Welcome to the
Perfectly Poetic Podcast
Latest Episode
Listen on your favorite app
About Perfectly Poetic
Perfectly Poetic—the podcast for people who love poetry, hate poetry, love to hate poetry, or just enjoy listening to someone question why we’re still talking about 19th-century dead guys with trust issues.
Hosted by Allen Mowery, a self-proclaimed Purveyor of Satire and lifelong questioner of literary orthodoxy, Perfectly Poetic isn’t your high school English class. This show digs into poetry, dragging it out of dusty anthologies and holding it up to the light—sometimes with reverence, sometimes with irreverence, and always with a bit of bite.
Think of it as poetry with personality: part literary exploration, part cultural commentary, part “therapy session for emotionally stunted bards.” Whether we’re unraveling Romantic melodrama, eavesdropping on modernist breakdowns, or just marveling at how many ways you can rhyme “death” with “breath,” each episode offers a mix of insight, humor, history, and a healthy dose of skepticism.
This isn’t a love letter to poetry. It’s more like a series of strongly-worded texts from someone who keeps coming back anyway.
New episodes drop semi-regularly (because structure is a construct), running 15–30 minutes—just enough time to make you feel smart and slightly existential.
Listen on your favorite app
Latest Episode
Ep. 87 — Seventeen Syllables of Suffering: The Haiku Scam
Tired of people calling 17 syllables “genius”? So am I.
In this brutally honest, occasionally unhinged episode of Perfectly Poetic, Allen Mowery finally unleashes his pent-up frustration about the most overrated poetic form of all time: the haiku. From childhood worksheet trauma to seasonal name-dropping, syllable policing, AI-generated nonsense, and the myth of Bashō’s frog — no stone (or smooth river pebble) is left unskipped.
Recent Episodes
Perfectly Poetic is a podcast that digs into poetry from every angle—classic, modern, obscure, and everything in between. Hosted by Allen Mowery, it’s a show for the curious and the critical, exploring the meaning, context, and cultural weight behind the lines. It’s not about idolizing poets or pretending every poem is profound. It’s about engaging with language, questioning assumptions, and finding unexpected insight in verse—whether it moves you, annoys you, or leaves you wondering why it exists.
Tired of people calling 17 syllables “genius”? So am I.
In this brutally honest, occasionally unhinged episode of Perfectly Poetic, Allen Mowery finally unleashes his pent-up frustration about the most overrated poetic form of all time: the haiku. From childhood worksheet trauma to seasonal name-dropping, syllable policing, AI-generated nonsense, and the myth of Bashō’s frog — no stone (or smooth river pebble) is left unskipped.
Prepare yourself for frogs, fury, and the poetic equivalent of vending machine sushi.
Spoiler: There’s a haiku at the end. And it’s not about coffee.
What We Cover in This Episode:
Why your third-grade haiku assignment was emotional sabotage
The true history of haiku (and how we butchered it)
Bashō’s frog poem — misunderstood or overhyped?
The tyranny of 5-7-5 and the myth of morae
Why “deep” isn’t the same as “short”
Haikus on dating profiles, bumper stickers, and coffee shop chalkboards
Allen’s Haiku Manifesto for the modern world
AI haikus vs. human ones: can you tell the difference?
A few delightfully petty haikus written out of spite
Why we should demand more from poetry — and ourselves
Quote from the Episode:
“A haiku is not profound just because it’s small. It’s not a bonsai tree — it’s usually just a dead branch with a filter on it.”
Mentioned or Referenced:
Matsuo Bashō
Nick Virgilio
Jack Kerouac
3rd grade teachers everywhere
Haiku bots (yes, they’re real and yes, they’re terrifying)
Connect with the Show:
🌐 Website: perfectlypoetic.com
📸 Instagram: @perfectlypoeticpodcast
📬 Email: poetic@perfectlypoetic.com
📺 YouTube: @perfectlypoeticpodcast
Stay Connected to Get The Latest Podcast Alerts
Meet The Host
Allen Mowery
Allen Mowery is the voice behind Perfectly Poetic, a podcast that explores poetry without the whispering or berets. A writer, visual storyteller, and lifelong skeptic, he brings wit, insight, and just enough sarcasm to make poetry feel more like a late-night conversation than a literature lecture.
From his home in Central Pennsylvania, Allen unpacks beauty, absurdity, and the occasional 19th-century meltdown—armed with a mic, a bookshelf, and far too many coffee mugs.
Get In Touch
Looking to connect? Want to be a guest on the show? Then taken a moment to drop us a message! We love to hear from our listeners as well as other writers, and we never turn down a literary joke when it’s offered.
Perfectly Poetic
Listen Now!
Subscribe to Perfectly Poetic today using your favorite podcast app or smart device.
