Stanza and Deliver

Poet Mark Doty talks about his writing life at three separate events.

A A A Comments By Mark Dragotta Thursday, Mar 19 2009

Poetry is hard -- hard to read, hard to write. That’s why I admire the way poets like William Carlos Williams make it look easy by, for example, investing plums with complexity and transcendence. One of Williams’s modern-day literary descendents, Mark Doty, will read and discuss his own deceptively simple brand of National Book Award-winning poetry today at the Tivoli Student Union, 900 Auraria Parkway.

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“What makes his poetry and memoir writing so moving is that it has a very strong emotional resonance,” says Dr. Craig Svonkin, assistant professor of English at Metropolitan State College at Denver. “It’s often autobiographical and clear, unlike some contemporary poetry. He uses simple things to talk about human love and human connection. He’s a writer who writes about the everyday, but in a way that brings everyday emotions to life.”

Beginning at 11:30 a.m., Doty will read from his collection, Fire to Fire: New and Selected Poems, and then answer questions. At 4 p.m., Doty will deliver a talk on memory and the writing process titled “The House of Memory: Writing From Remembered Spaces.” He’ll also appear at 7:30 p.m. at the Tattered Cover LoDo, 1628 16th Street. “Some poets are great poets, but they don’t read or talk about their work well,” says Svonkin. “Doty is good at both. For anyone who aspires to be a writer, these presentations are not to be missed.”

Admission is free; for more information, call 303-556-2755 or go to www.mscd.edu/MetroCal/Calendar/event.jsp?monthYear=03/2009&day=19. Visit www.tatteredcover.com for information about tonight’s reading.
Thu., March 19, 11:30 a.m., 2009

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