Kelly Solonas
asked
Ariel Gordon:
Hello, Ariel! I'm presenting on you and your work for my poetry class with Jenna Butler at Red Deer College. I find your work vibrant and moving, and am interested to read your newest book about urban nature. I've been wondering how a poet knows when to lay the pen down. Do you just allow the flow of words to go unchecked and fix it in editing, or do you follow a set of rules you've previously set for your poem?
Ariel Gordon
Hey Kelly. Sorry I missed your question, but here's my attempt at an answer. I generally stop writing when I run out of images or ideas. I find I write in bursts, especially when I'm inspired, and I don't keep going after that burst of energy or attention has been spent. That doesn't mean that I won't add to that first draft when I have another thought to work through or when my thinking evolves. I might also chop that first draft in half at some point if the piece demands it. But then, I'm of the opinion that first drafts are play and that real writing is re-writing.
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