When you require renewal, is there a particular poem or book that you return to? A particular author?
When things get really in need of getting a kick start, I absolutely always have a handful of works and authors that I return to. The first swipe through reading is usual the classics of Issa, Buson, and Basho. Haiku as a form helps to centre me on the image and the moment that I believe to be at the heart of all successful poetry. Masterfully executed haiku helps to develop approaches to the world my poetic self needs to function. From there it is usual to Richard Hugo (Lady at the Kicking Horse Reservoir), Gary Snyder (Regarding Wave & Axe Handles), John Steifler (The Grey Islands), Campbell McGrath (Seven Notebooks) and the collected works of Simon J. Ortiz. These last books and writers help to guide the form and lyricism of the core image and moment ideas that haiku guided me. You could say I have a lot of voices in my head when it comes to renewal in my artistic practice.
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