I was put off by people at school - my cabbage wasn't as good as other people's, you know, so that put me off.

Yes, you can feel very alone as a poet and you sometimes think, is it worth it? Is it worth carrying on? But because there were other poets, you became part of a scene. Even though they were very different writers, it made it easier because you were together.

If I do a poetry reading I want people to walk out and say they feel better for having been there - not because you've done a comedy performance but because you're talking about your father dying or having young children, things that touch your soul.

If I decide to be indecisive, that's my decision.

I wish the word whimsical wasn't used now.

We were the little school that surprised a lot of people back then. Little tougher to do that nowadays.