Don't write love poems when you're in love. Write them when you're not in love. — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
Never write a poem about anything that ought to have a poem written about it. — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
To write a poem you must have a streak of arrogance-- not in real life I hope. In real life try to… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
A poet is seldom hard up for advice. The worst part of it all is that sometimes the advice is coming from… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
“Never worry about the reader, what the reader can understand. When you are writing, glance over your shoulder, and you’ll find there… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
Lucky accidents seldom happen to writers who don't work. You will find that you may rewrite and rewrite a poem and it… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
“Each newcomer feels obliged to do something else, forgetting that if he himself is somebody he will necessarily do that something else,"… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
“I caution against communication because once language exist only to convey information, it is dying. In news articles the relation of the… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
“Don’t write with a pen. Ink tends to give the impression the words shouldn’t be changed. Write with what gives you the… — Richard Hugo Copy Share Image
“there’s too many people in here. If I had my way, I’d have nothing but young chicks, the innocent ones you can teach something.” — Richard Hugo Copy Share
I will garden on the double run, my rhythm obvious in the ringing rakes, and trust in fate to keep me poor and kind… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
A poet is seldom hard up for advice. The worst part of it all is that sometimes the advice is coming from other poets,… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
...an imagined town is at least as real as an actual town. If it isn't, you may be in the wrong business. Our words… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
“…I’ve seen the world tell us with wars and real estate developments and bad politics and odd court decisions that our lives don’t matter.… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
A creative writing class may be one of the last places you can go where your life still matters. — Richard Hugo Copy Share
Maximum sentence length: seventeen words. Minimum:one No semicolons. Semicolons indicate relationships that only idiots need defined by punctuation. Besides, they are ugly. Make sure… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
“We won’t all disappear on a remote country road in the Monroe Valley, but like The Admiral and his wife we are all going… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
“You might come here Sunday on a whim. Say your life broke down. The last good kiss you had was years ago. You walk… — Richard Hugo Copy Share
Assuming you can write clear English sentences, give up all worry about communication. If you want to communicate, use the telephone. — Richard Hugo Copy Share
Don't write love poems when you're in love. Write them when you're not in love. — Richard Hugo Copy Share
