"We are shaped not only by the people we read but also the people who teach us. Those fingerprints are all over our work."

"Say somebody hit you with a wooden spoon. You might write a book about spoons or wood."

"In Austin’s poems, whatever the catalyst, I am always aware of where I am.”

We discuss “horizontal” mentorship, ethical pedagogy, ekphrasis, and disidentifying with the artists you're "supposed" to love.