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Hmmm. I think a lot of people can write poems that are howls of anguish. I think I've probably written such things and then torn them up.

I believe that poems are a score for performance by the reader, and that you become the speaking voice. You don't read or overhear the voice in the poem - you are the voice in the poem.

Poetry is a vocal art for me - but not necessarily a performative one. It might be reading to oneself or recalling some lines by memory.

You know, people speak in poetry all the time. They just don't realize it.

Spoken word poetry is the art of performance poetry. I tell people it involves creating poetry that doesn't just want to sit on paper, that something about it demands it be heard out loud or witnessed in person.

I believe that poetry should communicate.

It should here be added that poetry habitually takes the form of verse.

So, poetry becomes a means for useful dialogue between people who are not only unknown, but mute to each other. It produces a dialogue among people that guards all of us against manipulation by our so-called leaders.

Poetry is like making a joke. If you get one word wrong at the end of a joke, you've lost the whole thing.

When poetry separates from song, then the words have to carry all the rhythm themselves; they have to do all the work. They can't rely on the singing voice.