Alt lit was born on the pages of Tumblr and incorporates YouTube videos, Facebook posts and tweets. Steve Roggenbuck, who recently relocated to Tucson, falls under this category of writing and co-operates the alt-lit organization Boost House.
Roggenbuck is not directly associated with Tao Lin, which makes their school a separate but parallel sect of alt lit. In some ways, he is reactionary to Lin and a return to certain principles that contribute to the online presence of this form of writing.
Alt lit was born on the pages of Tumblr and incorporates YouTube videos, Facebook posts and tweets. While Lin’s clique has moved somewhat away from these humble online origins, Roggenbuck especially remains very close to them.
Roggenbuck is has a prolific online presence. He has made numerous poem videos and released many text documents for free, transitioning into the world of print with his publishing organization/living co-op Boost House.
Boost House has printed a Walt Whitman mixtape, the alt lit anthology "The Yolo Pages," two books by Roggenbuck himself and even has shirts for sale that read “2 Words Jackass: YOLO.”
Delving into Roggenbuck’s 2012 collection Crunk Juice (available online here), I found Roggenbuck’s written poetry refreshing. Much of his poetry is spiritually-based, his poems often reminding the reader to be aware and appreciative of their own selves and of nature.
It is difficult to articulate Roggenbuck’s voice without having at least dabbled into a bit of his videos, which are jump-cut edits of the poet saying lines.
In his videos, he often screams at the camera or at the sky. Sometimes he yells at birds and runs around maniacally. At first, I did not want to consider these videos art. However, as I continued to watch, I found myself feeling inspired.
Roggenbuck preaches at his audience to go out and live life to the fullest. Watching the videos is a charging experience. If you feel down or unsatisfied, Roggenbuck’s yelling will bring you up. As if you were a balloon, Roggenbuck pumps you with helium and lets you go.
As I continued reading into Crunk Juice, the same spirit that was found in Roggenbuck's videos shone through his written text. The poems, read one after another in rapid succession the way I presume Roggenbuck meant them to be read, began to resemble the same form of the videos. They are quiet, containing inspiring shouts reminding you to live.
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