 Poetry: December 14, 2016 Issue [#8030] |
  Poetry
This week: It's not true! Edited by: Elle - on hiatus  
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| My poetry has greatly evolved since I joined Writing.com and I still have so much to learn. Every poet that I interact with, whether they are newbies or full of experience, has something to teach me. I would never claim to be an expert on poetry, but I do like to think I can provide a different perspective or something for you to think about... |
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Earlier this year I made the decision to make a lot of my writing public. For a long time I kept the majority of my writing visible to Writing.com members only, not the general public, and I decided that it was time for me to make that leap.
Most publishers will not accept submission that are freely available on the internet, but will accept ones that are restricted-access, such as those only visible to Writing.com members. I decided that publication was not my goal, so why was I maintaining this restriction? Time to go public!
The first thing I noticed was the assumptions.  About half of my poetry is autobiographical, which means that I wrote it about experiences and emotions that I personally experienced. The other half are based on observations of other people's lives, prompts and just plain imagination. Most of my darkest poetry is fictional.
I recently wrote "Invalid Item" which is written from the perspective of someone whose marriage has failed. And I find it incredibly awkward that people assume it is autobiographical. My husband and I are very happily married, and yet family and friends (and random strangers!) assume that we are having serious relationship issues because I write poetry about fictional situations. I always remind myself that it is a compliment that someone thinks I have expressed a fictional situation so well that it rings true. And trust me, I'm honored that they think so, but at the same time, it's not an assumption I'm comfortable with. Similarly, I wrote a couple of poems from the perspective of someone who had experienced domestic abuse, and found myself having to give disclaimers every time someone read them. I think people are really starting to worry what sort of man I'm married to! Poor Steve. 
I have had a number of reviews of my poetry where the reviewer has made a comment regarding the situation described in the poem, with the most common being sympathy. It is totally fine to make a comment on how a poem makes you feel, what it makes you think of or reminds you of, or why it spoke to you in particular (maybe you've been in a similar situation). But be very careful about assuming that the poet has written from personal experience. When I encounter these poems and wish to make a personal comment of sympathy or similar to the poet, I always note it with a disclaimer. 'I don't know if this poem is autobiographical or not, but if it is....' This leaves the door open for the poet to respond without making it awkward.
So, the next time you're reading a poem, please take a moment to pause and think. Yes, it may be a personal expression of the poet's thoughts, experience, and emotions. But on the other hand, it might be observational or entirely fictional. And trust me, you can't always tell just by reading it. |
Please be aware that the authors have specifically advised that these poems are NOT autobiographical! 
| | Hobby Horse (E)
Poem written for the Writer's Cramp 8/23, using the words tendrils, saga, memory, sting
#2054404 by Choconut  |
| |  | Invalid Item
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#2100608 by Not Available. |
| | | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#2072664 by Not Available. |
| | | Invalid Item
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#747599 by Not Available. |
| | | Invalid Item
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#2103365 by Not Available. |
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Feedback for "What makes a winner?" :
A fine News Letter because the words that a poet puts on paper are not ink on the sheet from the brain alone but rather a pen dipped in there heart. ~ Monty 
Awesome, knowledge by experience. You are correct when you had mentioned poetry comes from the heart. ~ jerics
Feedback for "Expanding My Horizons" :
Thanks for the newsletter, Elle, and for highlighting my winning poem. I really appreciate it!  ~ Sally  |
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