Anatomy of a Dress

Yesterday I had a meeting with Professor R, famed in the department for having an encyclopedic knowledge of poetry and being exceptionally useful when you don’t know exactly what you’re writing and need a prescribed reading list.

I came into her office and got settled while she finished typing something on her computer. Then she powered down, turned looked at me for a long moment. Collected her thoughts, switched her glasses. “Let’s pretend you are writing for three readers in the entire world, Farren,” she dove right in, “and all three of them know every word you’ve ever written, backwards and forwards. They are acquainted with all your obsessions, you’ve told them all your dreams and stories. What is the next thing you’re going to write? Now that they know the lay of the land, where are you going to take them?”

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT IS THE SOUND OF MY MIND GETTING BLOWN.

Poets I remind her of: CD Wright, Brigit Pegeen Kelly, Frank Bidart, TS Eliot (esp the Wasteland), Lucie Brock-Broido, Karen Volkmann, John Berryman and GC Waldrep. Poets I need to read next: Karen Volkmann, Lucie Brock-Broido, Bruce Smith, Lynn Emanuel, David St. John and TS Eliot (esp The Wasteland). YES.