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Many poets, as you know, are not good readers.

We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones who write in words.

For whatever reason, people, including very well-educated people or people otherwise interested in reading, do not read poetry.

They say poets write mostly for themselves; if anyone else likes it, well and good, if not, it doesn't matter; certainly, not to me.

The reason a poet is a poet is to write poems, not to advertise himself as a poet.

The decision to write in prose instead of poetry is made more by the readers than by writers. Almost no one is interested in reading narrative in verse.

I thought that if one wanted to be a writer, one had to write novels because I didn't know that one could be a poet.

Poetry must be made by all and not by one.

I don't think anybody reads a book of poetry front to back. Editors and reviewers only. I don't think anybody else does.

I think that is where poetry reading becomes such an individual thing. I mean I have friend who like poets who just don't say anything to me at all, I mean they seem to me rather ordinary and pedestrian.