7 Favorites, Interviews & News
Personal Selections & Mentions in the Media
Hello My Friends,
Here are 7 selections from the 7 Wild Sonnets books. While I will maintain that each of the 700 published Wild Sonnets has some moment of music and magic in it, there are those that land with a grace all their own. These selections are a few of the many that meet this description. I hope you enjoy them.
From The Wild Sonnets: Volume VII (601-700).
want the paperback?
From The Wild Sonnets: Volume VI (501-600).
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From The Wild Sonnets: Volume V (401-500).
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From The Wild Sonnets: Volume IV (301-400).
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From The Wild Sonnets: Volume III (201-300).
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From The Wild Sonnets: Volume II (101-200).
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From The Wild Sonnets: Volume I (1-100).
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I was recently interviewed by Classical Poets Live for the release of The Wild Sonnets: Volume VII. Andrew Benson Brown of CPL and I had a high energy conversation on what it means to be a poet and artist. I have to say, Mr. Benson Brown did astonishing work on the editing and animation/graphics that provide the imaginative framework for our discussion.
Here's a quick list of the topics and times:
00:08 – On being a Renaissance Man in 2024
02:02 – About creating the Wild Sonnet form
05:35 – On making music that combines classical and contemporary
10:10 – How auditioning for theatre informs my poetry
13:45 – A reading from the new book: Wild Sonnet #602
20:20 – A favorite technical resource on writing poetry
24:10 – Gestalt theory & creativity
26:23 – What a poem is and what poetry is (in my aesthetic)
29:08 – A reading and discussion of Shakespeare's Sonnet #107
43:33 – We are living in a Golden Age
45:35 – Another reading from the new book: Wild Sonnet #680
47:58 – Host Andrew Benson Brown reads a selection from the new book
49:33 – Conclusion: My favorite and second favorite moments of being a poet
IN THE NEWS…
Februray 11, 2025
The Wild Sonnets by Nicholas Korn Surpasses 100,000 Views on YouTube,
Bringing Poetry to a Global Audience
Somewhere in the fast-scrolling chaos of the internet, a quiet revolution is unfolding—one sonnet at a time. Nicholas Korn’s The Wild Sonnets YouTube channel has just crossed the 100,000-view milestone, proving that poetry isn’t just surviving in the digital age—it’s thriving. With 68 videos and counting, Korn’s readings breathe new life into the sonnet form, inviting audiences to experience poetry beyond the printed page.
Since launching the channel on April 29, 2024, Korn has built a vibrant space where literature meets performance. His signature seven-line stanza structure—part tradition, part innovation—pays homage to Shakespeare, Dickinson, and Dylan Thomas while carving its own path. The Wild Sonnets series has expanded across seven volumes, each a collection of 100 intricately crafted sonnets that blend classic style with a modern, introspective rhythm.
But this isn’t just a collection of readings. The channel is a dynamic mix of content—Korn’s interview with Classical Poets Live, a 10-minute poetry workshop, and even an award-winning animated comedy. Viewers aren’t just watching poetry; they’re stepping inside it.
“The goal has always been to make poetry an immersive experience,” says Korn. “By bringing The Wild Sonnets into a digital space, I’m inviting people to engage with poetry in a way that’s immediate, personal, and alive.”
Read More…
March 7, 2025
Nicholas Korn Announces the Arrival of the New Wild Sonnets Book
American poet, Nicholas Korn, is proud to announce that his poetry book series called The Wild Sonnets, which is popular for its exploration of the human experience through the lens of nature, continues to captivate readers with its seventh installment. The Wild Sonnets: Volume VII (601-700) delves into a particularly thought-provoking theme: the intricate ways humans acquire and engage with knowledge.
Through its beautiful language and evocative imagery, the newest book in the series continues to captivate readers and inspire more profound reflection on the nature of our existence.
For Nicholas Korn, every book in the Wild Sonnets series resembles an art gallery. Each poem is like a piece of art that can be appreciated individually or as part of a more extensive collection. There are no specific messages, but each is designed to provide immersive experiences that evoke various emotions and thoughts, reflecting life’s complexity and randomness. For the structure and sensibility of The Wild Sonnet series, Nicholas Korn found inspiration from great poets of the past, most notably: William Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson, Dylan Thomas, E.E. Cummings, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and John Donne.
April 16, 2025
Cincinnati Poet Nicholas Korn Brings Poetry to Life with 'The Wild Sonnets'
Nicholas Korn — poet, playwright, filmmaker and electronic composer — meticulously blends the classic and contemporary through his seven-volume book series and YouTube channel, “The Wild Sonnets.”
One of the most unique aspects of Korn’s poetry is its accessibility. The Wild Sonnets YouTube channel provides an immersive experience for poetry devotees who seek both an auditory and visual experience. By simply posting the poem, viewers can read it and give a response. Korn does not stray from maintaining a sense of mystery within his works, though. “These are meant to be slightly difficult to read,” he explains. “People want to hear what it sounds like, how [they] should be hearing it. But if I'm at a reading, people want to see it.” Through his videos, Korn effectively pairs these scenarios together so that viewers have both sides of the experience.
Interview with Cincinnati Public Library |
Manuel Iris, Cincinnati Poet Laureate Emeritus
July 26, 2023
BIO: Nicholas Korn
Poet of The Wild Sonnets
Nicholas Korn is a poet, playwright, filmmaker and composer. His stage play, Delirium’s Daughters, was featured Off-Broadway in 2015, and his self-produced film, Revel’s Rivals, won the award for Best Animated Feature at the 2012 Louisville International Festival of Film.
In the early aughts, he founded and ran Stage First Cincinnati – a classical theater company dedicated to the presenting the work of the ancient Greeks dramatists, Moliere and Shakespeare.
As an artist, he combines classicism with a curiosity for all things digital – honoring equally the tradition and the trend.
Mr. Korn started writing The Wild Sonnets in 2016. It is a literary project that will probably finish at the same time he does.
He is a graduate of Northwestern University with his degree in English Literature. Mr. Korn has also studied performance at Second City in Chicago and The National Shakespeare Conservatory in New York.
Why I Write The Wild Sonnets
One hundred years from here, when the lovers of culture look back on the literature of our days now, I want them to speak with praise and affection for The Wild Sonnets. I want the entire collection (soon to reach 800 in print) to be seen as an extraordinary achievement and hope there are several poems that have earned their place as favorites with readers because they sang into the soul, the way I intended them to.
And I hope that you will be one of the quiet crusaders that carry this work into the future, by reading and sharing it, and spreading the word that such works as this exist. Did I write these poems for the times to come? Yes. Did I also write them for you right now, right here? Yes.
Did I write them in thanks for all that the great poets of the past have given me? A thousand times, yes.Please feel free to restack this post if you think your friends and followers would like it.
And to you all, thanks for being here – Stay Wild and Stay Well.
Nicholas Korn
Poet of The Wild Sonnets
