Yall are mostly stodgy critics and it bugs

[wasellajam]

You're going to actually discourage some talented young poet from being creative because everyone here has such relentlessly conservative aesthetics

All anyone can do is call it as they see it. If you find other members' critiques discouraging you can counter it by being the voice of encouragement.

For me personally, even when a critique is discouraging I can usually get over it and hack at that poem until it's at least somewhat improved.

This isn't a mandatory writing class where the occasional standout poem needs to be lauded and I don't think a talented young poet brimming with ideas that need to be expressed can be stifled by the opinions of a handful of others that read and write poetry.

As an under-educated hobbyist poet I found the critiques by members who stuck by their concepts of what works and what doesn't interesting and helpful. The poem stays my own but it's interesting to play with other techniques. Nobody forced me to take their advice.

Young poets need to say thank you (outwardly) and fuck you (inwardly) in equal measure. If they need to be a poet they will be a poet.