Why the Poems Are Rarely Edited

Most of the poems in this archive were written quickly at the moment they appeared. The poet describes the process not as constructing a poem but as recording an arrival of thought or insight. Because of this, the poems are rarely edited after they are written. Only minor corrections are sometimes made to clarify handwriting or improve readability.

The intention is to preserve the poem as close as possible to the moment in which it first appeared. In that sense the poems function like entries in a journal of poetic consciousness. The emphasis is on authenticity of the moment, rather than on polishing the poem into a later literary artifact.

This approach is consistent with the poet’s belief that inspiration is a kind of gift or visitation. Excessive revision might alter the original energy that caused the poem to be written. For that reason the poems are usually left in their original form once they have been recorded.