John Burnside
John Burnside
John Burnsideis a Scottish writer, born in Dunfermline. He is one of only two poetsto have won both the T. S. Eliot Prize and the Forward Poetry Prize for the same book...
NationalityScottish
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth19 March 1955
albeit bound cultivate demanding gardens human obliged painfully period realm separation time until
The conventional, and painfully artificial, separation of the human realm from the natural other is bound to perish, albeit over a period of time, until we are obliged to learn how to cultivate our gardens under the most demanding conditions.
builds finished head hold lines longer mind piece poem quite register several soon time until work written
The poem builds in my mind and sits there, as if in a register, until the poem, or a piece of a longer poem, is finished enough to write down. I can hold several lines in my head for quite some time, but as soon as they are written down, the register clears, as it were, and I have to work with what is on the paper.
abandoning beloved learning masters nature recognise schemes till time within
In time, we will have to recognise that it is not 'nature' that we need to protect, but ourselves, and we can only do this by abandoning the old, grandiose, profit-seeking schemes so beloved of our masters and learning to till the soil, live to scale, and live within our means.
cannot poetry realised spent talking time trying
I realised I'd spent a lot of time in my poetry trying to find a way of talking about that whereof we cannot speak.
characters nicer people time
Every time I write a book, I think how I could be doing it better to please people - a nicer book with nicer characters - but I just can't.
europe northern seems time
Andoya is in a different world, set at the northern edge of Europe in what seems to be a time and weather of its own.
human time
Once upon a time, forests were repositories of magic for the human race.
time
It's important to have quiet time and isolation.
ancient appreciation brings changed elegance forest form modern natural renewed time variety wonder
A modern arboretum brings us that ancient forest and, with it, a changed apprehension of time, a renewed appreciation of the elegance of natural form and a renewed sense of wonder at the variety of the world we inhabit.
encounters gravity joyful level partner possible teaches work
What the flamingo teaches a child, at that subliminal level where animal encounters work, is that gravity is not just a limitation, but also a possible partner in an intriguing, potentially joyful game.
desk organic poems poetry tend
With fiction, I tend to get to my desk and start writing. Poetry I write in my head, often while walking, so that my poems have an organic quality, hopefully.
either far interest keeping mainly poets spanish touch websites work
The way I mainly use the Internet is keeping in touch with poets that live far away. My main interest is contemporary American poets and some Spanish language poets, and I keep in touch with their work through either their websites or email.
danger entered might offered wild wisdom
The woods were a boon; all too often, the forest offered danger and mystery. Yet it could be liberating. If you entered that wild place on its own terms, you might be accorded wisdom.
art bird
Sadly, bird illustration has always been an under-appreciated art.