What Actually Makes Poetry Poetry Is Of

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.

I Don't Think American Poetry Has Gotten Any Better In The Past 35 Years. Oddly Enough, Creative Writing Programs Seem To Have Been Good For Fiction, And I Would Not Have Predicted That.

Teaching Writing Over The Years Intrudes On Your Own Writing In Important Ways, Taking Away Some Of The Excitement Of Poetry.

Young Writers Only Take Off When They Find Their Subjects. Since Almost Everyone Has A Family And Stories About Family, That Is Often A Place To Start.

Some People Want To Call Me An Appalachian Writer, Even Though I Know Some People Use Regional Labels To Belittle.