"Do you have poetry to write?"
I think I do. But not in proper form or format. Free verse, prose, words that have the touch and taste of poetry, but not the structure that would deem it such.
Maybe I do need to go backwards in time and learn the elements–I’ve only skimmed the surface in my learning. I need to build a house first from a blueprint before I raise one on my own. Nothing comes from just the wish and talent without the learning first.
I argued once, against calling everyone who writes a poem a "poet." I’ve learned to compromise this much; there are poets who write good poetry, and those who write bad poetry as well.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology
Ah, but then the question becomes what is it that determines whether the poetry is good or bad? Structure can break down just as easily as a value judgment don’t you think?
Structure really should not break down, unless broken intentionally by the builder/poet, I think. That is why knowledge and understanding of it is so important before it can be manipulated. And yes, all value judgements are subjective, but there usually is a foundation to base it upon, and while one may hate a classic, it must be argued that it is still an excellent work by established standards. We’re not talking like or dislike here, but what is good or not well executed.
That’s exactly what I’m asking about. What do you think good execution is?
I don’t know–that’s what I’d like to learn.
Maybe it’s just the non-conformist in me, but I think of poetry as something entirely unstructured, for the most part, although it obviously carries a rhythm. I realize you approach things from a “right versus wrong” standpoint, insomuch that having a skeletal framework may be beneficial to the overal process. If I try to follow the rules, I can’t seem to write anything at all, poetry included.
I’m sure this is my own interpretation, but I’ve always enjoyed poetry the most when it is haphazard and a bit messy, so I’m certainly not the one to be offering opinions about proper structure! No matter what the approach, I hope you’ll pursue that questioning voice that is asking if there is poetry to be written. I have a feeling there are stories that would want to see the freedom of the verse, if for no other reason than to prove that you can speak in any language.
By the way, I also had a mental block about writing poetry. So I wrote lyrics instead, which I never put to music. Eventually I decided to call it poetry after all.
Time for a restudy of Paradise Lost and The Wasteland. Or to just pick up a copy of Prairie Schooner. Lots of poetry there to study.
Have never studied Paradise Lost nor The Wasteland, so there’s a start. I have several back issues of Prairie Schooner that will be read this summer as part of my plan. But as for the poems within, while I can certainly apply what I’ve learned to date on evaluating poetry and picking out the elements, shall I assume that they are examples of fine poetry because they have been published? Or merely that they are publishable by today’s standards? Or, for that matter, by Prairie Schooner’s particular editorial tastes.