August 7, 2021

Something I thought about:

• Structure and syntax – dissertation structure and syntax in poetry. Dissertation structure because I'm still trying to figure out this chapter and whether it isn't working because of the order of the material or if something else hasn't clicked into place yet. For now, I'm continuing to add to it with the hope that more material will either build it out enough that it flows or that I can identify what's missing and can direct my energy there.
• With syntax, the podcast I mention below included an interesting conversation about the relationship between space, time, and syntax in poetry – the poet moved to CA and has started to writing longer lines in a place that's more open in terms of landscape and also has a slower pace of life. She also says that all narrative poems are about loss because they're linear, so the passage of time means that something is constantly lost whereas a lyric poem is more circular and self-contained. Interesting observations. I'm still thinking about them.

Something I did:

• Wrote a reasonable amount. I could use a few more weeks of this kind of time and focus. I will not have it in August.

Something I read:

• This podcast was highly relevant to my interests: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/podcasts/156261/aria-aber-vs-ruins