Editor’s note: The Living Poets Society is not an official UT student organization.

In the dimly lit and eccentrically decorated Calamity Coffee House, the Living Poets Society meets weekly to share and discuss original poetry, offering personal verses and thought-provoking discussion as intimate as the space itself.  

Accompanied by his regular drink of Coca-Cola and a shot of espresso, co-founder Chris Trevino helms the weekly meetings, prompting members with a new poetry theme every week.

Sophomore co-founders Chris and Landon Hodges began the Living Poets Society as a way to provide a space for student poets to flourish away from constraints of curricula and grading scales. 

“As much as (poetry) is something that’s deserving of academic discussion and exploration, it’s also just a fun art form,” Hodges said. “We wanted to give a place for people who are just passionate about poetry to enjoy it in a non-committal way.”

Poetry can be an elusive art form. Trevino said that members sometimes don’t know the meaning behind their own work until somebody tells them, which is why forums such as the Living Poets Society are so vital to the artistic process.

“There’s always something building up in the subconscious which will push itself out in some beautiful fashion eventually,” Trevino said.

English and psychology senior Salem Black said the Living Poets Society’s engagement in poetry and literature is something that often can’t be found in her coursework, and that many of her classes have become inundated with students who don’t share her passion for English.  

“There’s this culture of passing through classes to get the grade, not necessarily contributing to any greater understanding of a source material,” Black said. “I was really charmed … when I found this group of people who were so invested in the source material.”

With a regular meeting attendance of about 10 students, the Living Poets Society’s small size is seen as an asset to Trevino and Hodges, encouraging more intimate expression and deeper conversation. However, they both hope to find a way to grow their numbers without losing the intimate characteristics of a smaller group. 

“I think the intimate workshop is something that you don’t see often, but I do feel at some point that we are going to start losing … momentum,” Trevino said. 

Hodges and Trevino are both envisioning a Living Poets Society that functions with a larger number of students. Currently, Trevino is chasing the idea of a regular poetry open mic night at Calamity that allows members to share their work with a larger audience, while still keeping an intimate venue and sharing experience. 

“When we (expand), we definitely want to make sure that there’s always closeness, … which can only really occur when there’s space to be vulnerable,” Hodges said. 

Although plans on expansion are not yet concrete, the group emphasizes that all are welcome to attend meetings and share poetry. 

“It becomes this sort of rogues gallery of people we have picked up on the street,” Black said. “There is no hostility here. There isn’t a sort of pissing contest to see who can write the best poetry.” 

Black said the goal of the Living Poets Society is not to outpace each other, but to create a maelstrom of ideas that can improve others’ poetry.