Just stopping by to say thanks...!
Posted: April 2nd, 2016, 7:45 pm
Not sure there’s many of you around that will remember me… back in 2003 I hung out at the Thought Café, ended up here when it shut down.
Back then I was godawful at writing poetry (all telling, no showing, explaining the bejesus out of my point instead of leaving room for the reader). Got so I could write a poem that went down well at my RL writers’ circle, but sank like a stone beyond, and my attempts at better poems weren’t anything my writers’ circle could appreciate… so I figured I was just bad at poetry and moved on to writing prose and plays.
And then a wonderful thing happened. Recently I met a genuine won-all-the-prizes (not kidding, startlingly good writer) poet over a play script, and she said, “Hey…you should try poetry…” to which I laughed and said I probably shouldn’t. But it turns out that a surprising amount of what I’ve learnt about storycraft applies to poetry. That, and 10 years of practice never hurt anyone. And the upshot is I’m bloody good at writing poetry—a few months after picking it up again I’ve been published in a big deal literary magazine, got shortlisted for a big deal international competition, been asked to give a reading in London by a big deal poetry organisation, on the bill with had-their-own-collections-published poets, and my Jedi Master Poetry Mentor is very excited and talking about when I have enough material for a collection it’s going to be a big deal publisher that picks it up, not a little indie press… like some kind of ridiculous fairytale
…this post is not for bragging, though. It’s because, back when I posted here, the encouragement I got made a difference. I didn’t know how to write better poetry, but it made me think I could write something. So I wanted to say thanks. If any of the crowd from the early 2000s are still around: THANK YOU! And for everyone here now with absolutely no idea who I am: THANK YOU on behalf of the folks who’ll have their own little fairytale come true in the coming years. And for folks who are thinking (like I was, ten years ago) am I ever gonna be any good at this?? The answer is: yes, yes you will be, if you listen to the feedback you’re getting, learn as much as you can, and keep working at it
Shaker.
Back then I was godawful at writing poetry (all telling, no showing, explaining the bejesus out of my point instead of leaving room for the reader). Got so I could write a poem that went down well at my RL writers’ circle, but sank like a stone beyond, and my attempts at better poems weren’t anything my writers’ circle could appreciate… so I figured I was just bad at poetry and moved on to writing prose and plays.
And then a wonderful thing happened. Recently I met a genuine won-all-the-prizes (not kidding, startlingly good writer) poet over a play script, and she said, “Hey…you should try poetry…” to which I laughed and said I probably shouldn’t. But it turns out that a surprising amount of what I’ve learnt about storycraft applies to poetry. That, and 10 years of practice never hurt anyone. And the upshot is I’m bloody good at writing poetry—a few months after picking it up again I’ve been published in a big deal literary magazine, got shortlisted for a big deal international competition, been asked to give a reading in London by a big deal poetry organisation, on the bill with had-their-own-collections-published poets, and my Jedi Master Poetry Mentor is very excited and talking about when I have enough material for a collection it’s going to be a big deal publisher that picks it up, not a little indie press… like some kind of ridiculous fairytale
…this post is not for bragging, though. It’s because, back when I posted here, the encouragement I got made a difference. I didn’t know how to write better poetry, but it made me think I could write something. So I wanted to say thanks. If any of the crowd from the early 2000s are still around: THANK YOU! And for everyone here now with absolutely no idea who I am: THANK YOU on behalf of the folks who’ll have their own little fairytale come true in the coming years. And for folks who are thinking (like I was, ten years ago) am I ever gonna be any good at this?? The answer is: yes, yes you will be, if you listen to the feedback you’re getting, learn as much as you can, and keep working at it
Shaker.
