Poetry advice from Patricia Smith:

On process:

first: get the story down. That might involve writing that looks like stream of consciousness, or like a big block of prose. And the second thing is language, and that’s when I get closer to saying, OK, this is ready. If I’ve heard it before, I take it out.

On rules:

you work through it; then you figure out how to crack the rules a little bit

On purpose:

You’re trying to upend expectations for the poem, from both the reader and from yourself