EKH: You know that poem by Joy Harjo, "She Had Some Horses." Yep, I have had those horses you were talking about. There are many poems I have literally wished I could burn, drop off a pier, bury in the backyard.
AI: Do you have those periods of not wanting to write and also of disgust, when you feel, “What is the point?”
EKH: Oh, yes, but I am much better about not worrying about whether or not I am writing. I know I am working, even if I'm not making complete poems. Often, I'm just practicing things. I feel as if I circle and circle and then I start to get serious about something. I have a history of liking to engage with book length projects. So, that kind of writing also takes me through a process of research. The Sappho book required much background reading and a visit to the island where Sappho was born and lived most of her life. So, at the moment, I'm wondering which way I might go next. That's fun, or course, to just be playing around with directions, but one of these days something will get a hold of me. I'll have a topic. It can be as small as one little poem or it can be something that will take years to complete. It's OK, I'm getting a little more used to it.
Dial in:
