I am fortunate to have written poems that sound to some ears like those of an Iowan. But I have also written many poems that sound to others as if they were written by a Martian. In this respect, I can stand for many. I would like to think that Iowa is hospitable to all kinds of people and all kinds of writers, including extra-terrestrials, if we have any. Let me say that there have been times when I was sure that Iowa had many ETs because I have taught for over thirty-five years in the University of IowaWriters' Workshop and some of my wonderful students seem to me to have come from the far reaches of the solar system.
All art is about what life feels like.
The arts are the way in which we express what life feels like. We have no other way to fully express our feelings. Because emotions are not words, it takes a complex of maneuvers in language even to come close to the depth and complexity of our beings. Poetry at its very best uses words to say more than words can say. Iowa is gifted with many accomplished poets.