We have the poetry thread, and we've had a few discussions about poetry from time to time. Even this one will likely fall off the main page fairly quickly. But I thought I'd get a thread going for any general, over-arching discussion about poetry as an art form. A catch-all thread, if you will. Rather than including our actual creations, we include our thoughts on poets, and poetry itself.
I don't have much to say at this point, I've been writing poetry regularly since about 2014. Number them up and I've likely written around 300 poems. A lot of the early stuff I'm not particularly proud of, primarily because the act of creation actually does take time and energy, and a lot of the early ones were only half-baked ideas that I wasn't too committed to. But as the years turned I started focusing only on the ideas that really inspired me, and giving those poems more time. The result is that I've written a lot of stuff I like over the past few years.
To me it seems like writing poetry has gotten a bad reputation. The stuff people are exposed to in school mostly gives them the impression that it's a dead, boring art form. And it's no wonder, as a lot of what we're exposed to are old, classic, boring poems that conform to stringent rules, and obscure ideas. A far cry from some of what someone like Cohen has created. And yet for me writing it is a lot of fun, I can't imagine a more pure or interesting form of expression. Unlike novels, non-fiction, and works of fiction written for the sake of commercial release, with private poetry you can say anything, and use any combination of words you like to say it. Like painting portraits with language.
In terms of poets I enjoy reading, that's a surprisingly small list. Cohen pulled off the unthinkable with his career, I'm sure there are many that have been as good as him, but none that gained the same notoriety. Outside of him I like Cavafy a lot, have explored the poetry of Gord Downie, Georg Trakl, Irving Layton, Allen Ginsberg, Maria Rainer Rilke, and a few others. I find it particularly hard to find new poets I like without recommendations, and I only get recommendations from a certain local bookshop, and only when they have something good on hand. But really - Leonard Cohen - Book of Longing and Book of Mercy are masterpieces, two books that say everything that I'll ever want to say for the rest of my life. I wish I could write something better than what's contained in these two books, but like music and movies that are continuously re-hashed, Cohen got to the heart of the matter first.
I don't have much to say at this point, I've been writing poetry regularly since about 2014. Number them up and I've likely written around 300 poems. A lot of the early stuff I'm not particularly proud of, primarily because the act of creation actually does take time and energy, and a lot of the early ones were only half-baked ideas that I wasn't too committed to. But as the years turned I started focusing only on the ideas that really inspired me, and giving those poems more time. The result is that I've written a lot of stuff I like over the past few years.
To me it seems like writing poetry has gotten a bad reputation. The stuff people are exposed to in school mostly gives them the impression that it's a dead, boring art form. And it's no wonder, as a lot of what we're exposed to are old, classic, boring poems that conform to stringent rules, and obscure ideas. A far cry from some of what someone like Cohen has created. And yet for me writing it is a lot of fun, I can't imagine a more pure or interesting form of expression. Unlike novels, non-fiction, and works of fiction written for the sake of commercial release, with private poetry you can say anything, and use any combination of words you like to say it. Like painting portraits with language.
In terms of poets I enjoy reading, that's a surprisingly small list. Cohen pulled off the unthinkable with his career, I'm sure there are many that have been as good as him, but none that gained the same notoriety. Outside of him I like Cavafy a lot, have explored the poetry of Gord Downie, Georg Trakl, Irving Layton, Allen Ginsberg, Maria Rainer Rilke, and a few others. I find it particularly hard to find new poets I like without recommendations, and I only get recommendations from a certain local bookshop, and only when they have something good on hand. But really - Leonard Cohen - Book of Longing and Book of Mercy are masterpieces, two books that say everything that I'll ever want to say for the rest of my life. I wish I could write something better than what's contained in these two books, but like music and movies that are continuously re-hashed, Cohen got to the heart of the matter first.
