More Poet Notes

What do the "new formalists" and the "Rebel Angels" (gag!) write?
They write verse, of course.

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Do folks who dislike poetry about poetry also dislike movies about movies and television about television and novels about novels? How about novels about novelists? Do the haters of poetry about poetry also hate poetry about poets? We know they detest Wallace Stevens. They must! I know at least one of them wears cowboy boots.

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I tend to dislike the poetry of those whom I personally dislike. I am aware of this prejudice but don't know what to do about it. I want to meet a poet who's a total dick, but writes kick-ass poetry.

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If you decide to teach poetry to a freshman composition class, be prepared for an uphill struggle. Today, a student noted that Shakspeare's Sonnet 130, like, totally was, y'know, not rhythmic at all, and doesn't even rhyme. Um. Okay.

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As an editor, how closely do you read submissions? I mean really read them. We have to go on our guts sometimes. Over dinner, my friend Hannah pulled out a recent issue of NWR and asked why we published a certain godawful poem. I read it, and remember liking it. I had a hard time defending it. After a couple days of close-reading and writing, I am fully prepared to defend it. But I must admit that it made it into the magazine without a struggle. Maybe we publish stuff we don't really like, or wouldn't like if we REALLY read it.

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The most poetic chef is Mario Batali. Jean-Georges Vongerichten runs a close second. That fool Rocco is anti-poet. He is a prose cooking guy. Not that there's anything wrong with prose. It steal reads, y'know.