How to Be Your Own Best Poetry Editor

-


Sometimes you get to a certain point and you just don’t know what to do with a poem. You might have many drafts and you don’t know what’s working anymore. You’ve lost perspective. And on top of that, maybe you’re surrounded by a whole bunch of other discarded poems that aren’t working either and you’re getting different critiques and you don’t know who to believe and you’ve kind of lost your mind.
I’m going to give you an exercise to help you deal with that situation.
Many people say one of the best ways to deepen your craft is to read in your genre, so in this case, go out there and read poetry. But I’m going to make it a little more specific in order to help you be your own best poetry editor.
Exercise: Read three different literary magazines and find a poem in each one of them that you’re absolutely crazy about.
Now, what can you glean from these poems? How does searching for favourite poems help you?
1. These poems hold a key to what you’re aiming for in your own poetry, what you’re ultimately trying to do, and what your aesthetic is. And that is very important to understand in order to take an objective view of your poetry and where you’re going with it.
2. You want to boost your confidence in the choices you’re making when it comes to your own poetry, right? Think back to when you were picking those three poems. You were probably very certain about what poems were working and what poems weren’t. So we really do have a sense of what we like, it’s just that when it comes to our own poems, we often lose that objectivity. That’s part of what reading can give you – that objective look that you can then take back into your own work.
3. There’s also another benefit to doing this exercise. Are any of the three magazines (that you’ve found your favourite poems in) accepting submissions at the moment? If so, make a note of it. Maybe you want to submit to that journal. Maybe they would be open to your poetry.
Learning More About Your Own Style/Aesthetic
Assess what your three favourite poems have in common. In what ways do they reflect what you’re trying to do in your poems? Pinpoint what you find truly compelling in these poems and consider how you might strengthen your own poems.
While You Were Searching for Your Favourite Poems...
Conversely, think back to the poems you passed on – the poems you decided weren't your favourite. What led you to skip over a poem and move on to another one? Was the poem overstated? Did it lack tension? Was the poem about a subject that you have little to no interest in? Did you find the writing awkward? Was the writing too ornate, too plain? What made you roll your eyes and move on... Did you identify any bad choices the poet made that you now realize you've included in your poem(s)? Make notes about your impressions, before they slip away.
Now re-read some of your poems in progress with a more objective eye. Make any edits you deem necessary and then send those poems out!
When I was a student of Ellen Bass, I had an epiphany. I realized the path is lit! Once you begin to have access to the craft, there's so much more clarity and objectivity. You don't have to live in confusion, running around in circles ad infinitum.
____________________
I’m offering online poetry craft talks on metaphor. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit The Wychwood Poetry Workshop.

The craft talks include assignments, resources for each craft talk, mastery exercises, a metaphor checklist, and two bonus generative exercises. These craft talks are perfect for those who want to make exciting discoveries in their poems and deepen their craft.

Available: now
Cost: $95
Location: online at The Wychwood Poetry Workshop
Time: self-paced, 30-day access


Previously published at Trish Hopkinson's blog.

Popular posts from this blog

The Ins and Outs of Submitting to Literary Magazines

-
Image
Ten questions to keep in mind Choosing which Magazines to Submit to There are so many journals that it can be hard to choose. Here are some key questions to ask yourself to narrow them down: 1. What literary magazines do you like that match your writing style? It’s important to get a sense of the publications you’re going to submit to. Read a recent issue. You’ll have a better idea of what pieces you have that match the editorial aesthetic of the magazine and vice versa, not to mention that it’s worthwhile to read as much as you can in your genre.  2. Are you looking for a print magazine? An online magazine? Both? These days, writers are seeing the value of online magazines, which are readily accessible to readers. However, print magazines are still coveted by many writers, especially if they’re available in bookstores and newsstands. Some publications have their issues both online and in print—a decided advantage. Where would you ideally like to see you...
Read more

Q&A with poet Robin Richardson

-
Image
“ The truth, and the vulnerability of sharing it, is liberation. ” Robin Richardson is the author of two full-length collections of poetry, and is Editor-in-Chief at   Minola Review, a Journal of Women’s Arts & Letters .    Her work has been shortlisted for the Walrus Poetry Prize, CBC Poetry Award, Lemon Hound Poetry Prize, and ReLit Award and has won the John B. Santorini Award and the Joan T. Baldwin Award. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in many journals including POETRY , Tin House , Arc , The North American Review , and Hazlitt of Random House. She holds an MFA in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College and BA in Design from OCAD University. Richardson’s latest collection, Sit How You Want , is forthcoming with V é hicule Press. She is represented by Samantha Haywood at Transatlantic Agency, who is working with her debut memoir this year.  A couple of weeks ago, Robin Ric...
Read more

Constraint: The Creative Gift by Guest Blogger Heather J. Wood

-
Image
Novelist   Heather J. Wood shares the benefits of limitations... Heather J. Wood One often thinks of creativity in terms of the blank canvas or the blank page—i.e. the freedom to be able to write about anything one's imagination can conjure up. Some writers chafe at the thought of restrictions. Yet, having set limitations can also be an immense source of creativity. For myself, at least, boundaries have allowed me to go in unexpected directions. I would not have imagined myself writing a teen-oriented novel involving roller derby. In fact, I would have thought the idea was ludicrous a few years ago. Yet when I was offered the opportunity to write "something about roller derby", which eventually turned into my recent book, Roll With It , I was given a wonderful creative gift. The project turned out to a liberating rather than a restricting experience. For one thing, I wasn’t worried about being "literary", so I felt free to write more naturally a...
Read more