“Free” Write
How can writing free you, when you allow the words to be trapped in the same way you’ve allowed your life to shackle you. Stuck trying to conform to a particular style or form the way you’ve boxed yourself into a career. Follow the rules and your words will be rewarded by promotion. Published and fed to the mainstream for their conformity, yet remain empty on the page they sit on. Their lack of meaning masked by the aesthetics of the language the same way your lack of character is hidden by your fancy suits.
They call you a poet, but I see a fraud. Someone who’s afraid to allow their words to soar beyond the restrictions of form. Outside the realm of art, existing in the unspoken language that spoken words can’t reach. Written to the pulse of your heart and read like braille by the soul; you have to feel it to understand its meaning.
Quite frankly your words don’t move me.
Posted on March 13, 2012, in My Thoughts, Poetry and tagged Fraud, Poet, poetry. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.
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The crazy thing is, the most plain, silly and cocky poem I wrote, got the most view last year. I didn’t even thought anyone would like it. It taught me that I need to let go… I love your work.
Thank you for the kind words. I just think we often get so caught up in the beauty of the poem that we forget that poetry has a meaning that connects with people on deeper levels. Yes, poetry is beautiful, but if I can connect with your soul, I’ll take it over the beauty any day.
Wow this was potent and most importantly, takes a stand. Personally I have no problems with poems that abide to form, except perhaps the rhythm and meter and rhyme distract me to the point that I don’t get what the poem is trying to say anymore. But the best part about this blog entry is that you made a choice and you have personal reasons to back it up. I can practically get into your head and look from your point of view. I too have my own peeves about poetry–for example I take it as a personal insult when poets who write fictional pieces, e.g. emulating feelings that they are not currently feeling at the time of writing or describing in detail events that never really happened, could write better than me. I take it as a challenge to better myself because it means I’m not good enough yet. I am only a good poet if my poems, based on real feelings and actual occurrences, are categorically better than those that are not attempts to capture something real. And I can defend that peeve. The beautiful part of all this, though, is poetry is a big enough field for discovery and for reading a continuous supply of new and old works that fit the confines of what moves us and speaks to us.
Let me expand on this piece and my thoughts.. My peeve is less about form, but more about people who try to define or dictate to someone what is good poetry based on a form, a style, a language, or a delivery method. Being that my upbringing as a writer/poet was both Spoken Word and literary text I have a strong affection for most styles or writing.
Where I run into a problem is when a poet claims that the poetry someone else is writing is not poetry, e.g. a poet farmed through the academic circle claiming that Spoken word isn’t poetry, or that people who share their work on open mics are hacks, or if your poetry is written in a certain format that it’s not good poetry; and this has happened in recent conversations among poets.
My whole stance is about being free, to write as your heart and soul dictates. I believe the writing should be real whereas poets often get caught up in debates about style, language, and look.
For the record, I stand by my belief that you are one of the most gifted poets I know.