Poets William Logan and Debora Greger have lived together since 1974 and presently reside in a handsome old home in Gainesville that smells like books. There are, in fact, books packed on shelves and stacked throughout their reading rooms, hall closets and workspaces. And their writing, in respective ways, evidences an affinity for the classics and rarefied knowledge.Logan collects shoeshine boxes. Greger creates collages that have served as covers for her books. Old globes accent their home's front rooms. There's a pew in the kitchen.

Logan and Greger, both published by Penguin, are also professors of creative writing at the University of Florida. They give readings of their work, and speak in a program presented by The Writers' Voice and Tampa Metropolitan YMCA.

The program, which includes a mini writing lesson, takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. at Blake High School of the Arts, 1701 N. Boulevard, Tampa.

Logan has published five books of poetry, including Sullen Weedy Lakes (1988), Vain Empires (1998) and Night Battle (1999). He's also the author of three books of essays and reviews, including All the Rage (1998) and Reputations of the Tongue (1999).

Greger is the author of six books of poetry, including Desert Fathers, Uranium Daughters (1996) and God (2001). She's also won several prestigious grants and awards from such organizations as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation.

They answered a few questions from Weekly Planet via e-mail.

How do you balance teaching and writing, in terms of hours and energy allotted?

Logan: Controlled cheating.

Greger: On the tip of my nose. Too bad Marineland went out of business; I need lessons from a killer whale.

What sorts of current projects do you have?

Logan: My new book of poems, Macbeth in Venice, will be published this summer. Usually I write a poem. Then another poem. Then another poem. Then another poem. Eventually I won't be able to write any more poems.

Greger: Would like to know where the next poem — or even the next line — is coming from.

What kinds of inspiration/material does living in Florida offer?

Logan: Birds. Very large birds. Preferably with sharp claws.

Greger: Alligators on campus — don't move till you're all warmed up. Bite first, ask questions later.

From what books do you plan to read?

Logan: Macbeth in Venice, Night Battle, Vain Empires and perhaps some poems written since I finished Macbeth in Venice.

Greger: Desert Fathers, Uranium Daughters and God, my two most recent books, and some new stuff.

Do you still create visual art?

Greger: Yes, I do still cut and paste. Everything I needed to know about art I learned in kindergarten — except that I never mastered glue.

Were you first driven to write poetry or criticism?

Logan: No one drove me to write poetry or criticism. I had to walk there. It took a long time.

At what age did you begin a serious pursuit of poetry?

Logan: I plan a serious pursuit of poetry next year. On horseback.

Greger: "Serious pursuit of poetry" sounds like something you read about in the police reports involving a dog named Fang and a suspect cornered in a crawl space. Is that what I'm engaged in? If so, why don't I have the seat of its pants clenched in my teeth yet?'

What is the mini writing lesson you will give the students/audience at Blake High School?

Logan: Take out a blank piece of paper. Take a pencil. Sit and stare at the blank page for a long while. Shake your head sadly, frequently. Sigh a lot. Put the piece of paper away. Try again tomorrow.

Greger: Study something you can eat. That's the advice my brother got when he was trying to decide what to get his masters in. The man giving the advice was a marine biologist who was taking home a bucket of clams from the lab every night.

This article appears in Feb 12-18, 2003.