A Lemon Hound interview with Don Share of Poetry Magazine where he says, “Some conventional-looking poems are deeply, wonderfully subversive, while some ostensibly experimental work is actually thoroughly conventional.” and “If you put a poem or a book in front of me, I want to read it and think about it: I want to see what happens. If we all feel this way, then despite our differences, we’re a community.”
How rare to see my sentiments paralleled out there.
When you read the whole interview, don’t miss this bit.
LH: On one of your earlier Poetry podcasts you included a conversation with a woman, in a nursing home I believe. Her reading group wrote the magazine to complain about some of the poems included that they didn’t understand. I love that you and Christian Wiman called the woman directly and conversed about the poem.
I like the notion of discussing what was seen, the sort of circumspect, mutually respectful comparing of notes. Hot debate isn’t the only model. Say a spiel, listen a while. Trade spots. That works too.