--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I'm working on a poem, it's at the…" description: "\"If I'm working on a poem, it's at the forefront of my mind; I'm working on it when I'm cooking dinner or stretched out on the sofa. But if I don't real..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/996/maxine-kumin-16101_cooking_if-i-m-working-on-a-poem-it-s-at-the-for_1006785.jpg" --- # If I'm working on a poem, it's at the forefront of my… ![“If I'm working on a poem, it's at the forefront of my mind; I'm working on it when I'm cooking dinner or stretched out on the sofa. But if I don't really have it by the 10th draft, I know it just isn't going to jell.” quote by Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/996/maxine-kumin-16101_cooking_if-i-m-working-on-a-poem-it-s-at-the-for_1006785.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/996/maxine-kumin-16101_cooking_if-i-m-working-on-a-poem-it-s-at-the-for_1006785.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/996/maxine-kumin-16101_cooking_if-i-m-working-on-a-poem-it-s-at-the-for_1006785.jpg) > “If I'm working on a poem, it's at the forefront of my mind; I'm working on it when I'm cooking dinner or stretched out on the sofa. But if I don't really have it by the 10th draft, I know it just isn't going to jell.” [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative ideas linger in the mind and surface in daily activities; they must be refined by a deadline to become cohesive. **In simple terms:** Ideas stay with you and need a deadline to solidify. Key Takeaway Set clear deadlines for creative work. Themes creativity discipline process Mood thoughtful determined Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - writing - project management - personal projects Key Concepts deadline pressure creative flow iteration Questions to Reflect On - What deadline helps you finish a piece? - How do you balance incubation and execution? A Different Perspective Deadlines can stifle spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Cooking dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking-dinner/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [In working on a poem, I love to revise. Lots of younger poets don't enjoy this, but in the process of revision I discover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-dove/in-working-on-a-poem-i-love-to-revise-lots-of-younger-poets-don-t/) [Rita Dove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-dove/) > [“Bella came into my office. I was working on a poem. The poem was about butts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-grimbol/bella-came-into-my-office-i-was-working-on-a-poem-the-poem-was-about/) Justin Grimbol > [Working alone on a poem, a poet is of all artists the most free. The poem can be written with a modicum of technology,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-fenton/working-alone-on-a-poem-a-poet-is-of-all-artists-the-most-free-the/) [James Fenton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-fenton/) > [“I'm working on a poem about heartbreak that I've been working on forever (give or take). The problem is that I've never had my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-yoon/i-m-working-on-a-poem-about-heartbreak-that-i-ve-been-working-on/) [Nicola Yoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-yoon/) > [“Cooking dinner is a sacred gateway from work to rest, from seven separate lives to one shared table.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-hatmaker/cooking-dinner-is-a-sacred-gateway-from-work-to-rest-from-seven/) [Jen Hatmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-hatmaker/) > [It's promising and seductive, that huge Italian family, sitting around the dinner table, surrounded by olive trees. But it's not my family and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-hamilton/it-s-promising-and-seductive-that-huge-italian-family-sitting-around/) [Gabrielle Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-hamilton/) > [I just moved into a new house, so I love spending time at home. Everything for me is all about self-care because I really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lea-michele/i-just-moved-into-a-new-house-so-i-love-spending-time-at-home/) [Lea Michele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lea-michele/) > [There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a beautiful woman in the act of cooking dinner for someone she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-spectacle-on-earth-more-appealing-than-that-of-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you track your organization's creativity by the number of brainstorms on your calendar, you're missing out. It's more important to capture those unplanned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-best/if-you-track-your-organization-s-creativity-by-the-number-of/) [Charles Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-best/) > [“Sometimes Marlboro Man and I would venture out into the world--go to the city, see a movie, eat a good meal, be among other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/sometimes-marlboro-man-and-i-would-venture-out-into-the-world-go-to/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [I'm a big Sunday guy. I'll do some wood work in the morning, making tables, cutting boards, desks, whatever with my buddy Adam. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-leone/i-m-a-big-sunday-guy-i-ll-do-some-wood-work-in-the-morning-making/) [Brad Leone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-leone/) > [Our house is a really happy house. There are kids running around and laughing and joking, I smile so much more than people would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-beckham/our-house-is-a-really-happy-house-there-are-kids-running-around-and/) [Victoria Beckham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-beckham/) > [One of the biggest challenges in the past for me in working on the networks was that audiences have grown accustomed to television being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-sorkin/one-of-the-biggest-challenges-in-the-past-for-me-in-working-on-the/) [Aaron Sorkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-sorkin/) > [After cooking dinner tonight, I realized there is no straight way to wash a carrot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/after-cooking-dinner-tonight-i-realized-there-is-no-straight-way-to/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [“My friend Julie was cooking dinner in her kitchen one night. Her expression was blank as she stood alone working by herself. Her daughter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/my-friend-julie-was-cooking-dinner-in-her-kitchen-one-night-her/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) ## More by Maxine Kumin > [Poetry makes nothing happen. It survives in the valley of its saying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/poetry-makes-nothing-happen-it-survives-in-the-valley-of-its-saying/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [There is an extraordinary degree of amity among Washington poets. They hang together. You would be hard pressed to find that in Manhattan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/there-is-an-extraordinary-degree-of-amity-among-washington-poets-they/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [I don't think I've ever felt terribly comfortable writing about my body. First of all, I think I took my body for granted for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-felt-terribly-comfortable-writing-about-my/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [The time on either side of now stands fast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/the-time-on-either-side-of-now-stands-fast/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [God serves the choosy. They know what to want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/god-serves-the-choosy-they-know-what-to-want/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [And the pond's stillness nippled as if by rain instead is pocked with life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/and-the-pond-s-stillness-nippled-as-if-by-rain-instead-is-pocked-with/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [Women are not supposed to have uteruses, especially in poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/women-are-not-supposed-to-have-uteruses-especially-in-poems/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [To build is to dwell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/to-build-is-to-dwell/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [... people get confidential at midnight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/people-get-confidential-at-midnight/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [I would not recommend poetry as a career. In the first place, it's impossible in this time and place - in this culture -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/i-would-not-recommend-poetry-as-a-career-in-the-first-place-it-s/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [A lot of people use the dictionary to find out how to spell words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/a-lot-of-people-use-the-dictionary-to-find-out-how-to-spell-words/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [So many poems you go into and come up empty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/so-many-poems-you-go-into-and-come-up-empty/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [It is important to act as if bearing witness matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/it-is-important-to-act-as-if-bearing-witness-matters/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [Everything pays for growing tame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/everything-pays-for-growing-tame/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) > [When Sleeping Beauty wakes up, she is almost fifty years old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-kumin/when-sleeping-beauty-wakes-up-she-is-almost-fifty-years-old/) [Maxine Kumin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) [Explore all 41 Maxine Kumin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-kumin/) ## More Cooking quotes > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [I enjoy cooking, but stick to modern dishes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-starkey/i-enjoy-cooking-but-stick-to-modern-dishes/) [David Starkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-starkey/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [A man accustomed to American food and American domestic cookery would not starve to death suddenly in Europe, but I think he would gradually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-man-accustomed-to-american-food-and-american-domestic-cookery-would/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“In the back of the fridge I checked out some stewed apples destined to fester. I examined them closely and reckoned they had only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-brown/in-the-back-of-the-fridge-i-checked-out-some-stewed-apples-destined/) [Helen Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-brown/) > [My Mom always cooked healthy. Greek food lends itself to cooking healthy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cat-cora/my-mom-always-cooked-healthy-greek-food-lends-itself-to-cooking/) [Cat Cora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cat-cora/) > [Cooking brings me so much joy. I love everything, down to the execution of the plate to picking out fresh ingredients at the market.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-budig/cooking-brings-me-so-much-joy-i-love-everything-down-to-the-execution/) [Kathryn Budig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-budig/) > [Recipes don't work unless you use your heart!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-jones/recipes-don-t-work-unless-you-use-your-heart/) Dylan Jones > [Cooking is 80 percent confidence, a skill best acquired starting from when the apron strings wrap around you twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/cooking-is-80-percent-confidence-a-skill-best-acquired-starting-from/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [I have a great time cooking and eating Thai green chicken curry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-have-a-great-time-cooking-and-eating-thai-green-chicken-curry/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There are times when born hollandaise heads, as well as nouveaux turbot freaks and recherche escargotphiles alike crave the saignet abundance of a New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gael-greene/there-are-times-when-born-hollandaise-heads-as-well-as-nouveaux/) [Gael Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gael-greene/) > [Speaking of trust, ever since I wrote this book, 'Liespotting,' no one wants to meet me in person anymore - no, no, no, no,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-meyer/speaking-of-trust-ever-since-i-wrote-this-book-liespotting-no-one/) [Pamela Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-meyer/) > [Balance is key in cooking - you want a little acid, a little sweet, a little savory - the flavors should be harmonious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-simmons/balance-is-key-in-cooking-you-want-a-little-acid-a-little-sweet-a/) [Gail Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-simmons/) > [A combination of the qualities of the scholar, the master cook, the painter, the gastronomer, the sportsman and the pantologist, assisted by the skill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ellwanger/a-combination-of-the-qualities-of-the-scholar-the-master-cook-the/) [George Ellwanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ellwanger/) [Browse all 2,937 Cooking quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I'm working on a poem, it's at the forefront of my mind; I'm working on it when I'm cooking dinner or stretched out on the sofa. 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