Tuesday 16 July 2019

Charles Jensen : part four

When you require renewal, is there a particular poem or book that you return to? A particular author?

Not in particular, but reading on its own is very important to me. Whenever I finish a manuscript, I go through a period when I don’t remember how to write a poem. I feel very literally like I don’t know what a poem is anymore. I give myself a break, and then I turn to reading to relearn it. Every book I read teaches me, either because it reaches me or because it doesn’t, and I think about why I’ve had that reaction. I also find other forms of storytelling to be just as restorative. Good innovative fiction nourishes me. Formally ambitious essays. Films with strong visuals. Video games with textured worlds. I take all of this in.

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