Poetry Parenting Day 2

Welcome back (or just welcome)!
Thank you for not running away from your computer in fear at the absurdity of this blog series.

And please don't run away now.

Poetry Parenting
Helping your babies grow up
A blog series by Stephanie 

Lehhgo.

Most of you guys probably know what's up by now (if not, read the previous two posts) so I'm going to just right into it.

Tip #2: Tell a story.

Because nobody wants to hear a bedtime preach. 

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Most good poems tell, or at least are inspired by, a story. Without that, a poem is just an attempt at telling the world something that you don't even know for sure yourself. 

Don't think of a "story" in the literal sense. I know we're teaching baby poetry to grow up, but that doesn't mean an adventure tale is the only definition of "story" that applies. 

Did you stop when you walked outside and saw the rain-washed petals bathe the sidewalk because it was just such a stunning moment? That's a story.

Have you been questioning your ability to speak in public every time you look in the mirror for the past five years? That's a story.
Did something you read make you realize that the world needs to change its ways? That's a story. 



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And if it's truly a story, if it's truly yours, no matter how you tell it, your poem will be real. And real poems are mature poems.

The beautiful thing about poetry is that it can be intimately personal yet easy to relate to. Often it's the specificity of certain things that makes poems the most universal, because they reach more deeply into the readers and call forth individual memories.

So don't write just to sling words to together on a page.
Write something real. 

Enjoy loveliness and remember to muse! :)

Poetry Parenting: Day 1

Welcome to the first installment of this weird new thing we're trying together!

Poetry Parenting
Helping your babies grow up
A blog series by Stephanie 

If you've decided to follow these posts and see what's up, kudos. It's a brave move.
If you're not quite sure what this is about, read the post below (Poetry Parenting: Introduction).

I'm basically thinking aloud to an internet audience about how not to write poetry that is the verbal equivalent of the following picture: 



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How to not write cutesy-my-seventh-grade-teacher-would-approve poetry. How to transition out of the idea of a "teenage" voice. Don't get me wrong, teen poetry is often really great, and the adolescent voice is definitely distinctive and worth listening to.
But if you're here, you're probably ready to do something new.

With that, let's begin.

Day 1, Tip 1: Stand on the shoulders of other parents. 

Because giants were never that good at poetry anyway. 

The best way to begin learning how to write mature poetry is to read it. You'd be surprised how much you can learn from reading a poem; you get a feel for the voice, the syntax, the diction, the way it reads in your head, immediately. It's something no tips or formulas could really teach. 

Plus, emulation. A wise teacher of mine once said, 

"You need to expose yourself to so many things that you don't really know what you're stealing from."

From the pieces of those of others, you'll find your own voice. 

Okay that's it class is over bye.

JUST KIDDING. 

Note: it's hard to play a joke on people when they're just reading a blog page. 

And you're just sitting in your room by yourself typing away. 

I happen to have a bunch of sources to help you guys dive right in. There's a little bit of everything. Give these poems a read and see how you like them. 

NOTE: All of the publications I've linked pay their submissions in cash. Definitely explore these pages on your own. 

The list that is kind of like a cheese platter except instead of cheese we have poems

"America Ode"

http://www.amethystarsenic.com/issues/3-2/rita-banerjee.php

"Meditation and Form"

http://www.bu.edu/agni/poetry/online/2013/ramspeck-meditation.html

"I Don't Fear Death"

http://www.bu.edu/agni/poetry/online/2008/beasley3.html

"Advice for a New Year"

http://www.amethystarsenic.com/issues/3-2/staci-r-schoenfeld.php

"Brass Knuckles"

http://www.bu.edu/agni/poetry/online/2013/leithauser-brass.html

"Meeting You After Chernobyl"

http://www.bu.edu/agni/poetry/online/2013/nemser.html


I'll continue to shower you guys with good poems as this series continues to progress.

Thank you for lasting through all of that.
Stay verbal!

-Enjoy loveliness and remember to museeeeee

Poetry Parenting: Introduction

If any of you are poets, you'll know what I'm talking about.

There are so many perfect examples of not-yet-matured poems that creating an actual adult-appreciate-able-by-which-for-this-doesn't-make-sense becomes actually really difficult.

Aka, it's surprisingly hard to write like an actual writer.


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Personally, as a high school student, it's been a struggle for me to adopt an adult voice and write poetry that's viable in the legitimate, non-teenage freelance market.

This is one of my fifth grade poems. It might sound familiar. If it does, this post is for you.
If it doesn't, this post is also for you.

Fern

A fern, so cool and green,
Right, left, and in between.
Swaying in the autumn breeze,
Is the friend of all the trees.
If you see one, let it grow.
It will thank you, it will know.
Gently swaying to and fro.
Watch it give and watch it grow. 

I like how the first poem I share on this blog is about fern conservation.

I mean, sure, you can get away with nature poems about the creek beside your house and maybe get published in the middle school newspaper, but no one is going to pay you by the word for that piece of art.

Adult poems, on the other hand, get paid by the word.

You get my drift?

Of course it's not just about the money. "Adult" poems are considered so for a reason; they impart wisdom, they tell stories-- and they do it in a unique, meaningful way that few middle schoolers (or even high schoolers) can master. Matured poetry is true art. That is the goal.


This is, of course, a journey of discover for me (and maybe for you!). But please bear with me as I try to find out what makes a good poem good. (This will hopefully happen in a series of blog posts.)

Without further ado, I present.........

Poetry Parenting

Helping your babies grow upA blog series by Stephanie 

Day 1: Coming soon!



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Stay tuned, poem-raisers. Even if you're male. I see you. 

Enjoy loveliness and remember to muse! :)