[Tim Murphy]

I've got the best gig on the Sphere, and I thank all of you for participating. Alicia, Greg Williamson, Tim Steele, Sam Gwynn, Paul Lake, Dave Mason, Rhina, our Master of Memory, Golias' Razor, The first great Sonnet Bake-off by Dick Davis, Professor Hecht, more fun than a man should have! Alan and I leave Feb 3 for Key West to see the Wilburs. Please post your questions on this thread. Richard uses a 1948 Underwood and a coal-fired phone, but we'll be toting a wireless laptop. We shall select questions and take dictation from Mr. Parnassus. May I suggest that everyone think seriously about these questions. I don't want to wade through seas of ghafla, and our time with Dick will be very limited. Every questioner should begin by rereading his Collected Poems.

Then Alan and I proceed to the Virgin Islands for the balance of Feb, and the inmates will take over the asylum. Upon my return I plan to ask Deborah Warren, Clive Watkins, and David Anthony to do guest appearances. David's trade book is out, and Deborah's and Clive's are coming in February. Then I'm going to implore Rhina to adjudicate Sonnet Bake-off # 2.

[Kevin Corbett]

When I read this, my first thought was, "I'm being messed with [the word in my head was a little more explicit than, "messed", tho]" You might as well say to me, ask the Pope or Socrates a question--c'mon, go 'head. Actually, it's a little ironic, because my teacher had just suggested I write to Wilbur after I had praised his translation of "Lot's Wife" by Anna Akhmatova, but I never suspected it could be possible.

Alright, I've thought long and hard about this question, so here goes:

I am a young poet (or would-be poet), and by young I don't mean like, I could qualify for the Yale Award for Younger Poets young, I mean that I'm only eighteen years old and won't be in college till next year. As of right now, my plan's are to go into journalism (which, unless the Norton Anthology of Modern Poetry decieves me, you yourself went into for some time in your youth) and continue to write and read poetry when ever I can--and journalism because I like it and because I feel it might help me to cultivate more experience and a broader scope of humanity. My question is, what kind of "lifestyle" should a younger poet cultivate? Should I drop journalism and devote myself to literature if I ever want to become a good poet? And from your own experience, does journalism help or hinder the creative/literary faculties? It is a great, it is a huge honor to ask you this question, Mr. Wilbur, and I will consider whatever you say with the utmost gravity (I hope that doesn't sound pretentious, but really, I will).

-Kevin Corbett

[This message has been edited by kevincorbett (edited January 25, 2003).]

[cookala]

I'm rather new to this board but let me say I am so impressed. Wow. What a magnificient opportunity for a wanna-be poet. I will thank you copiously in advance for sharing your time and insight with me. I am serious and sincere about wanting to hone my writing skills - it is my dream and goal to be published someday. I've read many articles that say how difficult it is to be published by a major house, unless you are very well networked with "academia" and the circles they spin. So, my question is this:

Is that your experience as well? Or is there another way?

I would also boldly take the liberty (please?)of asking you one more thing:

What is the best way for me to hone my skills? (I consider myself a knowledgeable beginner - I've only been writing poetry for about a year and a half), other than posting to internet sites like this, reading how-to books, or by reading the work of great poets - are writer's conferences (such as Breadloaf in Vermont, etc.) really worth the time and money? Should I look into taking some poetry classes at a local college? How can I find a mentor who will work with me and point out my weaknesses, plus guide me in honing my skills? I am willing to make the necessary investments in order to reach my goals. I would deeply appreciate your insight, and any other suggestions you could make, that could help me find that path.
Thank you!

[wendy v]

Holy macaroon.

I've waited a long time for this one, Tim.

I probably won't even be able to bloody speak.

[Clive Watkins]

Dear Tim

This is splendid news about Wilbur. Thank you for setting it up.

(Thank you, as well, for your invitation to me. In fact, I believe my book - and Deborah's - will appear not in February but in the second half of April. Covers are being designed just now.)

Best wishes to you and Alan for your winter voyage!

Clive

[Tim Murphy]

Cookala, I'll answer your questions. Don't concern yourself with publication at this stage. Of the staff members here who have published trade press books, Alicia was the only youngster, at 31. I was 48, and Clive, David, and Deborah are all in their fifties.

I've looked at a few other sites, and if you're interested in writing formal verse, nothing is in the league of the Erato workshops. By all means take courses at a local college, preferably in literature rather than creative writing. Find some great teachers. Most important, don't just read great poetry, but memorize it. My undergraduate tutor had me memorize roughly 30,000 lines of poetry, and that exercise developed my memory and confered upon me a highly trained ear which simply doesn't allow me to make metrical errors.

For an on-line intro to contemporary Formal poets, try www.poemtree.com and The New Formalist's e-books, both of which are anthologies which feature a great deal of work by senior members of the 'Sphere. The Conference on Form and Narrative a West Chester University in Pennsylvania is terrific and worth every penny (it's much cheaper than Breadloaf!)

Finally, be very patient. Though I wrote and published in my teens, the earliest extant poem in my first book was written at age 25, simply because it took 8 years for me to get the most fundamental grasp of meter and rhyme.

Now, some additional thoughts for everyone. When I say our time will be limited, I mean very limited. So the questions I pass on will be few in number, and I'll respond to others directly, as I have above. I'm also going to select half a dozen poems by our members, post them here, and have Richard critique those efforts. He has a knack for saying more about a poem in two sentences than most people can in two pages, and I think this will be the most valuable aspect of his brief visit.

[Tim Murphy]

This is a preposterous exercise in Solomonic Judgment, worse than picking 12 sonnets for the Bake-off! I'm going to ask Dick to discuss poems by eight of our members with whose work I expect him to be utterly unfamiliar (which rules out many of us). Cherryburn by Clive Watkins, Night Train by Shekhar Aiyar, Evening Benediction by Oliver Murray, Cervantes' Death In Life, tr. by Roger Slater, Wild Immanuel by John Beaton, The True Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes by Richard Wakefield, The Water Bearer by David Anthony, and Hic! by Jim Hayes. In making these choices I am seeking a wide range of matter and method. Given the central concern of Dick's recent work, I am favoring poems that raise Christian concerns. And I have sought poems of surpassing merit.

PS. Just noticed that only two of our poets are American. The notion that we are all in instantaneous contact, all over the English-speaking world, will astonish our distinguished guest!

[nyctom]

I sent Tim an email congratulating him on having Richard Wilbur participate as a lariat and telling him what I would like to know. Tim asked me to post it here. This is the relevant part of the email:

Congrats to you on Wilbur lariating. I will be looking forward to reading what he has to say. I do hope someone asks him about revision: how he targets what he revises in a draft, how many drafts a poem will take, when he knows to leave something sit and vegetate, when it is time to attack and what to prune. People don't tend to talk about revisions, which I think is a shame since most writing is done in the rewriting.


And really, if any other lariart past present or future would like to respond on here I would be happy to hear what you say. I would bet I am not the only one.

Thanks!

[Carol Taylor]

A huge welcome to Richard Wilbur and thanks to Tim for persuading him to share a little of his time and knowledge with us. Erato is honored and I am delighted.

Carol

[Robert J. Clawson]

A beautiful gift, Tim.

Ask him what he thinks of Golias's Razor.

Bob