Bunny Lives and Tiger Poetry

Kay Day

James Dickey thought highly of Mr. Packard, and praised him as one of the greatest contemporary editors, in part because of Packard's magazine, The New York Quarterly. This magazine has published poems and interviews with poets like W. H. Auden, John Ashbery, Stanley Kunitz, Karl Shapiro, Anne Sexton, and W. S. Merwin, as well as emerging voices like Lyn Lifshin. An appearance in a magazine like NYQ basically validates a writer as being above the ordinary. From the 50,000 poems submitted yearly, the editors selected poetry from voices known and unknown. This slush pile compelled William Packard to author, The Art of Poetry Writing, one of the most useful and broadest texts in print for crafters of verse.

The book begins with a mesmerizing exploration, "The History of Poetry." Towards the end of that chapter, Packard opines, "It's safe to say there is more poetry being written and published today than at any time in history, but it's difficult to assess its quality level." Citing the volume of submissions to NYQ, Packard continues, "....most of them border on inane self-expression, generality, and witlessness."

Packard's instruction reached beyond his instructional text, however. His obituary at the magazine's Net site states that he taught poetry and literature at New York University, Wagner, The New School, Cooper Union, and Hofstra. He taught acting and playwriting at the HB Studio in Manhattan. The magazine and classroom certainly had to be demanding. Yet William Packard made time to publish a number of other works--at least six volumes of poetry, seven plays, a novel, and six nonfiction books. He translated Racine's, "Phedre," and that effort received the Outer Critic's Circle Award. It is the only English rendering to date that maintains the original's rhymed Alexandrine couplets. His play, The Killer Thing, was directed by Otto Preminger. These acknowledgments offer lip service to a man whose efforts touched every literary genre.

It's obvious Packard was driven by love for the craft of writing. Raymond Hammond, Executive Editor of NYQ, says, "Bill taught us that your art came out of your life, that the two were inexplicably and inexorably intertwined. He quotes himself in his book, The Art of Poetry Writing, as saying, 'You can't live bunny lives and write tiger poetry.' And Bill lived this quote himself every day of his life." Mr. Hammond recalls Packard as the consummate teacher, utilizing any and every opportunity to impart what he knew and felt. "No matter where we would be or what we would be doing," Hammond notes, "Bill would teach. We could be standing in a video store and he would be espousing Shakespeare or Dante. The restaurant was his forum for what he was thinking about certain writers or works, or questioning you about the same."

Packard's dedication extends beyond his mortal years. Raymond Hammond and a devoted staff will continue the tradition at Packard's magazine. Hammond says his teacher and friend "left mechanisms in place for the NYQ to continue publishing." He says the magazine will maintain the same editorial voice.

William Packard always had great hopes for the continuing evolution of poetry. He confessed he had no idea where the next major voice in American poetry would originate. He mused, "But then, that's always been the case with literature, and there's every reason to hope there will be new vitality and new originality, coming from some completely unexpected source, over the next few years." James Dickey also shared that hope. In the introduction to The Art of Poetry Writing, Dickey wrote, "I feel about myself as a writer like John the Baptist did, when he said, 'I prepare the way for one who is greater than I.' Yeah, but look who it was!"

The Net site for NYQ offers information about the founding editor, and lists information regarding submissions as well as the contents of Issue 58, which Packard saw two days before his death. The magazine had been on hiatus after his stroke. The latest issue features poetry by Charles Bukowski, Jack Foley, Lyn Lifshin, Herb Kitson, and many other familiar and unfamiliar names. Issue 59 will be a memorial issue in remembrance of Mr. Packard.

From my standpoint, William Packard has been and will continue to be an influence. As a moderator for a poetry board, when I see a poorly crafted poem, I often feel like throwing his book at the writer. I have recommended that text many times at the workshops I sometimes lead. Often, when I go through a dry spell with poetry, I reach for that book, now somewhat tattered and worn. It is an old friend. I never fail to find something that makes me think or that spurs me to write, whether it's his treatment of the various methods for titling a poem, or his excellent advice on closures. The "History of Poetry" chapter alone is worth reading and re-reading.

William Packard's own mortal end was fitting. Raymond Hammond wrote to me in an email, "When he was discovered in his apartment, he was sitting at his desk, as if he had fallen asleep in his chair. His pen had fallen out of his hand to the floor, and there was a half-written play in his notebook. He lived that way to the end."

Kay Day

Special thanks to Raymond Hammond for his assistance in providing information about William Packard.

For information about Mr. Packard and his magazine:www. nyquarterly.com

Source for information: William Packard, The Art of Poetry Writing (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992).