Tough

It's a tough job being a poet.
I'm surprised it's not better paid.
Perhaps there should be guided tours of workshops
so non-poets can see how poems are made?

There's no respite if you're a poet.
You're working all the time.
You have to get on it if there's a call for a sonnet.
And people expect you to rhyme.

It's more demanding than being a surgeon.
It's harder than digging a road.
We deserve much longer holidays than teachers.
It can be stressful writing an ode.

We sometimes work until lunchtime
if we need to complete a quatrain.
Yes, it's a tough job being a poet
but you'll never hear us complain.

Artwork by David Shrigley