In law school they teach you that everything is a contract; well, in poetry everything is a narrative.

I’ve not learned the acceptable way of saying you fascinate me...I’ve not even learned how to say I like you without frightening people away-

The only advice [for new writers and poets] I can offer is to be yourself: not the self someone else wants you to be, but the self you are. Enjoy yourself and your life. But most of all travel and eat. That's how we learn.

Facts are only tools to gain control over yourself and other people.

[To become a poet] The most important thing is to pay attention. The next would probably be to read; it's so important to pay attention. It keeps you from being bored, and I might add it keeps you from being boorish.

Poetry and music are very good friends. Like mommies and daddies and strawberries and cream - they go together.

Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to the error that counts.