In working on a poem, I love to revise. Lots of younger poets don't enjoy this, but in the process of revision I discover things

It makes me furious to hear haters of all skin colors - especially Christian, Jewish, and Muslim fundamentalists - deride other people because of their different beliefs and lifestyles.

When I was young, I was older than I am today.

If only the sun-drenched celebrities are being noticed and worshiped, then our children are going to have a tough time seeing the value in the shadows, where the thinkers, probers and scientists are keeping society together.

Under adversity, under oppression, the words begin to fail, the easy words begin to fail. In order to convey things accurately, the human being is almost forced to find the most precise words possible, which is a precondition for literature.

If they don't read, if they don't love reading; if they don't find themselves compulsively reading, I don't think they're really a writer

What writing does is to reveal.