ravenblack

ravenblack:

Ars Poetica

A poem should be palpable and mute
As a globed fruit,

Dumb
As old medallions to the thumb,

Silent as the sleeve-worn stone
Of casement ledges where the moss has grown -

A poem should be wordless
As the flight of birds.

*

A poem should be motionless in time
As the moon climbs,

Leaving, as the moon releases
Twig by twig the night-entangled trees,

Leaving, as the moon behind the winter leaves,
Memory by memory the mind -

A poem should be motionless in time
As the moon climbs.

*

A poem should be equal to:
Not true.

For all the history of grief
An empty doorway and a maple leaf.

For love
The leaning grasses and two lights above the sea -

A poem should not mean
But be.

--- Archibald Macleish

Couldn't have said it better myself.

ravenblack: Yay! I was hit with a one star review last night on my latest poem. Funny thing is, the reviewer in question had no writing posted and the only comment in his/her reviewing history was this nice hit and run. Anyway, I had it removed. I would like to still keep my poems open for standard members. Those who create fake profiles to slam others ruin it for everyone.

ravenblack: How do you show disrespect to writers and the purported purpose of this site? Copy and paste reviews. Ran across two reviewers in the past two days, one who literally had page after page of the same glowing review, only some selected as 4's. When I say page after page, I am not exaggerating, all on the same day clearly showing that not one poem was read. Pitiful. Please, when you run across such reviewers, warn them or report them. Such practices really undermine the site.

ravenblack: Insomnia sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ravenblack: what do you do when you read a poem that you deem morally reprehensible? blabber about rhythm and rhyme, ignore the content, and give it a five anyway 'cause you are afraid of revenge reviews? have some freakin' courage and do the right thing!

ravenblack: yes, I know. I posted 2 poems in the top twelve. do I enjoy the spotlight? I would be lying if I said no. I earned it the hard way. no cut and paste reviewing, no usage of the credit card, just spending lot's of time giving personal reviews to a mass plethora of poems.

ravenblack: when I review a poem, I review a poem- try to add a personal touch. we post to be read and I believe it is only right that a reviewer treat a poem as if he/she read it with care. nothing drives me more batty than receiving formulaic reviews, the same sentence w/a few different words plugged in. this does not happen often, maybe w/just a handful of reviewers. just think it is a slap in the face to the purpose of this site to make it so evident that the only reason for such reviews is to pick up points.

ravenblack: form vs. content - a delicate balance. form w/out much content or content enslaved to form and you have an empty shirt that looks really good hanging in the closet or a dead tree adorned w/ornaments. content w/out form or form enslaved to content and you wear a t-shirt in the snow or a tree w/out ornaments. the approach to poetry must be balanced. have something to say rather than just plugging words w/the same tired meaning into abab, blah blah blah. borrow from form, adapt your own rhythm and rhyme and meld it to content. neither can stand alone and be good poetry.

ravenblack: I believe that a good poem leaves some space for the reader to wander and explore. it is in the " a-ha" moment when the reader's understanding and the poet's intentions collide and collaborate that a poem truly shines/ communicates on a deeper level. I do not believe in leading the reader by the nose.

ravenblack: one important aspect of writing poetry is reading poetry, great poetry by the so-called masters that we all aspire to become. I don't mean read to copy, but read to absorb. some of my favorite modern poets ( in no particular order) are William Stafford, James Dickey, William S. Merwyn, Wallace Stevens. Theodore Roethke, Jim Harrison, Ted Kooser, Octavio Paz, Sylvia Plath, Pablo Neruda. Dylan Thomas... I could go on and on. who are some of your favorite poets?

ravenblack: all poems are spiritual. all poems, no matter what the subject matter, are sacred. poetry is a higher form of communication in which we directly try to communicate our inner life, how our souls experience the world. past, present, future - all tenses can be contained in a single word. prose is mainly concerned w/getting from point a to point b. it can contain elements of poetry, but it's intent remains the same. poetry is points a, b, c, etc. swirling around a nucleus of the here and now.... my braion hurts.

ravenblack: I have a long-time love/hate relationship poetry. Nothing feels better ( well, almost nothing) than getting that perfect poem ( perfect in the sense that it is a wordpainting that communicates exactly what was on your mind/in your soul). I just wish poems would let me sleep!! they come out of nowhere when I shower, walk the dog, etc.
anyway, I have been writing poetry from the tender age of twelve and have been performing/reading poetry for live audiences for about twenty years.
poetry is so different from prose. it is more akin to a painting.