Thank you! I wrote a 50,000+ word story a few years ago for national novel writing month challenge. I got so into it! Reminds me that often (always?) we are writing for ourselves. In my case, my effluvescence might have turned off a reader but as a writer I could have written (and still might) 50k more! I only dropped it because writing 3 hours a night after everything else burnt me out.
Thank you Kathryn for dropping by, reading and commenting! I also find it interesting to sometimes pick up the shavings/cast-offs and use those as prompts to start a new piece. Reminding myself now to try this with this poem as there were some things I put down or aside but still love and could perhaps spin into the core of a new poem. Hope all is well with you. XO
I was just reading an article about an artist who saves every scrap of everything she can to eventually put into some piece, even if it's just a piece that's a "sketch" or playtime. I don't want to go that extent with physical items but I do like this idea that none of it is ever fully thrown away!
I enjoyed seeing all three versions and reading about your current distillation practice. Unfortunately, I greatly understand the existential crisis and the ongoing search for meaning. Keep writing through....
Frequently, I will complete a book and my unspoken review is, “I could have written this story in one page”.
I don't think about my writing style. It's been described by others as, “vivid and concise”.
I've been asked to add more details. I balk.
It seems superfluous to me.
I love your shortest version of the poem.
Thank you! I wrote a 50,000+ word story a few years ago for national novel writing month challenge. I got so into it! Reminds me that often (always?) we are writing for ourselves. In my case, my effluvescence might have turned off a reader but as a writer I could have written (and still might) 50k more! I only dropped it because writing 3 hours a night after everything else burnt me out.
I have the greatest admiration for any woman that can write while her children still live at home.
Really inspiring to see your whittling down process. The shape emerges like when carving a sculpture.
Thank you Kathryn for dropping by, reading and commenting! I also find it interesting to sometimes pick up the shavings/cast-offs and use those as prompts to start a new piece. Reminding myself now to try this with this poem as there were some things I put down or aside but still love and could perhaps spin into the core of a new poem. Hope all is well with you. XO
I was just reading an article about an artist who saves every scrap of everything she can to eventually put into some piece, even if it's just a piece that's a "sketch" or playtime. I don't want to go that extent with physical items but I do like this idea that none of it is ever fully thrown away!
I enjoyed seeing all three versions and reading about your current distillation practice. Unfortunately, I greatly understand the existential crisis and the ongoing search for meaning. Keep writing through....
Thank you Amy! Knowing I'm not alone certainly helps. It's the reason I not only write but post (a la Amy Cowen 😉).
I like the long version as it has some breathing room to take in each short stanza. I misread one line as "souls tingle."
Thank you for the read and the feedback. Breathing room. Aha. And yes, misread success! Soles, souls, same difference in poetryland.