I was appointed Poet Laureate. It came totally out of the blue because most Poet Laureates had been considerably older than I. It was not something that I even had begun to dream about!

Quote by Rita Dove

Topics: Rita Dove Quotes

I thought, after the Pulitzer, at least nothing will surprise me quite that much in...

I thought, after the Pulitzer, at least nothing will surprise me quite that much in...

The poetry that sustains me is when I feel that, for a minute, the clouds...

The poetry that sustains me is when I feel that, for a minute, the clouds...

What writing does is to reveal.

What writing does is to reveal.

In working on a poem, I love to revise. Lots of younger poets don't enjoy...

In working on a poem, I love to revise. Lots of younger poets don't enjoy...

I prefer to explore the most intimate moments, the smaller, crystallized details we all hinge...

I prefer to explore the most intimate moments, the smaller, crystallized details we all hinge...

I didn't know writers could be real live people, because I never knew any writers.

I didn't know writers could be real live people, because I never knew any writers.

I have a high guilt quotient. A poem can go through as many as 50...

I have a high guilt quotient. A poem can go through as many as 50...

All of us have moments in our childhood where we come alive for the first...

All of us have moments in our childhood where we come alive for the first...

People write me from all over the country, asking me, and sometimes even telling me,...

People write me from all over the country, asking me, and sometimes even telling me,...

Under adversity, under oppression, the words begin to fail, the easy words begin to fail....

Under adversity, under oppression, the words begin to fail, the easy words begin to fail....

Libraries are where it all begins.

Libraries are where it all begins.

The sound of the mandolin is a very curious sound because it's cheerful and melancholy...

The sound of the mandolin is a very curious sound because it's cheerful and melancholy...

Going to the library was the one place we got to go without asking for...

Going to the library was the one place we got to go without asking for...

Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is...

Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is...

I think reading Shakespeare's plays when I was young was extremely important. He had the...

I think reading Shakespeare's plays when I was young was extremely important. He had the...

There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints.

There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints.

I keep the drafts of each poem in color-coded folders. I pick up the folders...

I keep the drafts of each poem in color-coded folders. I pick up the folders...

My father is a chemist, my mother was a homemaker. My parents instilled in us...

My father is a chemist, my mother was a homemaker. My parents instilled in us...

If they don't read, if they don't love reading; if they don't find themselves compulsively...

If they don't read, if they don't love reading; if they don't find themselves compulsively...

Without imagination we can go nowhere. And imagination is not restricted to the arts. Every...

Without imagination we can go nowhere. And imagination is not restricted to the arts. Every...