Episode 163 James Crews on the Radical Act of Rest
From Emerging Form by Christie Aschwanden
April 23, 2026 · 31 min
About this episode
James Crews discusses the importance of rest and slowing down in the creative process.
“It feels like a radical practice not to be productive, to allow the space to guide what comes next,” says prolific poet and beloved writing teacher James Crews. “I have tendencies toward control.” In this episode, we talk about the importance of slowing down and doing less, and why a creative practice depends on this. James reads several poems from his new collection, Breathing Room: Poems of Rest and Retreat , and we talk about creating healthy boundaries around productivity, embodiment in a creative practice, and poetry as a spiritual practice. James Crews lives on forty rocky acres in Southern Vermont, on the unceded lands of the Abenaki people, with his husband Brad Peacock, with whom he co-edited Love Is for All of Us: Poems of Tenderness & Belonging from the LGBTQ+ Community & Friends (Storey Publishing) . Crews is the author of several collections of poems, including Unlocking the Heart, Turning Toward Grief and Breathing Room. To sign up for free weekly poems and for more info, visit: jamescrews.net . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit emergingform.substack.com/subscribe
People in this episode
Host: Christie Aschwanden
Guest: James Crews
Topics covered
- creativity
- rest
- poetry
- productivity
- boundaries
- spiritual practice
Keywords
- rest
- creativity
- poetry
- productivity
- boundaries
- spiritual practice
- James Crews
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Breathing Room: Poems of Rest and Retreat, Love Is for All of Us: Poems of Tenderness & Belonging from the LGBTQ+ Community & Friends
Places: Southern Vermont, Abenaki
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