Celebrating National Poetry Month with Fan Ogilvie

April was designated National Poetry Month in 1996. Since then, literary folks around the country have used this time to honor and celebrate the important place poetry has in our culture. All month long, libraries, bookstores, literary organizations and schools hold readings, workshops, and other events centered on the art of the written and spoken word.

Here on the Island, we are no strangers to poetry. Some of the world's leading poets live among us. Plus, there already have been some wonderful poetry events this month— the Promising Young Poets event last week at Featherstone and the West Tisbury Library's Community Poetry Reading this past weekend, to name a few. We caught up with West Tisbury's Poet Laureate Fan Ogilvie to find out what National Poetry Month means to her.

When did you start writing poetry?

I wrote my first poem when I was eight. I knew from a very early age that I loved words and the rhythm and sound and braiding of words.

What does it mean to be a poet during National Poetry Month?

There is more recognition for poetry. The Academy of American Poets and the Poetry Society of America, they push harder in April.

How many times do you revise a poem?

When I was young, I rewrote and rewrote, now I'm just racing to get it all down.

How do you know when a poem is done?

When it comes to an end and there's a period. Sometimes it happens quickly, sometimes it takes two pages, but at the end, there's a period.

Who is the first person to read one of your newly written poems?

I am the first reader, because I don't read it out loud until it's done. Then I usually try it out on my husband and my son, who is an artist in Brooklyn.

Who are your favorite poets?

Whitman and Dickenson, they are the mom and dad that we keep coming back to. Nobody fuels us like they do. I also like Stevens, Rilke, Bishop, Yeats, Auden . . . I'm very old!

Where is the most poetic place on the Island?

My study! I mean, nature really opens up the mind and I love all the Land Bank walks, Fulling Mill, Waskosim's Rock, but there is really something going on in that study.

Also, at the Point Way Inn when all those writers (in Residence) are in there, it really buzzes. There is so much chemistry.

What does being poet laureate mean to you?

I think it is a wonderful platform to be a spokesman for poetry. I really like that it is a three year-appointment, because I feel like I've been able to get a good start on a number of initiatives, like the Promising Young Poets, the Writer's Residency and the Poetry Festival at Featherstone.

What do you love most about being a poet?

Now I feel I'm really creating the world that I only guessed at when I started.  I am creating a world of words that have experience, that are significant.

What do you love the least about being a poet?

I was told by my friend, who is a wonderful clinical psychologist, that the gene for poetry is married to the gene for depression. When I was young, being a poet was a blessing and a curse, because I felt the light and the darkness so strongly. That takes a long time to sort itself out, but thank God, as you age, you get less sad and you find more enjoyment.

Where's your favorite place on the Island to go swimming?

The Y! I mean it. I learned to be a swimmer there.

Finally, where are the best sunsets?

My study! I love them in Aquinnah and Menemsha, as well, but the North Shore sunsets are my favorite.