Poetry Tips: Independence

In honor of the 4th of July I think a good theme for writing poems this week is independence. It could be based on your country of origin, it could be based on the individual, it could be based on being able to do something on your own for the first time such as riding a bicycle or grilling that perfect steak without a second pair of eyes peering over your shoulder. This week, what does Independence mean to you? On a small-scale or large-scale, independence matters.

Good luck to all who try it, please drop in again next week…

American Poetry Review Open Submissions

Accepts poems year round, but no simultaneous submissions, please. While they do not specify the number of poems, I would send no more than 5. Be sure to include your contact information on each page and if you are submitting prose, double-space your manuscript. Send your work with a Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope so that you can receive a response, they take up to three months to consider your work. Please send your poems to:

The Editors
APR
1700 Sansom Street, Suite 800
Philadelphia, PA 19103


For more details, go to:
https://www.aprweb.org/about


Good luck to all who submit, please drop in tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.sundresspublications.com/stirring/klepetars.htm
“The Woman Who Broke Her Eyes” by Steve Klepetar



http://www.memorious.org/?id=368
“Silviculture” by Cecily Parks


Thanks for clicking in, please drop in tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Joni B. Cole's Toxic Feedback

Joni B. Cole’s book, Toxic Feedback: Helping Writers Survive and Thrive, is an excellent book for all writers. If you have ever wondered if you could or should show your work to other writers, editors, friends or colleagues before submitting officially to publication, this book is for you. This book was published in 2006 by University Press of New England and has been a joy to read. Joni Cole is honest, funny, and she provides wonderful anecdotes from poets such as Ted Kooser and novelists such as Khaled Hosseini, author of the best-seller, The Kite Runner.

There are plenty of eye-opening stories and tips for writers at every stage in their career, including how to give and receive feedback graciously as well as how to form your own writer’s workshop.

When it comes to receiving feedback it is best to keep an open mind and to examine your own defense mechanisms. Mrs. Cole uses the phrase “Is It You…Or Is It Them?” to illustrate that sometimes writers take feedback more personally than it is meant. Also, when processing feedback you do not have to take every suggestion literally nor should you ignore suggestions repeated by several people. You do not need to change your entire poem or story to reflect others’ personal preferences but if several people find that they stumble over certain parts of your writing you may need to revisit and revise. You can also take a break from your piece and revisit it after you’ve allowed the feedback to sink in so that you are prepared to look at your work in a refreshed perspective and therefore you are more open-minded to revision.

As for giving feedback, try to be as unbiased as possible. Joni Cole has sections titled “A Right Way and a Wrong Way,” and “Can You Please Be More Specific!” For example: Joni notes that when reading other writers’ work, that this isn’t about your personal preferences; this is about the writer’s work and vision at hand. Does it make sense? Is it grammatically and punctually correct? Does the poem or story flow easily or are there awkward pauses or turns that could be smoothed over? Also, use specific comments so that the writer knows what really needs to be fixed. For poetry, you could point to a stanza or line that you feel needs to be revised either for clarity or eliminated altogether. For stories, there may be an awkward turn or ending that doesn’t fit with the rest of the story. Always try to find something positive to say even if you don’t personally enjoy the type of writing or subject. The writer took the time and effort to write something that they then opened themselves to sharing with you. Praise their effort, the lines or paragraphs that work, the flow and rhythm, the imagery, anything that strikes a positive note with you.

Finally, Joni Cole’s ultimate conclusion is that writers need other writers. If you do not know of any writers yet then you can easily seek them out by making connections with local writers by attending conferences, workshops, or going to readings and introducing yourself. I have met many writers through my blog and can send an e-mail when I feel stuck or just need an extra pair of eyes. Joni Cole has an entire section devoted to creating a workshop titled “Hey, Let’s Put On A Workshop!” She describes how you can also create your own workshop based out of your own home. I joined a writing group in exactly this way: An on-line “Meet-Up” site had a writer calling for other writers to meet once a week. At the time I had not started this blog and I had never taken poetry seriously but the open invitation called to me and so I joined and I have never regretted it. It disbanded several months later because every member except myself had moved out of state but if I hadn’t joined I would never have started my blog and I may never have had the courage to send poems out for publication. Workshops and groups are wonderful ways to meet writers who can encourage one another’s work and I urge you to try it if you haven’t already.

There are many parts of this book I wish I could reproduce in their entirety and there is even more I could include in this review. Joni Cole makes a case for taking creative writing courses, for appreciating “bad writing” and provides tips on producing healthy and productive discussions in groups and is unafraid to reveal her own shortcomings on her own journey as a writer and feedback provider. I have been savoring this book for weeks now and I believe you will, too. It has given me renewed vigor for my own writing and I’m sure it will for you, too.

Joni B. Cole has written for magazines, has published books such as the “This Day…” series, Watercooler Diaries, and will be publishing a collection of stories on September 6th titled: Another Bad-Dog Book: Tales of Life, Love, and Neurotic Human Behavior.


To learn more about Joni Cole and her current and upcoming books, please visit her web-site at:
http://www.jonibcole.com/


To order a copy of her book, Toxic Feedback, which I highly recommend, for $11.00 paperback or $9.95 for Kindle, go to:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_27?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=toxic+feedback+by+joni+cole&sprefix=toxic+feedback+by+joni+cole


Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

The Write Room Web-site

Check out this on-line magazine of prose, poetry and so much more at:

http://www.thewritemag.com/


Thanks for clicking in, please stop in tomorrow for a featured review…

The Write Room Open Submissions

The Write Room accepts poetry submissions on-line through their on-line submission link. While they don’t specify the number of poems (I would limit yourself to 5 to be safe) they do ask for a writer’s resume or at least a biography. You may use Microsoft Word document attachments in the submission and please do not submit poems that have already been published on-line or in print.

For details and to use the on-line submissions link, go to:

http://www.thewritemag.com/guidelines-and-submissions/

Good luck to all who submit, please drop in again next week…

Lilliput Review Issue #180

This issue melts even the coldest of hearts, walks you down the hard-to-find paths of life and leaves you with poems that bring a sense of renewal and spirituality. I have marked so many poems that I would essentially be reproducing the entire issue so it is with great restraint that I share only a few of the poems below:


Holding on to nothing,
it is taking all
that I have got

by: Charlie Mehrhoff of Oakland, ME

Powerful short poem by Mr. Mehrhoff, I think of it as a poem in which the poet is trying to let go of something that should have been let go of long ago whether it is a memory, a feeling, or an object tied up in emotional attachment.



No Path

Sometimes there is no path through the woods
And that is the way you must travel home
Sometimes there is no home on the other side of the woods
And that is where you must live

By: Buff Whitman-Bradlye of Kentfield, CA

This poem could be a metaphor for so many journeys in life, I will let you fasten it to your own journey.



tanka

I reach deep
inside the night, pull out demons
by the tail like ropes
but find they’re knotted tightly round
my intentions

By: Gary LeBell of Cumming, GA

This poems made me say “YES” aloud. Yes, how often we try to do or say the right thing and our intentions backfire in day to day life. Wonderful poem!




I hope you enjoyed this small sample, I could easily have included a half dozen more but urge you to read this collection for yourself. If you would like a copy for yourself, issues are a mere $1.00 by Paypal and you can peruse Don Wentworth’s wonderful blog by going to:

http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com/


Thanks always for reading, please drop in on Thursday for more Open Submissions…

It's That Time of Year Again

Hello Readers!

It’s that time of year again where I prepare for our dance troupe’s annual performance and spend much of my free time sewing our latest costume. Also, I celebrated Father’s Day with my family so I am behind on posts on account of that as well.

Tuesday and Thursday posts will be up this week, and I hope to be back on our regular schedule of five posts after this.

Thanks for your patience and thanks always for reading, please drop in tomorrow for Lilliput Review’s issue # 180…

Poetry Tips: Boredom Before Concentration

Remember summer vacation? I miss it with a passion. Remember being bored? When you were bored you often wandered around and eventually stumbled onto a great idea and tried to put it into action. As a kid, I would always find a way to build more interesting forts in the backyard using the trees as support or when we lived in El Paso, we used tumbleweeds.

Nowadays we are overscheduled and distracted by our various electronics so that we often feel that this is the way life is. I’m asking you to switch off all those electronic devices and just sit there. That’s right, no books allowed, either. You may grab a journal or notebook and a pen, no cameras, nothing else. Allow yourself to finally be alone with your thoughts.

Uncomfortable? Maybe, but you’ll get used to it. Embrace being bored. Let your thoughts flow freely even if all your brain comes up with at first is a list of all the things you should be doing instead.

Next, concentrate on your breathing and county slowly as you breathe in and then count slowly as you breathe out. This will help clear your mind. After at least five long, slow breaths, focus your mind on what you would really like to do creatively.

Whatever you think up next, write it down. Write a list of all the ideas that begin to form in your head and then pick the best ones and try them!

Good luck to all who try this exercise, please drop by again next week…

Chiron Review Open Submissions

I urge you to go the link below because their submissions guidelines are very detailed. You may submit up to four times a year, you may send up to five poems or one long poem via snail mail or e-mail.

To submit by e-mail, put your name and submission genre (Poetry) in the subject line and attach your poems in ONE word document with all of your contact information included in the attachment. Read the on-line guidelines because they will reject your poems if you miss any of the steps. Send your poems to: editorATchironreviewDOTcom

To submit via snail mail: Send your poems with your contact information along with a Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope to:

Chiron Review
522 E. South Avenue
St. John, KS 67576-2212


For More Details, go to:
http://www.chironreview.com/

Good luck to all who submit, please stop by tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…

Poems Found by Poet Hound

http://www.coconutpoetry.org/arden1.html
Molly Arden’s “The Sign of Four”

http://www.swinkmag.com/index.php?page=archives&artID=70&catID=3
Richard Froude’s “Mike May”

Thanks for clicking in, please drop by tomorrow for more Open Submissions…

Lilliput Review Issue #179

#179 is a good number, I have to say, like a good wine. It is meant to be savored and enjoyed, it contains precious notes of winds, seeds, and the aftertaste of the afterlife. I am happy to share with you some of my favorite poems:

The Expression of Rain

Just as water darkens wood
and brings its grain closer to the surface
rain can change a face.

“He wore the expression of rain” means
that his face could be seen through
seen into

suddenly fragile
as a drop just fallen
against a windowpane.

By: Karina Borowicz of Florence, MA

I like this one for its simple beauty when you first read it and then as you savor it, the layers of meaning underneath. We as humans watch facial expressions for clues to the emotions within a person. This poem brings that to the surface and likens it to wood grain changing as it darkens in the rain just as a person’s face darkens in mood and the lines or wrinkles appear more prominently with the change in the facial expression.



Seed and Wind

If life should always have such dandelion
fresh and shocking yellow-bright hello-ness
to the eyeball universe

how short our time would be before
seediness would settle in and winds
would blow away what seems to matter

to matter
as for instance maybe this.

By: Mark Rich of Cashton, WI

This poem struck me because it appears bright and cheerful like the dandelion at first but then it spreads out to mention how short life is and asks “how short our time would be before/seediness would settle in and winds/would blow away what seems to matter.” My take on it is that joy and light does not last forever even in the brightest of circumstances but to enjoy those short moments while you can.



It wouldn’t be hell

if heaven didn’t keep knocking on the door.

By: Charlie Mehrhoff of Oakland, ME

It’s so short yet so rich with meaning. There are countless ways to interpret the meaning. I interpret it to mean that if heaven is knocking then that must mean loved ones are passing away and that the poet is expressing his feelings about it.



Issue #179 is available for a mere $1.00 and well worth it, I’d say. You can order issues of Lilliput Review, edited by Don Wentworth, from his blog at:

http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com/

Thanks always for reading, please click in tomorrow for more Poems Found by Poet Hound…

The Guerriella Poetics Project Reader and Don Wentworth's Past All Traps

Hello Guerrilla Poetics Fans and Operatives! You will be thrilled to know that the GPP Reader is now available on-line, all 30 poets and 152 pages of it, so check it out at:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/62895


AND

Also, those of you who are fans of Lilliput Review will be thrilled to know that Don Wentworth has his very own collection of poems out, titled “Past All Traps. The book is available directly at the blog for $8, or from Amazon for $10:

http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com

check out the interview about his book at:
http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid:96315


Thanks for clicking in, please drop by tomorrow for another featured poetry issue…

Poetry Tips: Weathering The Storms

Well it is hurricane season here in Florida and while I’d love to say I’m all prepared I generally do the minimum required every year to weather out the storms that bear down on us.
Not to mention we’ve all seen the various floods, earthquakes, and tornadoes accompanied with their destruction, on various news channels.

This week I want you write poetry with the theme above: Weathering the Storms. Emotional, literal, or both, there is plenty to inspire in every day life to draw from so I wish you good luck and good poetry.

Thanks for dropping in, please stop by again next week…

Magma Poetry Open Submissions

Issue 51’s deadline is July 16th and the theme is “Profane and Sacred.” The editor is Jacqueline Saphra, the assistant editor is Ian McEwan. You can go off-theme of course, and you can send up to six poems via e-mail to: contributionsATmagmapoetryDOTcom
*Please include your poems in the body of the e-mail instead of as an attachment

For details about the theme, go to:
http://magmapoetry.com/submissions-magma-51/

For details about submissions, go to:
http://magmapoetry.com/contributions/

Also, please explore the archives at Magma Poetry to see the kinds of poems already published to get a feel for the journal.

Good luck to all who submit, please drop in tomorrow for more Poetry Tips…