The knowledge that my discriminations are skewed and not always universally desirable doesn't stop me in the least from making them.

Have fun writing, because it enhances both the writer's and reader's experience.

The essay must be artistically rendered: You must keep the reader engaged, whether with wit, conflict, mischief, and/or yes, with honesty.

My other work, teaching, also is satisfying because I can be with people but in controlled circumstances, which aren't as likely to yield the pain of dealing with family.

Indeed, at times it's best to shut up.

I'm fortunate in being able to find great satisfaction in my work.

Until people see poetry as springing from all of life, they will isolate it in a creativity corner and treat it like a mascot.