Poetry TIps Burn-Out I ask You Round 2

I haven’t acquired enough responses to post the answers one at a time so I’m posting these questions again in hopes that more folks will reply to these:

When/how do you know you are starting to feel burnt-out?


How do you navigate around obstacles which crowd out your abilities to focus on poetry in the day-to day?


How do you combat poetic burn-out specifically?



Finally, how do you know when you’ve conquered burn-out?


I will feature these questions one at a time each Friday once I get a satisfactory number of responses (at least five people) so I hope you will all take the time to e-mail me your answers at poethoundblogspot@yahoo.com and please type the words Burn Out in your subject line so that I know you aren’t Spam. Thank you!

Thanks always for dropping in and participating, I look forward to meeting again Monday for another featured site…

Comstock Review Open Submissions

I copied and pasted this from an e-mail I received, hurry, the deadline is approaching!

The Comstock Review's Muriel Craft Bailey Memorial AwardANNUAL POETRY CONTEST 2008 is now accepting submissions. DEADLINE: Postmark by July 1, 2008Final Judge: Marie Howe; Initial Screening by EditorsFirst Prize - $1 ,0002nd Prize -$250; 3rd Prize - $100;Honorable Mentions - SubscriptionsEntry fee $4 per poemPlease follow the complete rules available here: http://www.comstockreview.org/annualcontest.htmlSpecial offer: Contest entrants are welcome to order a one year subscription (2 issues) at the discounted price of $15, including postage and handling inside USA. Canada and Mexico include $3.00 extra for postage. Other countries $6.00 extra. Please include this in the same check as your entry fee.Send contest submissions to: CWG Poetry Contest 2008, 4956 St. John Dr. Syracuse, NY 13215

Guidelines, available at: http://www.comstockreview.org/guidelines.html
, offer many further explanations of the rules and editor preferences.

Next Open Reading Period for General Submissions: January 1-March 15, 2009There is no chapbook contest in 2008.

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by tomorrow for more Poetry Tips!

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://sundress.net/stirring/hughesh.htm
Heather Hugh’s “ask as soft”

http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/poetry/2008/05/12/080512po_poem_adonis1
Adonis’ “Chair (A Dream)”

Thanks for reading, please stop by tomorrow...

Brian Turner's Here, Bullet

Now I know many of you have heard of this book of poems, Here, Bullet by Alice James Books, and have probably already read it but I just found it in my library and had to share it with all the poetry readers out there. If you haven’t read it, I assure you, it’s a page turner! Brian Turner writes from first hand experience regarding the war in Iraq, and before anyone stops reading because they’re sick of the war, let me assure you once again that it is a page turner in the best sense of the word. These poems don’t gripe or whine, they are raw and suspenseful moments in the life of a soldier. If you have served our country, or even if you haven’t, you will find yourself nodding wide-eyed and disappear into the words of these poems.

Before I begin, let me tell you that you are in luck because some of these poems can be found on the web and I have included a link or two to Fish House below so that you may experience them for yourself. Click on the second link and scroll towards the bottom to find another set of links to his individual poems and read/listen to them and come back to this post.

This link is to an individual poem that I found to be the most central of the collection:
http://fishousepoems.org/archives/brian_turner/2000_lbs_live.shtml
“2000 lbs.”
Listen to Mr. Turner explain and read this poem. This poem captured my every fiber as I read it and then to hear him on this site just made it that much more intense.

The majority of the poems I had marked to discuss are already available as live versions from the Fish House and I urge you to listen to them and hear the poet first hand.

One poem that isn’t available is titled “Hwy 1” which I also dog-eared in the book and will talk about here. He opens with the lines “It begins with the Highway of Death,/ with an untold number of ghosts” and describes the history of this road. “This is the spice road of old, the caravan trail/of camel dust and heat,…” he speaks of the spices that were carried, of the different cultures that passed through. The ending made me gape in horror and it seems a small thing but he speaks of cranes nesting on power lines and then: “…when a sergeant shoots one from the highway/it pauses, as if amazed that death has found it/here, at 7 a.m. on such a beautiful morning,/” and I wonder why amidst so much turmoil and death would a soldier have to shoot a crane? An innocent bystander living out its life posing no threat whatsoever and then this soldier, who could surely have used the bullet to save himself later, shoots a bird in his nest. Why waste that bullet on a crane? I decided to talk about this poem because it drew me up short, I was angry at this poem. Of all things to be happening in the midst of this book with people dying or injured or trying to make sense of the world, why would something so careless occur? Is this particular soldier numbed by death, or so angry with the senselessness that he in turn takes on a senseless act? It is a poem I recommend that you read for yourself and see if you have the same reaction. Mainly, it is a poem that caught me off guard so I thought I’d include it here. If you are able to find a copy of this book you may have the same reaction.

I hope you get a chance to find this book and read it if you haven’t already. In the meantime, you should definitely take advantage of the excellent link below leading to his powerful poems just a click of the mouse away.

http://fishousepoems.org/archives/brian_turner/index.shtml

Thank you for reading, please stop by tomorrow for more Poems Found By Poet Hound…

Factory Hollow Press

Found this via the Press Press Press site, they produce chapbooks and while they do not accept unsolicited submissions I urge you to check them out and support their small press! They are based in Massachusetts and have quite a store of poets so you are sure to find someone you would enjoy reading there. Check it out at:

http://www.factoryhollowpress.com/

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by tomorrow for another featured poet…

Poetry Tips: The Break-Up Poem

This idea came from a friend who just went through a terrible break-up and it was reminded me of the painful break-up I had before my husband came along. You don’t have to have the fresh raw wound to recall the hurt from a bad break-up and there is no competing for the emotion involved in poems that talk about bad break-ups. Pour your hearts out into a poem addressing any of the fools who broke your heart or are breaking your heart. Cathartic, creative, and satisfying with a bowl of ice cream, no?

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by tomorrow for another great site! If I have enough answers to my Burn-Out Questions from last Friday I will begin posting them one by one each Friday. I urge you to go back and e-mail answers to add to the participation!

Ibbetson Open Submissions

Send 3 to 5 poems, preferably layered with meaning and rooted in the every-day life, don’t forget the Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope, and include a cover letter before sending it off to:

Ibbeston Street Press
25 School Street
Somerville, MA 02143

For details go to:

http://homepage.mac.com/rconte/home.html


P.S. Gloom Cupboard is looking for features from writers! Not just poems, if you’re intersted please check out their site:
http://gloomcupboard.com

Thanks for stopping by, please drop in tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

PS Don't forget to participate in Last Week's Poetry TIps regarding questions on Burn-Out!

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.fishousepoems.org/archives/rick_barot/echo.shtml
Rick Barot’s “Echo”

http://www.versedaily.org/2008/eventhedeaddoit.shtml
Sue Owen’s “Even the Dead Do It”

Thanks for dropping in as always, please stop by tomorrow for more open submissions!

June's Poetry Magazine

I have to say so far in my subscription this one has the highest volume of poems that I really enjoyed reading. That’s my personal opinion, of course. You can also click the link below to read several of the poems featured in their magazine, but I will be discussing ones you won’t find on-line. If you are fortunate enough to grab a copy I hope that you will; it is an excellent issue.

I enjoy this particular poem because the majority of us can relate directly: A.E. Stalling’s poem “written on the eve of my 20th high school reunion, which I was not able to attend” dedicated “For the Briarcliff High School class of 1986.” His poem is the essence of what most of us will be/have been thinking in regards to our class reunions. Arranged in couplets, the lines bring back the memories of those once forgotten, of dreams such as “The dreams of roles for which I learned no lines and knew no cues,/Dreams of pop quizzes with no pants on and no shoes...” Then of course memory serves up this wonderful couplet: “We wince at what we used to wear,/Fashion has made ridiculous the high hubris of our hair.” I just love the alliteration of the letter “h” in that couplet, and of course, always a fan of rhyme. Not only is this poem easy to relate to, it is also tongue-in-cheek which increases my fondness of it. If you happen to find this poem I hope you will make a copy of it for future reference if and when you ever panic over reunions of this kind. I will be keeping it nearby for my own use.

This poem I felt was very moving: “Death” by Donald Revell. What I find most interesting about it is his use of the word “green” on a subject in which you typically find the word “black” instead. For example, the following lines:
“Death,” I said, “if your eyes were green/I would eat them.”
Mr. Revell goes on to describe the layers of green in regards to a sunflower’s soul, and ponders what most would ponder in regards to purpose for space and time. However, he uses words that are far more unique than most somber poems. “The soul is forgiveness because it knows forgiveness./And the knowledge is whirligig./Whirligig taught me to live outwardly.” How often do you use the word “whirligig” in a poem? Let alone one about death? He even uses words such as “Shoe shop…pizza parlor…surgical appliances…” Again, words that are rare with the subject title of “Death.” Now, the reason I find it so moving is because he compares towards the middle/end all the events, real and imagined, that a human being has and concludes by including you. He does this by saying “Dear reader, your eyes are now green,/Green as they used to be, before I was born.” The ending was entirely unexpected for me, since he talks about himself but then includes you at the end because he realizes, as the poet, that you have been immersed in his words and thoughts and hopefully transformed by them. This makes the ending personal and moving without leaving you feeling weighted and sad. I appreciate that.

I hope that you will pick up the June issue of Poetry, many wonderful poems in there and of course there are a few available to read by clicking the link below!

http://www.poetrymagazine.org/

Please stop by tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

Sundress Site

Check out this site if you haven’t already, it’s a wonderful place to poke around in. There are links to poems, journals, and a “best of” anthology, all worth the reading. Click the link below and enjoy!

http://www.sundress.net/

Please stop by tomorrow for another featured poet…

Poetry Tips I Ask You: Burn-Out

I was hoping to wait a little longer to do another round of “Ask the Audience” but I figure this is a good subject to discuss, especially since I have overwhelmed myself these days. Here’s where I’m coming from: I am involved in lots of hobbies. My dance troupe becomes intense in Spring and Summer with costume classes, shows, and The Big Show that takes place at the end of July. Then there is this blog which I had hoped would continue at 7 days a week but I dropped down to 5 and it is still a stretch. Then, there is scuba diving with my family which also happens more often in warmer weather. Not only that, but there are weddings to attend, anniversaries and birthdays to celebrate and this all overwhelms to create a general sense of burn-out.

My tactic so far is to just keep plodding through it but I feel that my blog and my own writing are suffering as a result.

So, now that I’ve shared my burn-out conundrums with you, let’s bring it up for discussion by asking you all to share your thoughts/advice on the occasional feelings of Burn-Out that you have surely experienced:


1. When/how do you know you are starting to feel burnt-out?


2. How do you navigate around obstacles which crowd out your abilities to focus on poetry in the day-to day?


3. How do you combat poetic burn-out specifically?



4. Finally, how do you know when you’ve conquered burn-out?


I will feature these questions one at a time each Friday once I get a satisfactory number of responses (at least five people) so I hope you will all take the time to e-mail me your answers at poethoundblogspot@yahoo.com and please type the words Burn Out in your subject line so that I know you aren’t Spam. Thank you!

Thanks always for dropping in and participating, I look forward to meeting again Monday…

Parcel Open Submissions

Thanks to the Press Press Press blog I went to Parcel’s site and found out their submissions period is year-round. Please use the link below to check them out and I have included the submissions guidelines direct from their site.

http://www.parceljournal.org/

To be considered send up to 10 pages of poetry or prose to:
Parcelc/o Andrea Rexilius2174 S. Grant St.Denver, Co 80210
or submit by email at editor@parceljournal.org. Please include SUBMISSION in the subject line.
Submissions are read year-round. New parcels will appear every 4 months.

Thanks for checking in, good luck on all of your submissions.
Please stop by tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found By Poet Hound

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/the_tls/article3886602.ece
Paul Muldoon’s “When The Pie Was Opened”

http://www.versedaily.org/2008/skyharbor.shtml
Norman Dubie’s “Sky Harbor”

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions

Ooops...

Sorry everyone, some volunteer work called out to me and I wasn’t able to create a post for today. There are poems for tomorrow so please stop by tomorrow…

Poet Hounds' Top Five

My favorite Poetry Sites are narrowed down to a Top Five:


Poetryfoundation.org
The Poetry Foundation just has so many positives because there are articles, there is the magazine, the contest announcements, best-seller lists, audio, visual, you name it, they’ve got it. Simply wonderful!

Poets.org
I love this site because it always has information on poets. I can almost always find out more about a poet’s background here than the Poetry Foundation. I also thoroughly enjoyed signing up for Poem-A-Day, even if I didn’t always take the time to read it every day. Again, can’t say enough about how appreciative I am at being able to find out more about individual poets and being able to pass that information on to you.

Poetry Daily
As you may have noticed, most of the Poems Found by Poet Hound features poems from this site. It is a great place to find poems of all subjects, plus I feel like they keep it simple. Just the poem, the book/journal and the blurb about the poet. No fancy blinking distractions which I always appreciate. Just poems for reading’s sake. Thank you Poetry Daily!

Read Write Poem
It took me a long time to stumble onto these guys and boy do I wish I had done so sooner. Writing prompts, discussions, polls, they are everything I wish my little blog could be. They are always keeping things fresh and fun, which can be hard to do every day.

Guerilla Poetics Project
The idea behind this site is just phenomenal. Many people complain about the demise of poetry, the elitist views of poetry publishers, how particular poems never get accepted… The Guerilla Poetics Project strives to get poems of various subjects from various small-press poets into the hands of the unsuspecting public for free. Each broadside that is slipped into a book is beautiful and they all have a code number that you can register on their site on the back of the poem. That’s how I stumbled onto them and I hope you stumble onto their broadsides, too.

These are, by no means, the ONLY poetry sites I consider great but I figure these top five will always bring you some kind of inspiration or vital information in your poetic endeavors. All of these sites’ links are available on the side bar of this page. Please feel free to add your own favorite sites in the comments section for other readers to find.

Thanks for reading, please stop in tomorrow for another featured poet…