How to Make an Algorithm in the Microwave with Poet MAYA SALAMEH

From Stories, Poems & Music - The Creative Process by Novelists, Poets, Non-fiction Writers, Musicians, Screenwriters, Playwrights & Journalists on Writing - Creative Process Original Series

September 21, 2025 · 38 min · Season 15 · Episode 1176

About this episode

Maya Salameh discusses her poetry collection and the impact of her cultural experiences on her writing.

“Poetry is like one of the great loves of my life, and I think it's probably the longest relationship I'll ever have. I read a lot of poetry. I also wrote these short stories even when I was pretty young, like in second grade, and the stories kept getting shorter and shorter. My family used to go to Damascus in Syria and Lebanon every summer for three months until 2011, when the Civil War broke out in Syria. In 2015, we made our first return after that gap, and my father and I went to Lebanon for two weeks. It's the first time I felt that I belong. To the extent that was true or not, I'm obviously irrevocably American. I speak broken Arabic. I don't think I could ever live in Lebanon or Syria. But for what it was worth at 15 years old, it was a life-changing trip. I wrote my first official poem on the plane back to San Diego from that trip, and I feel that was a formative moment for me. I felt that I had a story to tell and wanted to put it to paper in the form of poetry.” In this episode of the Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor  David Palumbo-Liu talks with poet  Maya Salameh  about her poetry collection,  How to Make an Algorithm in the Microwave…

People in this episode

Host: David Palumbo-Liu

Guest: MAYA SALAMEH

Topics covered

poetry
identity
cultural belonging
creative process
personal narrative

Keywords

poetry
MAYA SALAMEH
David Palumbo-Liu
Etel Adnan Poetry Prize
cultural identity
creative writing
personal story

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Etel Adnan Poetry Prize

Books & works: How to Make an Algorithm in the Microwave

Places: Syria, Lebanon, San Diego