I have written and studied poetry all my life (well, from the age of three). The following statement is not praise, but fact (how you deal with your ego after that is up to you…).
You already write prose that is more poetic (and sometimes more wonderfully sparse) than most poets (especially those who believe that poetry is nobbut a series of metaphors with weird line-breaks and nothing by way of scansion or depth). That you contain so much richness in ordinary words placed in sometimes extremely novel and interesting orders is just the cherry on top. There is nothing prosaic about your prose; and yet your learning (especially your prosody, it seems to me) – however much rich fruit it bears – is incredibly lightly-worn. (I wish I could say the same for myself.)
I have written and studied poetry all my life (well, from the age of three). The following statement is not praise, but fact (how you deal with your ego after that is up to you…).
You already write prose that is more poetic (and sometimes more wonderfully sparse) than most poets (especially those who believe that poetry is nobbut a series of metaphors with weird line-breaks and nothing by way of scansion or depth). That you contain so much richness in ordinary words placed in sometimes extremely novel and interesting orders is just the cherry on top. There is nothing prosaic about your prose; and yet your learning (especially your prosody, it seems to me) – however much rich fruit it bears – is incredibly lightly-worn. (I wish I could say the same for myself.)
I am both envious and extremely grateful.