Pick My Brain

more A's to your Q's

Hi, Friend.

Every time I open up Q&A for paid subscribers, you all show up with the best questions. And you comment on each other’s posts, offer suggestions, provide links, and build community. I love to see it. In today’s post, I’m answering questions about how to approach radical revision, how to determine the right balance of mystery and clarity in a poem, how to carve out time for creative work as a parent of small children, how to set and hold boundaries in memoir, and what I look for when serving as judge for a poetry contest.

Questions are such a gift, aren’t they? Each one is an opportunity to think your way into something, to articulate your thoughts, and even to realize that your thinking has shifted. Q&A is often my favorite part of readings and talks for that reason. I always come away with new discoveries. I hope you will, too.

Now, let’s get to it!