I Keep The Drafts Of

The Poetry That Sustains Me Is When I Feel That, For A Minute, The Clouds Have Parted And I've Seen Ecstasy Or Something

I Never Think Of My Audience When I Write A Poem. I Try To Write Out Of Whatever Is Haunting Me; In Order For A Poem To Feel Authentic, I Have To Feel I'm Treading On Very Dangerous Ground, Which Can Mean That The Resulting Revelations May Prove Hurtful To Other People. The Time For Thinking About That Kind Of Guilt Or Any Collective Sense Of Responsibility, However, Occurs Much Later In The Creative Process, After The Poem Is Finished.

I Always Loved Science. And In Fact, I Got A Science Award In High School. I Mean, I Loved Science, But I Think I Loved Literature More.

I See A Resurgence Of Interest In Poetry. I Am Less Optimistic About The Prospects For The Arts When It Comes To Federal Funding.

I've Always Felt That The Poems I've Written Which Have Historical Context Are Hopefully Not Just Simply Plucking Something Out Of History And Saying Great, Let's Write About That. In Every Case What Has Happened Is That I've Become Fascinated Or Haunted By Something And Couldn't Shake It.