I have been told by a member of the board of one of Canada's most prominent literary magazines that a submission of mine once caused a great deal of controversy.

Quote by Joe Barton

Topics: Joe Barton Quotes

The community of poets I belong to is not as close as it used to...

The community of poets I belong to is not as close as it used to...

I sometimes like to tinker with poems that have failed, ones that I have sent...

I sometimes like to tinker with poems that have failed, ones that I have sent...

No poem is easily grasped; so why should any reader expect fast results?

No poem is easily grasped; so why should any reader expect fast results?

I feel very connected to poets across the country.

I feel very connected to poets across the country.

You can never step into the same book twice, because you are different each time...

You can never step into the same book twice, because you are different each time...

The reader's challenge is to replicate the experiment by reading the poem and to draw...

The reader's challenge is to replicate the experiment by reading the poem and to draw...

Reading should be a repeat performance.

Reading should be a repeat performance.

An experienced reader uses the poem as an agent of inquiry. This makes poetry very...

An experienced reader uses the poem as an agent of inquiry. This makes poetry very...

My obsession with time informs my poetry so completely it is hard for me to...

My obsession with time informs my poetry so completely it is hard for me to...

I consider a poem to be a kind of experiment where a number of elements...

I consider a poem to be a kind of experiment where a number of elements...

I have always been very obsessed with time. Time's passage makes us all very vulnerable...

I have always been very obsessed with time. Time's passage makes us all very vulnerable...

We are comfortable with the fact that we cannot know personally what happened in the...

We are comfortable with the fact that we cannot know personally what happened in the...

I tell my environmental friends that they have won. Every issue we look at from...

I tell my environmental friends that they have won. Every issue we look at from...

I became intrigued with colour theory. The absurd pronouncements of the Colour Institute, a group...

I became intrigued with colour theory. The absurd pronouncements of the Colour Institute, a group...

Most victims of my autobiographical verse are either far too polite, remarkably understanding unaware that...

Most victims of my autobiographical verse are either far too polite, remarkably understanding unaware that...

Our flag honors those who have fought to protect it, and is a reminder of...

Our flag honors those who have fought to protect it, and is a reminder of...

The point of an experiment is not to arrive at a predetermined end point, to...

The point of an experiment is not to arrive at a predetermined end point, to...

To me many short poems read and write like beginnings that simply whet my appetite;...

To me many short poems read and write like beginnings that simply whet my appetite;...

The American flag is an enduring symbol of liberty, democracy, and justice. It is fitting...

The American flag is an enduring symbol of liberty, democracy, and justice. It is fitting...

In the past, poetry came in the form of spells and chants used to effect...

In the past, poetry came in the form of spells and chants used to effect...