Poetry Makes Good Prose

At a reading Leslie Norris, whom I always thought of as a poet, said poetry had become the best way for him to hone his skills for prose.  My own first attempts to write seriously were in poetry. (1,2)

Though I came to know I could never really be a poet, I believe those skills and habits are essential to the prose I write now.  Poetry is the ultimate exercise in concision.  You cannot be content with bloated descriptions or easy sentiments if you practice poetry.  I do not mean your prose will be filled with flowers and rhymes.  I mean you will use words as a miser uses money.  When nothing else will do, and only when it matters.

So if I’m ever in a position to dole out advice, one morsel will be to find a respectable poet, the most likely place is at a university, and enroll in their classes.  Study the latest edition of Contemporary American Poetry, but books are not enough.  You need a professional to pick your work apart on an ongoing basis, until you can be equally skeptical of every word and thought you put to paper.

My own debt is owed to Susan Howe, and a bit to Peter Makuck as well.  Whether they’ll ever be proud to collect remains to be seen.