A poem in form still has to have voice, gesture, a sense of discovery, a metaphoric connection, as any poetry does.

I tell students they will know they are getting somewhere when a scene is so painful they can just barely bring themselves to write about it. A writer has to draw blood.

The Black Mountain poet I like most is the early Creeley. Those early poems seem very lyrical and very traditional, with a lot of voice and character.

The best books of our times have included the three mature volumes of Philip Larkin. They're very short books of poems, and very carefully arranged.

Distance not only gives nostalgia, but perspective, and maybe objectivity.

Neither of my parents has been very sensitive about my writing.

A poem in form still has to have voice, gesture, a sense of discovery, a metaphoric connection, as any poetry does.