It's true, there aren't many explicit references to Canada in my book. And not many explicit references to the U.S., either. I try to fill my poems with enough real, observed detail that the poems create a believable world - but I don't write poems for the sake of telling my own story. My life is not important or interesting enough to warrant that kind of documentary. Instead I try to use my experience as a way of understanding situations that are common to many people. I want readers to project their own lives onto my poems.
I think that being mindful of your own biases tends to lead you into ambiguity, not clarity, and that following those ambiguities is the only way to … - James Arthur
I think that being mindful of your own biases tends to lead you into ambiguity, not clarity, and that following those ambiguities is the only way to …
- James Arthur
For me, poetry is a way of thinking, and like many poets, I'm driven by the idea of trying to find the impossible, perfect words: the words that will… - James Arthur
For me, poetry is a way of thinking, and like many poets, I'm driven by the idea of trying to find the impossible, perfect words: the words that will…
If poems very different from my own bring pleasure to a group of readers, who am I to say that the poems should have been written differently? - James Arthur
If poems very different from my own bring pleasure to a group of readers, who am I to say that the poems should have been written differently?
It's not realistic to imagine that any poem will last forever. Our species won't last forever! We try to capture and preserve our impressions of real… - James Arthur
It's not realistic to imagine that any poem will last forever. Our species won't last forever! We try to capture and preserve our impressions of real…
It makes sense to me that the polyglot wouldn't know what language he dreamed in. - James Arthur
It makes sense to me that the polyglot wouldn't know what language he dreamed in.
My ideal reader is somebody who reads my poems out loud. - James Arthur
My ideal reader is somebody who reads my poems out loud.
As a species, we create tools to control our environment. What excites my imagination is wilderness: our materials' ability to escape our control. - James Arthur
As a species, we create tools to control our environment. What excites my imagination is wilderness: our materials' ability to escape our control.
Poetry isn't an efficient tool for preserving experience, any more than it's an efficient mode of communication, but who says that it should be effic… - James Arthur
Poetry isn't an efficient tool for preserving experience, any more than it's an efficient mode of communication, but who says that it should be effic…
Start listening to what you say. Are your comments and ideas negative? You aren't going become positive if you always say negative things. Do you hea… - James Arthur
Start listening to what you say. Are your comments and ideas negative? You aren't going become positive if you always say negative things. Do you hea…
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