Often I'm struck by something that I read; then I go and research it a little more, especially if I begin a poem, and I find out that I need to know more. Then I usually get intrigued and excited about whatever it is I'm writing about.

It sounds old-fashioned to say, but we have some kind of purpose for being here, not poets or writers, but all of us humans.

The greatest tragedy that can befall a poet is to be praised by being misunderstood.

We're all vulnerable in our various ways, and what we are physically, our bodies, is what has developed with the goal of keeping that life safe and intact, at least until we have procreated. That's what our bodies are, the protection of life.

A poetic list is a talent in itself. You can write a list of things, and it can be boring.

I have thought for many years that the audience any creative writer imagines has a great effect on what gets written.

Often when I write poetry I don't quite know what I'm saying myself. I mean, I can't restate the poem. The meaning of the poem is the poem.