April 27

I have known for a very long time that what drives poets is not the love of words, or even the way those words interact with each other and the world at large. It is actually quite plain and very simple. What drives poets is the money. Think about it, there are bags full of money just waiting to be handed to poets. Consider if you will, John Milton, author of the hugely successful free-verse epic poem Paradise Lost. In 1667, Milton, blind and impoverished, took solace in the knowledge that he had his poetry to fall back on. On the 27th, he sold the copyrights to Paradise Lost for £10. Remember, this was the 17th century and ₤10 went a lot farther than it does today. Also, don’t forget, Milton probably didn’t have to buy a bunch of postage stamps, envelopes or toner cartridges.