"You don't go after poetry, you take what comes. Maybe the gods do it through me but I certainly do a hell of a lot of the work"

This quote by Phyllis Gotlieb talks to the idea that poetry is something that is not actively sought out, however rather something that comes to us. It suggests that while we may be the ones doing the work of composing the poem, it is eventually the gods that are offering us with the inspiration. This idea is additional reinforced by the phrase "take what comes," which indicates that the poem is something that is provided to us, instead of something that we actively pursue. Gotlieb's quote is a tip that while we may be the ones doing the work of writing the poem, it is eventually the gods that are providing us with the inspiration. It is a pointer that we ought to be open to the concepts and inspirations that concern us, and that we must not hesitate to take what comes.