Poetry


Poem a Day [html]

The output from my poem-a-day project.


Leaf of My Puzzled Desire [pdf]

In 1995 I returned to school to get my Master of Fine Arts in Poetry from Warren Wilson College. By the end of the program I had written a book-length manuscript of poetry, called "The Leaf of My Puzzled Desire." One of the ways to get a first book of poetry published is to win a contest. In 1999 I submitted this manuscript to several contests, and it was a finalist for the Snake Nation Press and the National Poetry Series book prizes, and an Honorable Mention for the Sawtooth Poetry Prize.


The Nature of Poetic Order [pdf]

As part of my studies, I came up with a "theory of poetry" based loosely on Christopher Alexander’s "Nature of Order." This is a set of slides I use to present the theory and how to use it to uncover how a poem works.


Annotations Toward a Theory of Poetry [pdf]

At Warren Wilson we write short essays called "annotations" as part of the learning process. This is the set of annotations I did leading up to "The Nature of Poetic Order." Some of the annotations are not directly on the path to that theory, but they may be interesting anyway.


Analysis of the Revision of a Poem by Bill Knott [pdf]

This is an analysis of revisions Bill Knott made to the poem Lourdes using the centers-based analysis described in The Nature of Poetic Order and Annotations Toward a Theory of Poetry just above.


The Sun Rises, Rises, Rises [pdf]

This is a review of "The Daily Mirror," by David Lehman. I wrote it for a literary ezine called Crania, but right after I submitted it, they folded.


Lower Standards [pdf]

This is a class I taught at the 2001 Warren Wilson Alumni Conference. It is about writing a poem a day and the roles of selection and perfection in creating art.


First Semester Annotations [pdf]

Annotations on poetry done at Warren Wilson College with Heather McHugh.


Second Semester Annotations [pdf]

Annotations on poetry done at Warren Wilson College with Stephen Dobyns.


Third Semester Annotations [pdf]

Annotations on poetry done at Warren Wilson College with Michael Collier.


Third Semester Essay [pdf]

An essay on James Wright done at Warren Wilson College with Michael Collier.


Fourth Semester Annotations [pdf]

Annotations done at Warren Wilson College with Tom Lux.


Fifth Semester Annotations [pdf]

Annotations done at Warren Wilson College with Tom Lux.


Twenty Poems of Georg Trakl [pdf]

(Translated and Chosen by James Wright and Robert Bly)

This is a friendly, unofficial reprint of a very hard to find poetry collection.