Scan the poem visually first
If you see a poem
With at least one line
Ending in a long dash –
You should read that poem –
With a pause at the end
Of only the lines –
Ending with that long dash
poetry
A Self-Study of a Contest’s Winning Modern Poetry Entries
A few weeks back, I was able to share a short poem I had written this year that didn’t fare well in a local poetry competition, with anticipation of seeing the finalists and/or winning entries so I can “self-study” them as one more of many attempts to “get” modern poetry. Well, I got them and have shared them below, along with some self-study notes.
Earthlings
Each of about eight billion
Ever-changing chameleons
Trying to blend in with others
Trying to stand out from others
Trying to find their true colours
Trying to be other colours
Trying unnatural colours
Trying impossible colours
Trying to achieve some balance
Trying to maintain that balance
All at once
Those Rejected Poems
A few months ago, I posted about posting poems I had written for poetry competitions, but which I rejected, as their own collection on my poetry blog. It was just to see what would end up there, and, ultimately, if I would make any “mistakes” to reject poems I would want to use later, but wouldn’t be able to since by having been posted online, they would be considered “published” and ineligible for most poetry competitions.
The Rejected Poems
I have a poetry blog. It’s nothing special, and I am absolutely not being modest here. Pretty much nobody reads it, right now or ever in the past, and that’s quite fine by me, because I don’t write for the readership. You don’t write and post over 1800 poems for readership over a few decades if you’ve never gotten any readership, so I am honest in saying I don’t write for the readership.
Digital Citizen 