Spring Cleaning
It's finally March! I've been dreaming of shamrocks long before we ever got to hearts spelling out Valentine's Day. Brown has been the prevailing color choice for far too long. Virginia, change your paper bag garments! Think green. It'll put some life back inta ya.
Seriously, I've had enough of the winter months. It's time for kite flying with the kids, it's time for watching the knobby ends of branches let the sun sing out their leaves, it's time to hike, and picnic, and drive with the windows rolled down just a little bit. It's time to bring out a sun that is a little more orange, a little more warm.
Ok. There's melodramatics for you. But, still.
---
Revision. Now here's a process that makes me feel like I'm back in school, caught and guilt-faced, because I haven't done my homework. It's time for a little spring cleaning in regards to these dusty-surfaced poems of mine. It's not my favorite part of writing. I was reading in one of my "how-to" books that as a poet gets more experienced with writing, this process becomes more fun. I hope so. I'm afraid, sometimes, that I'll turn every poem into a completely different one as I go about revision.
I also know that happens sometimes. But what I don't want to do is to get more ideas for the original poem, then change it into a completely different one (I've done this before), only to have to revise endlessly because each poem has bred a new generation, continuing on until it all resembles a carnival hall of mirrors. I don't want to get carried away by ideas. I think I just have. I think I know what to do.
Seriously, I've had enough of the winter months. It's time for kite flying with the kids, it's time for watching the knobby ends of branches let the sun sing out their leaves, it's time to hike, and picnic, and drive with the windows rolled down just a little bit. It's time to bring out a sun that is a little more orange, a little more warm.
Ok. There's melodramatics for you. But, still.
---
Revision. Now here's a process that makes me feel like I'm back in school, caught and guilt-faced, because I haven't done my homework. It's time for a little spring cleaning in regards to these dusty-surfaced poems of mine. It's not my favorite part of writing. I was reading in one of my "how-to" books that as a poet gets more experienced with writing, this process becomes more fun. I hope so. I'm afraid, sometimes, that I'll turn every poem into a completely different one as I go about revision.
I also know that happens sometimes. But what I don't want to do is to get more ideas for the original poem, then change it into a completely different one (I've done this before), only to have to revise endlessly because each poem has bred a new generation, continuing on until it all resembles a carnival hall of mirrors. I don't want to get carried away by ideas. I think I just have. I think I know what to do.
posted by Heather O'Neill | 5.3.06
2 Comments:
Sometimes I find a poem becomes something quite different, usually when the ideas that were supposed to be present in the original don't come across.
But if the ideas are all there, and it's the actual poetry, the writing, that needs improved, then I think it's important not to stray from the original vision, but concentrate purely on strengthening areas of weakness.
Rob,I think you're quite right. :)
Hope you're feeling better soon.
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