The triggering town: Lectures and essays on poetry and writing [Paperback]

Richard Hugo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1979

"Richard Hugo's free-swinging, go-for-it remarks on poetry and the teaching of poetry are exactly what are needed in classrooms and in the world."—James Dickey

Richard Hugo was that rare phenomenon of American letters—a distinguished poet who was also an inspiring teacher. The Triggering Town is Hugo's now-classic collection of lectures, essays, and reflections, all "directed toward helping with that silly, absurd, maddening, futile, enormously rewarding activity: writing poems." Anyone, from the beginning poet to the mature writer to the lover of literature, will benefit greatly from Hugo's sayd, playful, profound insights and advice concerning the mysteries of literary creation.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Richard Hugo's The Triggering Town, originally published in 1979, remains one of the freshest and most refreshing treatises on the writing of poetry. While you won't find formality or nicety here, Hugo has the unusual quality of being highly opinionated and yet not at all convinced that what works for him will work for you. Hugo doesn't believe that he can teach you how to write; he believes he can teach you how he writes, and by doing so, teach you "how to teach yourself how to write." And while most writing instructors claim that one can't be a good writer without being a good reader, Hugo claims "that one learns to write only by writing." Hugo's essays are strong-willed and funny and by turns full of bluster and cloaked in modesty. While "a good teacher can save a young poet years by simply telling him things he need not waste time on, like trying to will originality or trying to share an experience in language or trying to remain true to the facts," he writes, "ultimately the most important things a poet will learn about writing are from himself in the process." Above all, Hugo stresses that creative writing is creative because it is a creative act: "if one is writing the way one should, one does not know what will be on the page until it is there." So, he warns, "If you want to communicate, use the telephone." And "Think small.... If you can't think small, try philosophy or social criticism." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Richard Hugo’s free-swinging, go-for-it remarks on poetry and the teaching of poetry are exactly what are needed in classrooms and in the world.” (James Dickey, author of Deliverance )

“Richard Hugo taught me that anyone with a desire to write, and an ear for language, and a bit of imagination could become a writer.” (James Welch, author of Fools Crow ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 109 pages
• Publisher: Norton; 1st edition (1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393088391
• ISBN-13: 978-0393088397
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,051,010 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational Because Useful, July 2, 2001

By 

Milo Miles "doctornork" (Cambridge, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Triggering Town: Lectures and Essays on Poetry and Writing (Paperback)

All the wisdom you need to write are in two small books: "The Elements of Style" and this one. I heard it from the man himself, and though Hugo's summary cannot reproduce the richness of his poetry seminars at the University of Montana, it's the closest you can come this side of paradise. His poetry exercises work. You can apply them and your writing will improve. Hugo cannot give you talent but he can help you understand if you have it or not.

Even his stories show how to live as a writer. Here's a couple Hugo sayings that are not in this book: "To be a poet, you have to know what's important about life. And it's not washing the damned car on Saturday." "There are many, many good poets. There are very few good critics."

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful writing, great instuction, but maybe too hard to forget, August 12, 2005

By 

Daniel J. Klotz (Lancaster, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Triggering Town: Lectures and Essays on Poetry and Writing (Paperback)

Hugo is a delight to read in the way C.S. Lewis is: he is endearing, humble, and gentle--a man of style, grace, and quick wit--while remaining tough, straightforward, and confident. Even if you don't pay attention to what Hugo is saying, the way he says it could carry you though the book enjoyably.

Hugo's intent in assembling this book of lectures and essays is to teach and instruct hopeful poets, and for him the soul of poetry pedagogy is basically (and simply) to save students time, to show them what they would eventually teach themselves if they continued writing on their own.

The danger in "The Triggering Town" is that Hugo is at once demanding and seductive. He doesn't put his suggestions and opinions in uncertain terms, and yet he avoids coming off as a control freak by expressing his thoughts so beautifully and clearly. Reading Hugo, it's difficult not to be wooed into becoming a Hugoite.

Make no mistake: There are far, far worse things for a poet than to follow Hugo's advice and methods. Still, if a poet is never able to shrug off some of Hugo's axioms, she will never achieve true greatness. Conventional wisdom has it that only after you have learned to follow the rules can you break them. There is truth in this. But it possible to be taught the rules so well that one can never break them. It is a daunting task for any poet to muster up the sense of authority to dismiss Hugo's teaching. If a poet is too shy and insecure to throw away his teacher's instruction (as many greats are), perhaps the best path is to avoid the formal instruction Hugo offers and to simply read the fruit of great poets instead.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn to write by writing, December 1, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Triggering Town: Lectures and Essays on Poetry and Writing (Paperback)

This collection of essays comprise the single best "anti-How To" book on writing. Hugo cuts to the chase and encourages us to discover what's at stake in our writing, and to allow the poem or story to tell itself in the way it wants to be told. I read this one annually, just to remind myself to trust the story -- I don't have to "manage" it.