and I guess that’s right.
How did you feel when it was first published and how have your thoughts or feelings on the piece changed from then to now?
This was one of my first publications, so I was very excited. I don’t think my feelings about it have really changed; I still like it pretty well. But my first collection is coming out in June 2025 so I’m looking at it now less in isolation and more in relation to the other poems in the collection.
Is there a specific message you would like readers to take away from reading this piece?
No specific message, but one thing I’ve been thinking about as I read it again is how the poet/speaker is entirely hidden in the poem, other than in the choices he makes in how to render the show’s plot. There is no “I” in the poem. (This is different from my other two TV-based poems, where the speaker is very much present.) The only spot where the mask slips is in the title, “Confessional Poem.” In what way is this a confessional poem? What is the poet/speaker confessing? I’m interested in the tension between the title, which establishes an expectation for personal detail, and the poem itself, which is seemingly entirely devoid of personal information.
What else would you like to tell readers about your writing? (Doesn’t have to refer only to your BCC piece)
I believe that when there is a pop culture reference in a poem (or any kind of reference or allusion, I guess) it’s important that the poem works even if a reader isn’t familiar with the source. I think about that a lot.
Where can readers find more of your work? (Website/social media, etc)
My website is https://billhollandspoetry.com/. I am on X @bill_hollands. And, as mentioned above, my full-length collection Mangrove will by published by ELJ Editions in June 2025. Thanks for reading!
