Ever since e. e. cummings broke into the vault of traditional English poetry stored well into the twentieth century, poets seem to think punctuation does not matter much. Does it? Maybe not to everyone, but poets and writers who want to be understood will find that punctuation helps their readers to keep up and follow the general gist of what's being said.
Used effectively, punctuation directs your readers much like traffic signs provide directions for vehicles and pedestrians. For example, think of using a comma like a yellow caution light to slow down your readers without bringing them to a full stop. A red light halts the movement in one direction, and so does the period at the end of a sentence. Similarly, a colon acts like a four-way intersection where you wait a sec to see what’s coming next.
Interestingly, e. e. cummings was a student of Latin, Greek, and the classics, which apparently trained him well in using grammar, syntax, and punctuation. So it’s not that he misused the rules of English but studied them thoroughly to know when and where he could effectively break which and why and how.
[For a poetry consult, poetry critique, or edit of your poems, visit The Poetry Editor website – http://www.thepoetryeditor.com. ]
The Poetry Editor
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Resources For Serious and Not-There-Yet Poets
Do you enjoy writing poems but wish you knew more about poetic styles, techniques, and poetry markets? The Internet makes it easy! These poetry resources will help you to find contemporary and classical poets and poetic forms to study:
American Academy of Poets has served poets and poetry since 1934. Their website http://www.poets.org/ allows you to do a quick search of poets and find samples of their poems.
Christian Writers’ Market Guide website includes links to publishers who may be interested in your well-written, spiritually-minded poetry - http://www.stuartmarket.com/.
Duotrope’s Digest provides links to an amazing number of poetry markets - http://www.duotrope.com/.
EnglishVerse.com archives classical works - http://www.englishverse.com/poets/.
Poetry Foundation offers a variety of excellent resources - http://www.poetryfoundation.org/.
Poets & Writers site archives the magazine and additional resources - http://www.pw.org/.
Pulitzer Prize website lists previous winners of this highly prestigious award in poetry, providing you with an immediate list of poets to study - http://www.pulitzer.org/.
And, of course, do not forget The Poetry Editor website - http://www.thepoetryeditor.com where you will find the book Poetry: Taking Its Course and one-on-one help as you write and revise.
American Academy of Poets has served poets and poetry since 1934. Their website http://www.poets.org/ allows you to do a quick search of poets and find samples of their poems.
Christian Writers’ Market Guide website includes links to publishers who may be interested in your well-written, spiritually-minded poetry - http://www.stuartmarket.com/.
Duotrope’s Digest provides links to an amazing number of poetry markets - http://www.duotrope.com/.
EnglishVerse.com archives classical works - http://www.englishverse.com/poets/.
Poetry Foundation offers a variety of excellent resources - http://www.poetryfoundation.org/.
Poets & Writers site archives the magazine and additional resources - http://www.pw.org/.
Pulitzer Prize website lists previous winners of this highly prestigious award in poetry, providing you with an immediate list of poets to study - http://www.pulitzer.org/.
And, of course, do not forget The Poetry Editor website - http://www.thepoetryeditor.com where you will find the book Poetry: Taking Its Course and one-on-one help as you write and revise.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Going Postal with Poetry
Most poets like to email a batch of poems to an editor because, duh, it’s fast and free. Although email guarantees you an instantaneous submission, that does not guarantee your poems will be read any sooner. Nor will your poems be taken more seriously than, say, that of someone who cares enough to send their very best work first class with an adequately stamped SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) for its return.
Other problems with emailing often arise too. For instance:
Email from an unknown source (meaning you) may be treated by the editorial department as Junk Mail or, worse, Spam.
Competition increases because, yeah, it’s fast and free to submit poems by email, so everyone does it – even non-poets!
Some editors rarely check their email.
Most editors do not want to print out the very poems that poets used to print for them.
Some poets have word processing software that is not compatible with whatever the editor has, so file attachments may not open correctly.
Some editors do not want to open any attachment from anyone.
Copying and pasting poems into the body of your plain text email will resolve the last couple of issues, but then your layout might be lost or skewed.
Conversely, when you carefully type your eye-pleasing format for each page of the poems you send through the p.o., you can be assured that what you see is what I get.
When I critique a manuscript, provide a poetry consultation, or edit someone’s poems, I like a hands-on approach that allows me to carry your sheaf of poems around with me and up-put with a “good read” instead of sitting all day at this computer.
I also find I quickly catch mistakes on paper but may be blinded by glare or pixels in editing on-screen. Penciled notes in paper margins can be erased, clichés circled, and arrows added to point to this or that, so critiques usually receive more detailed comments than I can figure out how to give, say, with the editorial features in Word.
As I leave the editorial side of my desk today to go back to my poet’s corner, I will still email some of my own submissions, especially when I send a batch of 3 to 5 poems to an e-zine or online journal. Presumably they have set up their offices to receive poetry this way, so will probably handle my work and yours with maximum efficiency.
I wonder, though, if the poems will be read as quickly as they were sent. Since poetry needs to be read aloud and savored, a snail-pace might be just fine. Besides, I would really like to help keep our local post office in business for as long as I can.
[If you would like a poetry consult, critique, or poetry edit, leisurely visit The Poetry Editor website for more information – http://www.thepoetryeditor.com. ]
Other problems with emailing often arise too. For instance:
Email from an unknown source (meaning you) may be treated by the editorial department as Junk Mail or, worse, Spam.
Competition increases because, yeah, it’s fast and free to submit poems by email, so everyone does it – even non-poets!
Some editors rarely check their email.
Most editors do not want to print out the very poems that poets used to print for them.
Some poets have word processing software that is not compatible with whatever the editor has, so file attachments may not open correctly.
Some editors do not want to open any attachment from anyone.
Copying and pasting poems into the body of your plain text email will resolve the last couple of issues, but then your layout might be lost or skewed.
Conversely, when you carefully type your eye-pleasing format for each page of the poems you send through the p.o., you can be assured that what you see is what I get.
When I critique a manuscript, provide a poetry consultation, or edit someone’s poems, I like a hands-on approach that allows me to carry your sheaf of poems around with me and up-put with a “good read” instead of sitting all day at this computer.
I also find I quickly catch mistakes on paper but may be blinded by glare or pixels in editing on-screen. Penciled notes in paper margins can be erased, clichés circled, and arrows added to point to this or that, so critiques usually receive more detailed comments than I can figure out how to give, say, with the editorial features in Word.
As I leave the editorial side of my desk today to go back to my poet’s corner, I will still email some of my own submissions, especially when I send a batch of 3 to 5 poems to an e-zine or online journal. Presumably they have set up their offices to receive poetry this way, so will probably handle my work and yours with maximum efficiency.
I wonder, though, if the poems will be read as quickly as they were sent. Since poetry needs to be read aloud and savored, a snail-pace might be just fine. Besides, I would really like to help keep our local post office in business for as long as I can.
[If you would like a poetry consult, critique, or poetry edit, leisurely visit The Poetry Editor website for more information – http://www.thepoetryeditor.com. ]
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Sending Your Poems To Poetry Journals
If you’ve written a number of poems and, more importantly, practiced the fine art of revising, you may be ready to submit a batch of poems to an editor. To go about this:
• Read, study, and support poetry journals, contests, and e-zines.
• Notice who publishes poems you actually enjoy reading.
• If these poetry journals or magazines have a website, study the poems archived online.
• List contact info for publishers whose work has a similar feel to yours.
• Carefully follow poetry guidelines on each company's website.
• Type each poem on its own page with your name and contact information across the top like a letterhead.
• Submit a batch of 3-5 poems to one editor at a time.
• E-zines will usually accept poems by email or online managers, while other publications may want poems sent by postal mail. If so, always enclose an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope with enough postage for the return of your work.)
• Keep track of where and when you sent your work. If you do not have a response in 3 to 6 months, follow-up.
• While you wait to hear about one batch of poems, start another.
• If an editor returns your work, read each poem aloud. Listen for rough spots. Revise as needed, then submit your poems or manuscript to the next publisher on your list.
• If your poems keep coming back, consider studying Poetry: Taking Its Course. For a professional critique or consultation, see The Poetry Editor website http://www.thepoetryeditor.com.
]
• Read, study, and support poetry journals, contests, and e-zines.
• Notice who publishes poems you actually enjoy reading.
• If these poetry journals or magazines have a website, study the poems archived online.
• List contact info for publishers whose work has a similar feel to yours.
• Carefully follow poetry guidelines on each company's website.
• Type each poem on its own page with your name and contact information across the top like a letterhead.
• Submit a batch of 3-5 poems to one editor at a time.
• E-zines will usually accept poems by email or online managers, while other publications may want poems sent by postal mail. If so, always enclose an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope with enough postage for the return of your work.)
• Keep track of where and when you sent your work. If you do not have a response in 3 to 6 months, follow-up.
• While you wait to hear about one batch of poems, start another.
• If an editor returns your work, read each poem aloud. Listen for rough spots. Revise as needed, then submit your poems or manuscript to the next publisher on your list.
• If your poems keep coming back, consider studying Poetry: Taking Its Course. For a professional critique or consultation, see The Poetry Editor website http://www.thepoetryeditor.com.
]
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