11-28-2012, 05:12 PM
Hi, I guess as one of the relative newcomers I suppose I should join this one.
So I'm going to relate my experience and resulting conclusion here.
Before I joined this site I would not have given any thought or hesitation to adding a footnote or author's explanation.
I had never really thought that much about "my reader" in terms of why they might be reading poetry in the first place.
So if I wrote a poem that even I as the author, thought was a little cryptic or out there, then I would add a note to "help" the reader get it.
On my recent journey of poetic discovery, that is called Pigpen forum, I have come to the conclusion that my motive to write the note was rooted in self justification and a desire to be liked or at least understood and that in part I was using my poetry to find a side door entry into being popular (something I've never been) My eureka moment came when I had a knee jerk reaction to a perfectly innocent comment (nothing to do with a poem even). I came to the conclusion that to take my poetry forward I had to learn to get over it (people liking me or not) and write because I liked it and further more to write a poem that others can choose to like or not based on the subject, style and the poetic art employed to write it.
In other words I have come to the conclusion that a footnote or author's note should largely not be given unless it is asked for. When I write a poem it should not be about whether people like me based on my poem or the sub text within the poem of my life story, It should just be about writing the best poem I can on any given subject and in what ever poetic form I have chosen to set this.
As I said in my knee jerk post..."all I have to do now is stop being a wuss".....a common behaviour practice of all us zero confidence, rejected, unloved, un-wanted and despised want-to-be poets out there. (My self included)
If I can wander off subject for a few words, my personal advise (derived from the above) is, try not to let your poetry be hijacked by your history, start writing a new history for yourself. Get out of the box that others have placed you in and allow the poet within to get a word in edgeways. It's scary but fun!
Oh and my apologies if the word wuss has offended any of you. Please feel free to insert whichever word you feel best suits your behaviour pattern. We all compensate and react to life from our past experience of circumstances - which are as manifoldly different as there are number of stars in the sky. This is good news. You (we all are) unique and can write unique poems that will be countless in number and all as different as snowflakes.
So I'm going to relate my experience and resulting conclusion here.
Before I joined this site I would not have given any thought or hesitation to adding a footnote or author's explanation.
I had never really thought that much about "my reader" in terms of why they might be reading poetry in the first place.
So if I wrote a poem that even I as the author, thought was a little cryptic or out there, then I would add a note to "help" the reader get it.
On my recent journey of poetic discovery, that is called Pigpen forum, I have come to the conclusion that my motive to write the note was rooted in self justification and a desire to be liked or at least understood and that in part I was using my poetry to find a side door entry into being popular (something I've never been) My eureka moment came when I had a knee jerk reaction to a perfectly innocent comment (nothing to do with a poem even). I came to the conclusion that to take my poetry forward I had to learn to get over it (people liking me or not) and write because I liked it and further more to write a poem that others can choose to like or not based on the subject, style and the poetic art employed to write it.
In other words I have come to the conclusion that a footnote or author's note should largely not be given unless it is asked for. When I write a poem it should not be about whether people like me based on my poem or the sub text within the poem of my life story, It should just be about writing the best poem I can on any given subject and in what ever poetic form I have chosen to set this.
As I said in my knee jerk post..."all I have to do now is stop being a wuss".....a common behaviour practice of all us zero confidence, rejected, unloved, un-wanted and despised want-to-be poets out there. (My self included)
If I can wander off subject for a few words, my personal advise (derived from the above) is, try not to let your poetry be hijacked by your history, start writing a new history for yourself. Get out of the box that others have placed you in and allow the poet within to get a word in edgeways. It's scary but fun!
Oh and my apologies if the word wuss has offended any of you. Please feel free to insert whichever word you feel best suits your behaviour pattern. We all compensate and react to life from our past experience of circumstances - which are as manifoldly different as there are number of stars in the sky. This is good news. You (we all are) unique and can write unique poems that will be countless in number and all as different as snowflakes.