How do you know when a poem is finished?
This is a particularly interesting question for visual poets in my opinion, because you can always add but often can’t take away…for instance, when working with Letraset, there’s no editing out that extra letter snake that awkwardly protrudes into white space that should maybe just be white space. But then again, for me, visual poetry teaches a balance between “okay, that’s enough” and also “what the hell, live a little and add that extra thing cause yr heart or hand wants it—you do you.”
I find knowing when to end more traditional lyric-based poetry to be a similar but different beast, because you’re not often relying on visual cues but can still, in similar ways, whimsically avoid or defer conclusion. I think in all my work I prefer to think of what’s enough for the time being, rather than what endings look, sound, or feel like. I like to leave a little left unsaid, too—it’s a way of inviting others in. I feel uncomfortable having the final word in much of anything creative. After all, aren’t we in this to create lines of connection and conversation? I want to know what others think about the thing I’m gesturing toward and make space for them, their ideas—I like leaving some room for the poetry to wander beyond the page and comingle with others.
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