Poemranker [Replying] Thu Nov 21 21:23:22 PST 2024

Replying to a comment on:

WHAT KIND OF FOOL ARE YOU? (Free verse) by Joshua_Tree

How many fools have been found by love, Empty, desolate, and longing, Surrendered to their low estate Finding that for which they had dared not hope? How many have been made fools by love, Certain of their lives and dreams, Crushed upon the rocks of anguish, Stripped of all they thought to be? How many fools have forsaken love, Hardened lonely and bitter, Surrounded by walls of their own making, Protected from all but their own selfishness? How many fools have been revealed by love, Bold, brash or embittered, Squeezed until their heart pours forth, The secrets they had hoped to retain.

Joshua_Tree

1-Jul-05/2:11 PM

We'd love to have our best work come out everytime we put pen to paper, but that is unfortunately not so.

I maintain some delusions or pretensions of being published during my lifetime, so I hold back on posting anything until I have some measure of objectivity. Book and magazine publishers want rights of first publication if they are going to pay for a piece. Those rights aren't available if you've published the material in any manner, including self-publishing or posting on the Internet.

Some people are prolific or polished enough that they could spew forth professional verse on a continuous basis. I'm not like that. I rely heavily on a system of constant revision to get the layers of flavor that I want into a poem. Like an accomplished chef, I might invite the opinions of others when working on an appetizer or a soup, but a new desert or entree will not see the light of day until it meets my demanding specifications.

My B material is "vestigial, workable." When it comes to my A material, I'm rather intransigent.

Track and Plan your submissions ; Read some Comics ; Get Paid for your Poetry

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