My gut was always that if I taught students poetry, I would give too much of myself to them and have nothing left.

I definitely have favorite books by favorite poets, but poets' books also vary. I could like some books, but not like another book.

Sometimes I feel like I'm on top of the world, and other mornings I feel like crap.

As I published books, I realized, that's not really what I want. I don't care about the books as much anymore. I just want to write poetry.

The whole process of getting a book published is just part of the process. The last of the process that I enjo

My life all-around is really different than a lot of other poets. Not poets that are parents, too, but just that I can hardly find anyone who works in the industries that I've worked in.

Whether people like your work or not, but it's also based on a lot of other things - geography, who you happen to connect with and where they sit in that ladder - and all of that felt really isolating and disheartening to me when I figured it out.