That’s what’s so gorgeous about humanity. It doesn’t matter how bleak our daily lives are, we still fight for the light. I think that’s our divinity. We lean into love, even in the most hideous circumstances. We manage to hope.

Having a great dad probably permitted me to pal around with guys in a way that some women don't.

He never gave up on me, I only stopped being matriculated.

Im always terrified when Im writing.

I always say that a poet loves the world, and the prose writer needs to create an alternative world.

The failures of other genres to provide an emotional connection with some of their characters and narratives gives memoir a toehold.

In my godless household, poems were the closest we came to sacred speech -- the only prayers said.