Welcome to Meet the Teaching Artists, a series where you'll get to know some of the wonderful writers who work with our K-12 education programs. This month you'll get to meet teaching artist, poet and cultural worker Logan Phillips! 

 

Tell us a little bit about yourself. 

My name is Logan Phillips, I’m a poet and culture worker originally from Cochise County, AZ and based full
time in Tucson since 2011. Poetry was my initial entryway into the arts, and I still consider myself a poet first and foremost, but I also work as a DJ, an earth worker, a teaching artist, an organizer and more. I love how the path of being an artist (or just a human!) is filled with twists and turns, so much variety and challenge. 

I love my family; I love books, plants, the desert and dancing. I believe a better world is possible and poetry is one tool to manifest it.

When did you first come to know the University of Arizona Poetry Center and Writing the Community program? How long have you worked as a teaching artist? 

Both the Poetry Center and the Writing the Community program are true gems. I’ve never not worked as a teaching artist – I was leading workshops for high schoolers when I was still only 21 myself – so it’s been a
couple decades now. I’m grateful that my arts and teaching practice has taken me all over, and through being on tour and traveling I’ve come to appreciate just how lucky Tucson is to have the Poetry Center here. 

What do you enjoy most about Writing the Community? 

I love working with young people, adolescents specifically. The teen years are a borderlands: one foot still in childhood, yet stepping towards what’s to come. Poetry has always helped teenagers make it through (it certainly helped me!), I’m honored to contribute to the tradition, keeping poetry accessible to those who could benefit from it. 

What advice do you have for young writers and poets? 

I think the best advice is just to keep going, never stop. Remember that it’s a long road, and every attempt you make at something will help you get better for the next time. The process is more important than the product, don’t indulge envy or jealousy, help throw events & be in community IRL, ask questions, and above all: read, read, read widely and deeply.

Tell us about your teaching or artistic practice. Where can we find your artistic work? 

I consider teaching to be part of my artist practice, not separate from it – I’m learning all the time. The best place to find my work is at my website, dirtyverbs.com. I’m getting better about listing upcoming events there, and also there’s a sign-up for my newsletter with meditations on books and the creative process. 

What is something that excites you? 

My next full-length book is forthcoming from The University of Arizona Press in early 2026! It’s a hybrid memoir that includes poems, essays and screenplays; it deals with having been born in Tombstone, AZ – it’s been at least six years in the making!

We'll be holding a book launch and reading at 191 Toole in Tucson on Sunday, February 15th at 6:30pm. After that I’ll be on book tour for most of the year including stops in Bisbee, Phoenix, Flagstaff, Baltimore, Philadelphia and beyond – looking forward to taking the show back on the road!