Samantha Lê

persona & confessional poet

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Notes on the Craft of Poetry

“I was learning the craft of poetry, which really was an intensive version of what my mother had taught me all those years ago—the craft of writing as the art of thinking. Poetry aims for an economy of truth—loose and useless words must be discarded…”
– Ta-Nehisi Coates (from Between the World and Me)

  • On Abstractions & Poetry

    A poet must maintain a healthy distrust of abstract language and concepts. Abstractions don’t know the direct route to the heart. Read more

  • On Being & Poetry

    Decades of crafting poems, and my drawer of words is crowded. Every time I open it, dragonflies escape. Read more