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Ep. 79 - MaKshya Tolbert on Attention as Something to Interrupt Sorrow

In this intimate conversation, MaKshya Tolbert shares the "why" behind writing Shade is a place; explores loss, as a structure to see grief; the (devastating) consequences of wanting shade; and being invited into yourself.

MaKshya practices poetry and placemaking in Virginia, where her grandmother raised her.

She was the 2025 Art in Library Spaces Artist-in-Residence at the University of Virginia, 2024 New City Arts Fellowship Guest Curator, and serves on the Charlottesville Tree Commission (2022-present), including as 2024 Chair.

Her debut book of poems, Shade is a place (winner of the 2024…

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