Why is poetry important?
As a writer, poetry is important to me because I need some outlet of creative expression to have a semblance of inner peace, and poetry is the only creative endeavor I’ve found that is fun and enjoyable for me. As a reader, I’ve found poetry important because nothing else can be as moving in so short a time as a great poem.
How important is music to your poetry?
My first response was that it’s not very important at all, since I don’t often listen to music. But then I realized that whenever my inner monologue is briefly silent, a tune is playing in my mind. So the only respite I have from words is music, and vice versa. I should meditate I guess. I also really enjoy the musicality of words, their sound and rhythm. I like to push against indulging that enjoyment when I’m writing.
What do you find most difficult about writing poetry?
What I probably find most difficult is, when sitting down to write, overcoming the thought of the reader and the inhibitions and desire to please that come with that. I also have endless trouble with titles!
How do you know when a poem is finished?
I suppose it’s finished when nothing or almost nothing about it irks me anymore, or when too much about it irks me to try to revise it. I’m not great at revision; I’m still trying to find a way to make significant changes to poems that I revisit after abandonment and find I like but aren’t quite working. Usually these are left to languish, and I just consider them drafts of the other, working poems.
How does a poem begin?
For me, it begins with following my mind to a moment or an observation that is lingering with me. Usually this moment has occurred within the past couple of weeks, often the past couple of days. Hopefully in my back pocket I have some deeper questions that will arise and enter the poem as I’m writing it. But I almost always begin with something fairly small and concrete and quotidian.
