A Thousand Miles of Poetry: Li Fang's Life Among Tang Poems

Li Fang, an online novelist, had been trapped in a creative rut for a long time. Unable to write anything he was happy with, constantly hounded for updates, and growing more anxious by the day, he felt like a soulless writing machine running on empty, day after day.

He decided to put down his keyboard and set off on an unplanned journey in search of poetry.

From the misty rain of the Jiangnan water towns to the sunrise and sea of clouds atop Mount Tai; from the mighty surging waves of the Yangtze to the solitary plume of smoke and setting sun over the deserts of Dunhuang; from the perilous climb along the Shu roads to peaceful solitude beside Peach Blossom Creek; from the midnight bells beyond Suzhou to a long-awaited reunion by Qujiang Pond; from imagining the Milky Way before the Lushan Waterfall to a heartfelt farewell in the morning rain at Weicheng; from the pastoral bustle beneath Zhongnan Mountain to a carefree night alone beneath the moon in a foreign land...

Every landscape was a Tang poem; every encounter, a moment of insight.

As he traveled and met new people, Li Fang came to understand the character of the poets behind the Tang poems and the flavors of their lives. He also came to understand his own anxiety and longing. The forgotten verses were like lamps, slowly illuminating the darkness in his heart.

At last, he understood: poetry isn't somewhere far away. It's right here beside us. In the magnolia tree downstairs, in the two extra scallions from the market vendor, in a child's innocent smile, in every ordinary, everyday corner that goes unnoticed. If you're willing to look, you can see it.

This is a journey in search of poetry, and even more, a journey to find oneself again. It is dedicated to everyone searching for poetry in the midst of an ordinary life.