Background on "Carved in Stone"

RFrostED: How did your poem come into being?

GRC: I started the poem on a sleepless night in a motel, after visiting my father's gravesite in KY for the first time.


RFrostED: Do you have a favorite line or phrase or word in your poem?


GRC: Yes, first off I liked the way repetitions started cropping up, then became part of the music, which I began using consciously; the music and repetition landed pleasingly, for me, on the closing line.

RFrostED: How long have you been working on poetry?

GRC: I've been writing poetry for about 19 years, navigating a long struggle with evolving craft.


RFrostED: To read the poem out loud to an audience, how would you introduce it?

GRC: I would probably mention the stimulus that led to the poem, i.e. that moment seeing my dad's name carved in stone.


RFrostED: What poets' work has taught you the most.

GRC: I've learned so much by studying with and reading about and reading the works of poets I love, but I don't think I can narrow it down to a single strongest influence. Some of my favorites are Stephen Dunn, Stanley Kunitz, Mark Doty, and Jane Kenyon, but there are many more.


RFrostED: Do you have a favorite Frost poem? If so, what is it.

GRC: I have always loved "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" but I might stop short of choosing one poem that's a favorite.