Poetry isn't a profession it's a way of life. It's an empty basket you put your life into it and make something out of that.

Poetry is not only a set of words which are chosen to relate to each other it is something which goes much further than that to provide a glimpse of our vision of the world.

The poetry that sustains me is when I feel that for a minute the clouds have parted and I've seen ecstasy or something.

There is something about poetry beyond prose logic there is mystery in it not to be explained but admired.

If a poem is not memorable there's probably something wrong. One of the problems of free verse is that much of the free verse poetry is not memorable.

It's something we guys have all done. Made tapes for girls trying to impress them to meet them on a shared plane of aesthetics. Read them someone else's poetry because they do poetry better than you could do it because you're too awkward to do it.

When you're going through something whether it's a wonderful thing like having a child or a sad thing like losing somebody you often feel like 'Oh my God I'm so overwhelmed I'm dealing with this huge thing on my own.' In fact poetry's a nice reminder that no everybody goes through it. These are universal experiences.

Poetry must have something in it that is barbaric vast and wild.

Every now and then I read a poem that does touch something in me but I never turn to poetry for solace or pleasure in the way that I throw myself into prose.

In science one tries to tell people in such a way as to be understood by everyone something that no one ever knew before. But in poetry it's the exact opposite.