James Laughlin

James Laughlin
James Laughlinwas an American poet and literary book publisher who founded New Directions Publishing...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth30 October 1914
CountryUnited States of America
cases close discovers numerous whom writers
There are numerous cases of that, where one of our writers discovers another writer whom he likes, and we then take that book on. So it's a very close relationship. We can do that because we're so small.
authors material publish quite suggested
We see them when they come to New York. They stay at my wife's apartment. We have quite a correspondence with them at all times. They play a very important role, the authors in the firm, because so much of the material we publish is suggested by them.
almost
Often something comes in from which you can see that the person is good, the book may not be perfect as it is, and the person doesn't want to do a re-write. That's something we do almost nothing of.
books generally somebody stick taken three
Once we've taken on somebody we generally try to stick with them for at least two or three books to see if they will develop, if they will grow.
alternate attempt particular prose
We don't attempt to have any theme for a number of the anthology, or to have any particular sequence. We just put in things that we like, and then we try to alternate the prose and the poetry.
clear occasions poet relationship sad
Then, of course, there are those sad occasions when a poet or a writer has not grown, and one has to let them go because they're just not making headway. But we have a very clear personal relationship with the authors.
beaten fault german move seeing state terrible war
The German experience, as you can see, did move me very much. Seeing that terrible destruction and seeing the miserable state of the people, how they had been beaten down by the war through no fault of their own probably.
reading thinking two
Of course a poem is a two-way street. No poem is any good if it doesn't suggest to the reader things from his own mind and recollection that he will read into it, and will add to what the poet has suggested. But I do think poetry readings are very important.
break-up block writing
I try to write in plain brown blocks of American speech but occasionally set in an ancient word or a strange word just to startle the reader a little bit and to break up the monotony of the plain American cadence.
country sound vacuums
I often feel I'm working in a vacuum, or in a country where few readers can hear the sounds.
thinking age poet
I think one ages and one dates. I tend to have a good deal of difficulty in liking some of the new poets.
writing people office
We do very little re-writing in the office. We often take on people who show great promise and who we hope will develop into somebody important and someone good.
book two orchestra
I do read everything that we publish. We usually have to have two or three votes for a book before we take it on. So in that sense I suppose it is an orchestra.
thinking knowing world
I think there's no excuse for the American poetry reader not knowing a good deal about what is going on in the rest of the world.