Our Story
● About The Poetry Vessel
Our Story
How We Got Here
The Poetry Vessel grew out of Nathan Hassall’s tenure as Malibu Poet Laureate, where he experienced firsthand the importance of cultivating a thriving poetry community. At that time, Nathan was hosting poetry workshops and readings in his local library in Malibu, featuring and conducting live interviews with award-winning poets from across the country, including former city, state, and even a former U.S. Poet Laureate (Robert Hass), alongside performing his own poems at various cultural events — including reading a poem to U.S. Veterans at a filled-to-capacity City Hall in Malibu on Veteran's Day in 2023 and 2024.
Nathan’s wife, Rachael, attended every event, recording these special performances and sharing them on YouTube. Little did we know those humble recordings would be the catalyst for what became The Poetry Vessel.
In forming the company, we wanted to create a space not only to share poems and readings from fellow poets, but to provide education about the art, philosophy, and craft of poetry — and to honor what we see as the alchemical nature of language itself. Taking inspiration from alchemy's chrysopoeia, or gold-making, we thought the “vessel” was an apt metaphor: a container where positive change — the move from base metals to gold — can occur: emotionally, metaphorically, spiritually, and, of course, poetically.
Today, we continue to invite poets, artists, authors, and fellow language-inspired alchemists from across the world into a shared poetic dialogue. Ultimately, ours is a story of invitation — The Poetry Vessel exists to ensure that rigorous poetry education and deep craft remain accessible to anyone, anywhere, who is ready to engage.
Today, The Poetry Vessel is a poetry education platform, podcast, and video publisher that has well over 100 videos in its YouTube video library, with nearly 10,000 subscribers, and over 500,000 lifetime views. We believe in the necessity of accessible poetry education and have been creating free poetry videos every week for our platform for over a year.
The Growing Success of Our Poetry Podcast
At its core, The Poetry Vessel Podcast is about poetic dialogue, where speech can become a spontaneous poem. We often return to the etymology of the word poetry: poesis, or “a making.” Everything we create grows from that root.
Our show goes live every Sunday morning on YouTube and Spotify, and takes several forms:
1. Master Your Craft: In this series, we explore technical craft conversations through video essays and podcast-style chats designed to help you become a better poet. Whether you are searching for beginner poetry writing tips or advanced editing techniques, these episodes provide actionable tools for every skill level.
2. Guest Interviews: In these episodes, we invite guests into the Vessel as wide-ranging as national best-selling nonfiction neuroscience researchers, to poet laureates, prize-winning poets, therapists, occultists, and esoteric book publishers. In doing so, we’ve learned a whole lot about how different people approach and communicate their relationship with poetry exploring topics like the writing rituals of the best poets, how to get your poems published, how to become a full-time poet, why poets should read philosophy, how poetry affects the brain, and more. You can read more about our special guests below.
3. Audience Submissions: Every 1-3 months, we dedicate an episode to featuring poetry submitted by our audience. In this way, The Poetry Vessel has also become a living video magazine. Rachael and Nathan read the work aloud together, pair it with a unique video that reflects its atmosphere, and then allow the poem to guide our conversation. During these episodes, we also pull surprise submissions from “The Mystery Box,” which fans of the show know as Francis B. Malloy. You’ll have to tune in to find out why!
How You Can Support the Vessel
Although we make YouTube revenue for this business, we are supplemented by patrons, YouTube members, and sales of our workshops and courses, most of what we make is free.
We do what we do out of an unquenchable passion and conviction to resist nefarious forces actively dismantling the humanities, freedom of thought and expression, and those who see the making of language, music, and art as only useful if used as a propagandistic tool, weaponized by rhetoricians who excite the emotions without substance.
So we say, in plain, unpoetic English: Fuck that.
We’re here to do our bit to serve our community or viewers, the poetry curious, the enthusiasts, and the obsessed in whatever way we can through The Poetry Vessel.
Our modus operandi is synthesis — the vessel is an alchemical tool after all — where we are made stronger by the wide range of voices, guests, and poems we have on the platform. We search, and are joined in searching — poetically and humanistically speaking — for the alchemical tincture, or the philosophical gold, that helps move our world towards a kinder, more open, and more peaceful place by reclaiming our attention, hearts, and poetic sensibilities. Part of that is developing our use of language to be more exacting and nuanced, something a poetry practice helps make possible.
With that in mind, we value all guests, associates, viewers, fans, poets, art lovers, makers, and more, and invite any of you who are poetry-curious, poetry-enthusiastic, or poetry-obsessed to join our freethinking community.
The simplest way to get involved is to watch, “like,” subscribe, comment on, and share our videos. Each time you take these simple actions, the algorithm (that all-powerful force!) alerts new people to poetry videos. Other ways to get involved include joining our workshops, subscribing to our free mailing list, becoming a member on YouTube, or simply sharing this blog post. Your supportive actions allow us to keep doing what we believe is essential, global work.
We are eclectic by nature, and this is reflected, refined, dissolved, and extracted within the ever-changing and developing nature of The Poetry Vessel.
See you in the Vessel!
● Our Mission & Philosophy
Our Principles
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Creative Courage
We empower deep thinkers, poetry lovers, and advocates of free expression to find their unique voice. In an era when algorithms threaten to mediate our every experience, we believe the kind of deep human connection offered by poetry is more vital than ever.
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Accessibility
We believe that anyone who has access to language has access to poetry. Accessible, high-quality poetry education is essential for our world, which is why The Poetry Vessel offers free weekly poetry education videos alongside thoughtfully priced courses, workshops, and bespoke mentorship services.
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Community
Writing can often feel isolating, as many poets lack an in-person community to share their passion. The Poetry Vessel serves as a vibrant space for collaborative creative growth rooted in the belief that building community is essential to your craft.
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Creative Attention
From beginners seeking clarity to experienced poets fine-tuning full manuscripts, we help people learn how to write better poetry, sharpen their poetic attention, and to improve their writing while exploring the hidden parts of themselves.
Learn More
Meet Nathan
Nathan Hassall is an English-American poet and educator based in Malibu, California.
Originally from Horsham, England, Nathan relocated to the U.S. in 2018 after finding love while earning his Master’s in Creative Writing with Distinction from the University of Kent.
As a poet, educator, entrepreneur, and editor, Nathan brings a deep commitment to the transformative power of language. From 2023 to 2025, Nathan served as Malibu’s 5th Poet Laureate, making history as the youngest appointee to the position. During his tenure, he championed the local creative spirit by leading community workshops and events designed to inspire poets of all levels.
Nathan continues to be a driving force in the local and international literary community through The Poetry Vessel, a company he founded during his laureateship. The organization provides workshops and resources that leverage the transformative power of verse. Nathan also hosts The Poetry Vessel Podcast on YouTube, where he engages in deep-dive interviews with award-winning international poets, artists, and other thinkers.
Alongside his public work, Nathan is a sought-after freelance book editor who collaborates with poets, writers, and entrepreneurs to refine their voices with clarity and depth — skills that form the foundation of his teaching and creative philosophy.
Learn More
Meet Rachael
Rachael Hassall is poetry enthusiast and recovering corporate American.
Originally from Malibu, California, Rachael’s love for writing began early—she was published in the Los Angeles Times and several children’s anthologies as a child. As she set poetry aside to pursue a traditional career, her path eventually led her to the University of Kent, Canterbury, where she earned a Master’s in Industrial-Organizational Psychology and found love when she met Nathan over a game of football nearly a decade ago.
In her twenties, Rachael broke barriers to become the youngest and first female Director—and later, Senior Director—at multiple high-growth companies. Earning a reputation as a true “Renaissance woman,” she rapidly climbed the ranks in traditionally male-dominated industries, spanning everything from electric vehicles to Amazon data analytics.
Yet despite building a thriving, six-figure corporate career, she felt drawn to the energy of creative entrepreneurs—especially those seeking clarity, voice, and purpose in a fast-evolving digital world. When her department was laid off in 2023, she took it as the signal to leap into entrepreneurship full-time.
Today, Rachael supports The Poetry Vessel alongside running her own consulting practice, where she helps clients deepen customer connections and provides professional video and content editing services.
Make an Impact Today
Your support* helps keep poetry accessible, independent and alive through The Poetry Vessel.