final post

Final blog sounds like a pretty good way to start off my final blog post. Yesterday was our last day of class. Where we continued to work on work shopping our poems. Over all I found It nice to have someone else tell me what they though of my poems. I think it really made me go back and look at what I wrote and see if the mentioned suggestion would work. And most of the time it always would. Can’t believe the year is over and I don’t have to wake up on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8 am anymore for poetry class. The years keep going by faster and faster. I have enjoyed this poetry class, I found it much more fun to write poems and experiment with different words than some of my other classes. Can’t say I will miss writing a blog post each week though, I am not the biggest fan. I will miss the short creative writing we sometimes did. I found that pretty interesting and helpful when writing pretty much anything. But I guess I could just do that on my own time.

Final Blog

Tomorrow will be the final day of techniques of poetry. It is unreal to think the semester has flown by this quickly. In the duration of this semester I have not only seen my work improve, but see work of others improve as well. We have taken very simple ideas and conveyed them in ways that is more enjoyable to the audience as well as stretched the limits of the imagination through vivid language and descriptions. For me personally I know that using concrete images and vivid language has enhanced my writing and made it more effective of conveying a message.
In starting to work on my final project I have noticed through simple habits created over the semester that I have already revised many of my poems and in the portfolio I am able to show more than just one revision and progression of my pieces. I am very excited in finishing my portfolio for I am seeing the progression of my work and recognizing how far my revisions have come since the beginning of the semester.
I look forward to the final workshop tomorrow (hopefully there will be more people than Tuesday), and I think workshop is a great way to end the semester and another opportunity to get feedback for potential revisions for the portfolio.

final blog

As others before me have mentioned, it is quite weird to think that summer is so fast approaching. Overall, I feel like I have really benefited from this course, because it is a topic that I had never really looked into before. Coming from such little poetry experience has allowed me to see how much I have truly progressed over the semester. I understand the importance of word choice and the idea that sometimes less is more. I used to try to use multiple descriptive adjectives to describe nouns, but I now realize that it is important to chose a precise noun in the first place.
I have started to work on our final project and am finding it difficult to completely re-structure some of my works. Some of the pieces I feel are fine how they are and I am scared to re-vise, as I don't want the revisions to make the poem worse in anyway. I think in order to complete the assignment I must therefore look at my poetry from more of an outsider's perspective, because at this point I am too attached to my own ideas. I think the workshop days will teach me how to view my poetry from an outsider's perspective.
I'd like to wish everyone good luck on their upcoming finals and a wonderful summer!

Final Blog

I can't believe that I am about to be finishing sophomore year, I still feel so new to this school, at least from an academic standpoint. Yes, I have become comfortable with my surroundings but when I think about being an English major it still somewhat shocks me. I'm really happy with choice because I have found that I really like to write, especially creatively, and I know that my writing has become much better due to taking this poetry class. I thought at first that I would just be taking this to help fill out a major credit and it really would not be as helpful as it has become. Taking poetry helped me become so much more decisive with my words and also really aided me in noticing how to make every word count in a piece. Creativity is what poetry is all about, so I cannot beleive that I would not have helped me with my non-fiction writing, and possibley fiction writing in the future.
Techniques of poetry was a lot of fun for me, and although it may have been hard to tell at 8:30 in the morning, I was always happy class never dragged on. We always had different activities to explore varying types of poetry and it kept the class upbeat and interesting. When Christian Bok came in, he was like no poet I had ever thought about before. I do not know too many poets besides some historic greats but he defintely made an impact on me and how I think about writing in general. Vivid images have become easier for me, at least I think so, and I know that will be useful down the road. I definitely will look to do poetry in the future and who knows where it might take me.

Final Blog Post of the Year - Kurt Malkames

So we have finally reached the last week of the school year. Kind of strange to be talking about summer when there is snow outside – but I guess that is just Canton, NY. Overall I have to say I really enjoyed this class. My writing has definitely improved and I began to enjoy something I never thought possible. This last week has been great so far with more workshopping and I think that all of the poems that people presented this week have been very high quality. Looking forward to the chapbook and Ars Poetica, I think this will be an interesting assignment. Revising my work will be harder than it seems. To really edit it well will take some time – and some of the poems may even have to be restructured. In terms of the class as a whole I would give it very high marks and recommend it to a friend without reservation. The poems that were assigned were very useful as models for what the assignment was for that week. Despite the fact that there were no formal exams I believe I was able to learn more in this class than some of my others this semester – which had weekly quizzes and exams every three weeks. Poetry is a skill that I hope to keep for the rest of my life – weather it is something I do seriously or not I don’t know, but I think it is a fun thing to practice every now and then.

End of the semester already?! Wow. It didn't seem that long ago since we started. And I'm going to be graduating. AHHHHHHHHH! Got to get a job,go to grad school all that fun stuff. Anyway I really liked Tuesday's class. It helped give me a clearer picture of what to do in ars poetica and also gave me ideas about what to write about next. The exercise that had us write in a concrete style and then abstract was especially helpful.

Our Final Workshop

Repeating the sentiments of everyone else, I too am surprised that the end of our semester is nearing. How is it possible that we only have one week of classes left? The real question is, however, should I be cynical about the pace of time, or is it something irrelevant? In essence, how much time do we waste with time? I heard (in a recent presentation) that indigenous tribes in Africa do not measure time, or age for that matter.
I enjoyed my workshop poems, mainly due to the preparation I made in advance. Since it is poetry month, I have been writing a poem a day, and the habitual practice of writing opens a wider channel for ideas. When it comes to an assignment, I already have several ideas incubating, and the difficult choice is to choose which to develop. Just as a teaser, I wrote a slam poem and a call/response (echo?) piece that is separated by several thousand years. Specifically, their are two voices in one poem, albeit a bit different from the hemistich we constructed in class.
Ars poetica will be a challenge, for I find it difficult to separate genuine thoughts from the lessons we have gleaned from class. It is my goal to introduce original "qualities" of poetry, rather than restate what we have affirmed in class.

new blog

Like everyone has said so far I can’t believe how fast this year went and how this is probably my second to last blog for this class. This is the first time I have every really blogged or done anything like this. At first I didn’t like the idea so much, but it has started to grow on me. After this class though I can’t say I will ever blog weekly again, but it’s been fun. Again like most people have already toughed upon I thought the exercise we did last Tuesday was pretty interesting. Although I don’t like making poems just on the spot I thought it was cool the way the exercise was set up. It will help me out when I have to make one for real for the final poem. Which I still have to think of something really good to write about, because I mean it has to be my best. Last poem ever.

newest blog

Somebody else mentioned about liking the writing activity we did in class on Tuesday and I agree with them. I think having to create something that you are not completley in charge of is fun because the person you are collaborating with may write something that could change the direction of the piece completely. I've always been a person who likes to play boardgames and I feel like collaborative poetry is kind of like that. In boardgames you might get a category that you then have to make something creative to complete whatever goals you are doing, sounds weird but when working with another person it is kind of like that too. They give you a staged sentence that you have to work with to create the final project you are both looking for.
On another note, I just wrote a very weird poem haha. I started writing a few poems that weren't really going anywhere then I thought about writing about "writer's block". It sounded kind of cliche at first because I've heard a lot of poems like that but I feel like a wrote mine kind of differently. It's almost like the poem is confusing, even for me to kind of read and understand, but I kind of liked how it sounded so I left it. Who knows what other people will think but I just thought it should be given a warning about it.

Wait, school is over?

It seems many of us agree that this year has flown by. I can hardly believe this poem will be our last workshop session...scary thought.
I have enjoyed the Ars Poetica discussions and have several ideas floating around inside my head that may make decent poems, unfortunately, I am having difficulty narrowing down what I think poetry should be/do/have/say. Currently, I am just mentally writing (which means I'll come up with something brilliant and then promptly forget about it) and tossing around if I want a figurative poem or a concrete poem, a direct poem or something vague. Who knows.
I enjoyed the exercises in class on Tuesday, it was interesting to come up with an Ars with someone else, and I kind of want to stick with the one Matt and I came up with but I think that would be cheating. But I may do it anyway with a few changes.

Weekly Blog

I thought the exercise that we did on Tuesday was helpful by having us collaborate with a partner to write a poem. It seems from working with my own and listening to others that no matter how different people’s writing styles are, it still seems to work when people collaborate together. It was interesting to build off each other’s lines and see what kind of direction people tried to go with. In the other exercise we did with writing concrete and abstract poetry, I feel like I had a harder time finding more concrete imagery to try and express my ideas through and found it easier to write in a more abstract form. Hopefully it will inspire me when working on the rewrites of my poems to try and make sure I incorporate concrete imagery as well as abstract in a way where they can work well together. These last couple classes where we have read ars poetica and practiced writing them have helped me see what direction I might want to go in for my final project. I really feel though that throughout this semester I have really enhanced my writing style and have gotten a sense for what kind of poetry I enjoy reading and writing.

Kurt Malkames - weekly blog

Well that last full week of instructive class is behind us for Poetry 242. I must say that this year has not only flown by at the speed of light but it has also been a very valuable learning experience. At the start I didn’t think I would ever enjoy writing poetry. I took this course because it fulfilled a 200’s level English requirement for Biology. Over time though, I realized that keeping an open mind to this course would ultimately be a rewarding. I have come to find writing poetry enjoyable and not nearly as daunting as I first thought it would be. Looking towards next week – we have our last workshopping session and I’m excited to see the final poems that people have come up with. The Ars Poetica will be a fun assignment that I’m looking forward to spending time with as well. I’m still debating if I want to write concretely for it or be more subliminal with what I choose to exemplify in my writing.

weekly blog

As others have mentioned, I am also surprised by how fast the semester has gone by. Its interesting to reflect on all of the poems I have written so far, and see how I have grown throughout the semester. I am excited to work on my last Ars Poetica assignment, as I think I finally do have some ideas about what poetry should do or say. While this is a personal opinion, it has been shaped by the works we have read thus far, as I have realized why certain poems speak to me more than others.
I also really liked the activity we did in class today, as it was challenging but fun to think of different ways to get the same idea across. It showed me that ideas can be expressed in many different ways, which is something I should keep in mind when I get stuck. It was also cool to work on the poem with a partner, as our poetic preferences came together to form a poem that we were rather proud of. It was interesting to see how it came together in the end, to form a concrete ars poetica.
I am also excited to work on my last poem to workshop because I know it may be one of my last opportunities to get direct feedback about my poetry from students. I have found this process to be very helpful in seeing my poems from other people's points of view and I think I have really taken in some of their comments to assist my writing.

Weekly post

I cant believe how fast the semester has gone by. I never would have guessed at the beginning of the semester that I would have had as much fun as I have. I have enjoyed the in class activities as well as the outside work that has helped me grow as a writer. I never would have thought that I would like a poetry class as much as I have liked this one. The assignments were always challenging my ideas of what makes good poetry as well as pushing me to write to the best of my ability and imagination. The two biggest things that I will take away from this class is an understanding of how to break down a piece of work into components in which make it easier for me to understand, as well as not just look on the surface of the piece to find meaning, but being able to go much deeper into the piece and look for the non obvious meaning that a reader most often gets. I will also no think about ideas in which produce concrete images. Theses concrete images not only makes for a better understanding of what the poet is saying, but also makes it enjoyable for all those who read it. I think I have grown a lot as a writer over the semester and have enjoyed writing each of the assignments we were given. I liked this last class day in the way we went over the many techniques of ars poeticas. It help to clarify just what it was we have to do for the final portfolio.

Today's Class & The Final Weeks of the Semester

Today’s class was really interesting. I found I really enjoyed writing the collaborative poems done in the periphrastic hemistitch form. I thought reading them out loud in class was really fun too. I loved how different all of our pieces were, but still just as good in their own way. It was also really interesting writing with someone because you definitely had to negotiate certain things both writers felt were true or not and when you disagreed, working through those differences made even more powerful revelations we could infuse in the poem through words.

I also really found doing the collaborative writing exercise to help me think about how I want to write my Ars Poetica for the final portfolio and I found that I was full of ideas when we were given free-write time to write concrete/abstract Ars Poeticas at the end of class – I even think I’ll end up using some of what I wrote today in my final piece! Pretty exciting stuff…

Anyway… I too, can’t believe the semester is almost over. I definitely know my work from start to finish has drastically changed over the time we’ve spent in class work-shopping and doing assignments. I learned a lot about poetry I never really knew before and definitely have a much greater appreciation for poets now than I did before coming into this course. I never realized the thought and creative genius needed to write really good poetry and this class has definitely given me a great introduction into the techniques used and the ways in which you can create better poetry!

Like Jon, I also can't believe how close we are to the end of the semester. With this in mind, i looked back to some of my poems from earlier in the semester and applied some of the things we've learned such as Bok's tips. I rewrote a few of them and the difference is astonishing. The poems are significantly changed from just a few little tweaks; for the most part they are completely different and so much more compelling.

Also, I found today's class to be very interesting. Theo pointed out that enjambment has been used for a long time, and isn't a new free-verse technique. I actually found that i liked some of the older poems using this technique (usually i'm not a huge fan of older poems). Anyways, as it comes to a close i realize how much i've appreciated the insight in workshops...so thanks guys!

Jon Ignatowski - Weekly Blog

I find it hard to believe that there are only two weeks remaining in the semester. However, when I look back in my portfolio, the amount of writing we have completed is impressive. We wrote our eighth poem with week, a considerable feat to accomplish in twelve weeks. The ratio of poems to time is not impressive initially, but in consideration of the fact that we are engrossed in other studies and activities, the quality of the student work we have shared in class is laudable.

I do not know if anyone has experience the same impulse, but I am now inclined to revise my previous work to meet my present "standards." I look back on my earlier pieces, pieces that I believed to be strong, only to find them abominable. I wonder if published poets share similar sentiments. Do they squirm in their chairs when they read their poetry in an anthology, do they feel that impulse to continue revising, or are they usually satisfied with their work? I feel that the latter must be true, or else many poets would not be willing to release their work. Maybe this case is true, and the public is ignorant of many skilled poets. How many Emily Dickinson's have yet to be unearthed? Is it only our capitalist system that urges us to publish?

I look forward to our final assignment, Ars Poetica, due to the depth of its questions. What is the art of poetry, why do we write poetry, and what is it for? Since these questions are slightly ambiguous and can be answered honestly by varying viewpoints, I anticipate the challenge. It is a shame that we will not be able to read each others work though. I enjoy our work shop sessions, for it allows peers to understand how another peer is reacting to the readings, and assimilating new principles of verse. I wonder if their is distinct BB and AB threshold... (before Bok, after Bok).

weekly blog

I found writing a poem incorporating two different topics but bringing them together in a poem was a fun task to try to do. I picked writing a poem about racecars and ski racing. Two topics that have some what similar idea but I thought it was different enough for the requirement. I can’t believe this year is coming to an end. I think this will be my second to last weekly blog post I have to do. Not 100% sure though. Today the exercise we did in class was interesting, I am not very good at following all the new rules. It takes me a tad longer to set up my poems the new way, and sometimes I don’t like the way it sounds. But I am not a famous poet so I guess I should just keep to the rules.

April 15

I really do like the idea of taking something familiar and making it strange. I think the very first poem that I wrote for this class was like that. Somehow it seems really enjoyable. For this week I wrote about fencing. I don't know why I never wrote on it before. Its something that I can really enjoy and its always interesting to me. And while it may not be familiar to everyone, most people can recognize it though and what is happening. I also for some reason had the Battle Hymn of the Republic stuck in my head for some reason. It must be because I was watching the movie Gettysburg recently and thought the Civil War, but it was interesting to think of it while writing the poem and trying to fit it in. I also realized that I marked this assignment as number eight. whoops.

Kurt Malkames - weekly blog

Another exciting week writing poetry – it’s amazing that we are almost at the end of the year. I have an organic chemistry lab report that I am writing right now that happens to be taking up a lot of my time – which is usually devoted to writing poetry. So, this assignment is neither completed at the time of this writing, nor will it be till the wee hours of the morning. I think I am going to choose the first assignment possibility and compare this ridiculous organic synthesis to something totally opposite from it – hmm I’m trying to think right now what I can compare it to. I think I’m pretty experienced in vacationing and relaxing – maybe I can compare Florida to Organic chem. – that would be strange. I think Im pretty skilled at eating as well – maybe Ill compare some good salmon dish to a Grignard reagent – hmm now I’m getting hungry – too bad the pub is closed. Good food + sleep = productive day. P-chlorobenzaldehydle + phenyl magnesium bromide (3.0M) = (4-Chlorophenyl)-phenyl methanol. That’s a great juxtaposition in my opinion. Also keep in mind that the breaking point for the night is 4am and the boiling point for my reaction is 352C.

Weekly Blog

I have been interested in the poems we have been reading in the last week or two that have revolved around trying to make familiar things more unfamiliar to the readers. I find it a really interesting concept to try and do and was glad that our assignment this week pushed us towards us writing in a similar direction. It got my mind to thinking about every common object we come across in our lives and how most people glance over them and don’t really think about them too much. The object that inspired to me to write about for this weeks assignment was something that is so common and everyday that it was interesting to try and come up with a poem that would make it feel more unfamiliar to someone. My poem still makes sense, and is not like the sound poems we worked with in class the other day, but it simply tries to view something in a different way than someone might usually look at it.

new blog

This week's poem assignment was rather challenging for me at first. It was hard for me to try to write this type of nonsense poem because I didn't know how to approach it. Generally when I have approached poetry in the past, I have a certain story/idea/message that I would like to get across, which makes it easy to start writing. I would simply use a known technique from class or a certain form to then create it and add drama. With this assignment however, I felt that I had complete freedom in it to be abstract, creative, and nonsensical but I had no idea how to start. I felt that all my ideas were just jumbled because of the specificis of the task. Struggling to write this poem however, gave me a greater appreciation for the work of Christian Bok and other poets who work in a similar genre. It allowed me to really see the thought and creativity that these type of poems require, and I think the assignment served as a strong challenge to our skills thus far. In the end, I ended up being quite satisfied with my poem because it sounds different than all the other poems I have done so far. Overall, I think this shows that my knowledge and appreciation of poetry has grown throughout the course.

Blog on Assignment 10

I really enjoyed this week’s assignment (#10) on layering and insight. I thought that both options were really interesting and they really helped me to think outside the box when writing poetry in a way I hadn’t done before. I thought the concepts behind using layering to apply insight indirectly was a very cool technique and I think I definitely created a very intriguing piece as a result. I chose to do option number one and created a poem that used video game titles to discuss concepts about the military and war. And I think I made it really effective by only capitalizing the first letter of each Title word used, all the other words were written in lower-case. I had a lot of fun with it and even my guy friends who I modeled some of my use of language after throughout the piece felt like it was a very powerful and honest portrayal of both the military and war side of my poem influence, while also using video game vocabulary and staying true to how those who play video games react to such games. I even think I subconsciously touched on a very heated debate that stems from critics of violent video games feeling like they are glorifying war and the military to many young people who are playing these games. I’m over all really happy with my poem and I think these types of assignments that allow us to think outside the norm are very beneficial and fun. I will definitely use this technique to explore my poetry writing in the future.

New Blog

This week's assignment ten looks like an interesting task, no matter whether you choose the first option or the second. I think I will be trying to complete the second option because it seemed a little bit more my style. I love the idea of comparing things that are so different from each other, Nintendo and Lutheranism was a funny comparison to think about, and I think I would be able to find two things that would work together to make some kind of social commentary or convey some other kind of message. When I read the other option though I thought of one of my recent poems and how I was critiqued in class tomaybe think about "traveling into my iPod" and it got me thinking that I could definitley turn this assignment into something good. I won't be using the iPod as my object to develop, but I will definitely be able to find something else and make this poem worthwhile. I'm not sure exactly of the object I am going to be using yet but I have numerous ideas and I am excited to get after this next assignment.

Poets & Writers

“Poets & Writers” is a journal published, as you might guess, for poets and writers. Poets & Writers Inc. is a non for profit organization funded by the New York State Council on the Arts. The regular staff editor is Kevin Larimer, but the journal also claims the editorial services of a number of contemporary voices from across the creative writing genres. The layout and appearance of this journal reflect its professional nature; artful black and white photography decorates the articles, while even the advertisements show evidence of careful selection. This is “The Conference and Residencies” issue.

Each issue is packed with tips for current poets and writers, as well as those who are aiming to break into the published world. The journal includes interviews with currently published writers—this issue has an article with Danzy Senna and Porochista Khakpour on how contemporary issues of race and “other flammable topics” influence their writing. Also featured is an interview article with Alex Lemon, a poet and memoirist who focuses on the interaction between pain and joy. A third writer-featured article talks with Sam Lipsyte on his portrayal of the loser as a hero in his fiction. Regularly, the journal is divided into departments: Editor’s note, Letters, The Literary Life, and The Practical Writer.

The poems published in this issue are contained within Alex Lemon’s article. If you are looking for a journal to which you might submit some of your own poetry, or where you might go to read a wide spread of up and coming poets, this is not it. The poetry and poets included are done so in more of a “featured” way—perhaps only one or two poets are included in most issues. This journal is, however, an excellent resource if you are looking for a listing of current writing competitions, or of other journals soliciting submissions. There is also an extensive list of writing workshops and programs. I personally found the classifieds section, which contained these parts, to be perhaps the most valuable and beneficial section of this journal.

This high-quality journal is clearly geared more towards the current poet or writer, and less towards the student or casual reader. I personally found it interesting, as it serves as a window into the world of professional writers across the creative genres. The layout is diverse, featuring focused articles on several genre-spanning names. For someone looking for a collection of poetry, this is not the right journal. For someone looking to get a foot in the door of the published writing world, this might be an excellent tool.

Poets & Writers 38.2 (2010). Print.

Literary Magazine- Orion

Although my assignment 9 is late because I thought we were strictly workshopping, I know that it is always better late than never done at all. When I thought about a literary magazine, and what one to use I didn't have to look far because I had already had one in mind that really jumped out at me from another class. We were asked to buy numerous issues of the literary magazine called Orion in the fall semester and because we didn't get to all of them, I figured that getting into one of the issues that was untouched would be a good way to get my money's worth.



Orion is an environmental literary magazine that combines different essays, short stories, poems and photographs into one compilation for people who are either looking to learn about environmental awareness or just read different pieces on environmental issues or adventures. When I looked through one of the issues that I had left untouched, I saw a variety of forms being used to convey messages about the environment and nature. Famous authors like Bill McKibben, who was at St. Lawrence this year, and Gary Snyder have written for this magazine which proves the creditability of the magazine. The topics range from stories about finding active high-explosive artillery shells in the forests of the Lorraine region in France from World War I, to more feel-good pieces about the shrimping and seafood business. As I read through I found all of the articles and essays to be well set up and what I found even more interesting is that there are no advertisements in this magazine; the entire magazine is funded by donations from readers, writers and fans of Orion. Instead of having an advertisement in a column to the right or left of any given piece, Orion has been able to insert telling pictures of the stories being told or, in relation to our class, poems about nature or environmental awareness. For example, one poem that I read, and enjoyed, was called Eskimo Whizzamajig by Elizabeth Bradfield. The poem was a comical anecdote about finding a beat up tool that was pronounced an Eskimo's tool and not having the correct name for it. The poem uses line to break up the different names that are used to describe the possible artifact and how the poet splits up these words really shows the uncertainty of the people talking about it. I like that this magazine includes a variety of different literary forms because it lets a reader take his reading as far as he wants for the time he is reading for. A person could open up this magazine and find him/herself reading three to four lengthy essays about Dams, Buddhism and nature or any number of things, or the reader could simply open the magazine for a second and glance at a poem and then shut the magazine right after.



I think, overall, this magazine is well laid out and it really does a good job of choosing writers who are able to write educational pieces that are seriously entertaining. I know that I never though dams or shrimp to be that interesting but the way these essays are put together really helps with the fluidity of the magazine. Another high point for me in this magazine is when I get to a page that is a full photograph spread. The photos and artwork in this magazine bring the authors' and poets' works to life and really help the reader to see what they are reading.

Once again, I'm sorry for the tardiness of my blog, but I am especially mad that it is late because this was an easy and interesting assignment for me because I have really enjoyed reading Orion in the past.

Literary Magazine Review

“Poetry” is a literary magazine, which immediately grabbed my attention. In comparison with the other magazines on the shelf, I felt that “Poetry” had the perfect combination of a professional yet interesting appearance. Its cover is white and poetry is written in bold letters across the top. This was helpful for me because it quickly told me that it was exactly what I was looking for. The real attention grabbing aesthetic however is the cool lettering below the title, which is created from the film of a cassette tape. The film is twisted into cursive, which reads “take me with you”. This served as the perfect invitation for me to want to pick up and read this book. It gave me the feeling that this little magazine of poetry has limitless possibilities and could be taken anywhere. The front cover is especially inviting not only because of this message, but also because of its smooth feeling cover and its color. The rest of the pages inside the magazine were traditional black and white text. This assured me that the magazine was professional and seemed to be of high quality.
The magazine has poems from a variety of different authors. Some of the authors had several poem contributions, while others would have only one. The magazine also had a comment-based section, where authors were able to write in more of an essay format about a certain topic. I thought this was interesting because it gave me some insight into how these authors really think, and why they may chose to write about a certain topic. Normally when I read poetry, the only direct words I see from the author are from the poems so having these “comments” from the author was a rather exciting experience.
The magazine also provided in-depth backgrounds and anecdotal stories about some of the featured authors. Knowing about the author’s major experiences and views in the world helped add some context to the poems. I liked that I didn’t have to go research information on the Internet about the author, but could instead read the crucial details right there in the magazine. The fact that literary magazines have freedom to provide more than just poetry in their productions makes it more enjoyable and worthwhile for me to read. This was because I was able to feel some sense of closure after a group of poems were read, as there would often be a translation note before the next poems. This not only allowed me to understand the motivation behind the poetry but also allowed me to absorb the poems and pause before the next featured poems began.
I also liked that the magazine featured authors from very diverse backgrounds. I was able to read poetry from authors of Taiwan, Palestine, Berlin, the former USSR, and Montreal. I felt like this provided a refreshing aspect to the magazine, as each poet was able to bring his or her own perspectives and ideas to the magazine. I also felt like a lot of the poems were contemporary enough that we would be able to study them in our class. They were generally not made in a strict form, and were short and enjoyable to read.
I didn’t really have a favorite or least favorite poem in the magazine, but I did really enjoy the last section where people were able to write their opinions into the editor about previous poems that had been featured. Authors were also able to respond back to the reader’s criticism and defend their poems or provide further explanations. I thought this inter-play between the authors and readers was quite entertaining to read.

The Yale Literary Magazine

This literary magazine is a manuscript composed by the student body of Yale University. It offers works from prose, to poetry, to interviews, to photography. The issue is published in both print on the campus and online, available to the public. In black and white, the magazine offers a variety of pieces written by Yale students, based on a wide range of topics. Ending in the photography section, each issue provokes insight into the minds of adult writers and finishes with an eclectic touch of different images, from people, to abstract models.

The headlines of each section are in black, bold writing to catch the reader's attention. Similar to the cover, the headlines cannot be overlooked nor missed. The contributers do not have a mission statement in the magazine, however, yet the purpose is evident through the different insightful pieces inside the manuscript. The poetry section, in particular, seems to lack a theme, interestingly. From the moral of virginity in the poem "Icarus", to animalistic attributes and metaphors in "Party Games", these poems offer different views pertaining to the students at Yale. I would definitely say that poems we have read in poetry class from the 20th century American poets composition would fit in this literary magazine. There are different ideas in between the lines, written in contemporary language, of course, so I can see any 20th century American poet contributing to this magazine. My favorite I have read here would be the poem "Ode", as it is full of disdain, while the author is clearly taking a risk in the succinct and disturbing phrases. I think the poems definitely have the voices of young adults; however, they seem to be on a great path toward a career involving literature.

A look into Mississippi Review- Jon Ignatowski

While bumbling around the periodical section in ODY, I came across a magazine titled Minimum Herioc, by Christopher Salerno. On closer inspection, the magazine is not published by Salerno, but produced by the Mississippi Review, which publishes twice a year by the Center for Writers at the University of Southern Mississippi, in Hattiesburg. Unlike its fellow journals on the shelf, this particular journal is solely focused on the work of one poet, Christopher Salerno. However, this journal appearance is modest compared to its counterparts. The cover is far from flashy, consisting of only a single image, bold type, and minimal coloration. Overall, comparatively, the production appeal of this publication is minimal. Its simplicity speaks for itself. In addition, the paper quality is standard. The cover is glossy, and the pages are of a matte, rough texture. Furthermore, the size of the magazine is relatively diminutive, which may suggest that the publication lacks interest. If you are motivated by visuals, this magazine will be a disappointment, for it is aimed to capture the beauty of language, not visual appeal (However, this may be so due to Mississippi Review’s budget). Due to its lackluster appearance, I did not expect it to be an expensive article, and neither did the editors, for it is priced at nine dollars an issue. Obviously, the cost of production is low, which resulted in a low net worth (economically speaking).

As stated before, this publication was dedicated to the work of Christopher Salerno, a young poet whose work I have never experienced before. I used the word “experience” purposely, for his work is something that cannot be strictly read. Unlike the work of other poets, the work of Salerno must be felt, for he composes with an alternative language. Words are not words in this case; they are merely elements of an image. Denotation is completely disregarded (which can frustrate the reader at times) and connotative interpretations are exercised. In other words, his work is mosaics of juxtaposed concrete images, similar to bricks being stacked erratically. The pattern appears to be incongruent at times, and expectations are beaten to a pulp, forcing the reader to look at the piece again, and again, with no avail. Meanings are illusive, for they metamorphose through every reading. One piece in the collection , titles “East,” did so due to the vibrancy of its imagery: “A hurricane digs for its salt white dress, / the wilds of which are filled with want. Using its pistons / forms a crude 9. Our place / is like empty drams for it”. In this particular piece, I easily grasped the images. However, one piece that I struggled with, “Recount,” flooded me with images, and I was drowning: “A compost heap’s genius is you have seen mediation / if you have looked upon rinds, / the clippings of your own eyes, / the warp of paisley”. The seemingly incongruent relationship between verbs and nouns, and their prolificacy, was overwhelming.

Overall, this journal is dedicated to showcase the work of poets who transcend expectations of poetry, and convince the reader that words are not merely statements, but the elements of pure images. In no way is tradition present – a new path is formed every page. It is not a new genre, it is a new approach to poetic thought.

Literary Journal Review

Kim Cooper

4.8.2010

Theo Hummer

Assignment 9

The literary journal that I read was the Apple Valley Review. This journal is an online literary journal and is published twice annually; once in the fall and once in the spring. The edition that I read was this years spring edition. Each issue of the Apple Valley Review contains short fiction, poetry, and essays. The journal is edited by Leah Brown but all the rights are held by the individual authors featured in each issue.

One aspect that I really enjoyed about this journal is that the authors featured in it were not big name writers; many of them were still working on getting their degrees and or teaching as a main profession and writing on the side. The quality of the work is extremely high; all the poems were creative, crafty, and raw, but were produced by people who weren’t necessarily “writers.” I think this brings a level of authenticity to the journal. There is a sense that each poem is written because someone felt absolutely compelled to do so, that the poem had taken full control of them and it needed to be written, not because it was their job to write. There is a natural vulnerability in each different work.

A lot of the poems in this journal feel as if they would fit right into our American Poets in the 21^st Century book. All of them have a standard form: poems set in stanzas of varied lines moving horizontally down the page. This is another reason why I enjoyed this journal so much. I am not a big fan of concrete poetry that we studied earlier in the semester and I have an extremely hard time identifying with it when I get a headache trying to figure out in which direction I should be reading. The content of all the poems in this journal is relatable and honest; the simplicity of the structure compliments that honesty really well and does not take away from the importance of the meaning.

There appears to be a common them of “change” throughout all the works in this edition. That change comes in several different forms: death, coming of age, relationships, how people around you change. Each poem not only has a message, but a lesson imbedded in it as well. A good example of this, and my favorite poem from this journal is called, Childhood by T.J Jarret. The poem describes an event, more specifically a death in the family, which allows your parents to forget that they are parents, and become smaller than you: “ But soon they will grow comfortably into a space without you. No accounting of parental failures nor any list of wrongs can prepare you for this….You are allowed to lift them in your arms. How small they’ve become. How Happy, how light.” This image struck me, that people would need a reminder that it’s okay to take care of your parents, that when life comes full circle, it’s your parents that need to be cradled and held. I think the concept is fascinating and that her imagery is remarkable.

If you’re interested in the Apple Valley Review, the link to the online journal is here! http://www.applevalleyreview.com/

Assignment 9 - Literary Magazine Review

I looked through a handful of magazines to find one that I truly enjoyed and felt I would actually read outside of class. There were several good ones I came across, but one online magazine I found really caught my eye. I chose to write about Narrative Magazine, which is one of the leading online literary magazines (www.narativemagazine.com). It gets released three times a year, with issues coming out in the Spring, Fall, and Winter of each year. On their website, they publish poetry, fiction and non-fiction from many different authors, both well-known and emerging. They are a non-profit organization headed by Carol Edgarian and Tom Jenks (www.narrativemagazine.info). Narrative has an online library of both new and old literature that is free and easily accessible, being especially effective in today's fast-advancing digital age.

From the first glimpse of the home page, you can tell that this site is well put together and is very easy to use. You can search the site by author if you know who you're looking for, or you can browse by literature type. They have several different categories including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, cartoons, interviews, contests and others that I didn't find in many of the other magazines I browsed through. There are so many features and sections to look through that it'd be impossible to go through all of it. They have a 'story of the week' and 'poem of the week' feature that I'm sure gets a lot of hits and they were the first pieces that I chose to read. You have the option to submit your own work and there are cash prizes for winners of seasonal contests. I saw an add for the opportunity to win as much as $6500 in prizes. That's reason enough to sign up for a free membership and take advantage of what this magazine has to offer.

You know it's official when you see the "Narrative Store". They are a non-profit organization but they take donations and they have a store that sells digital books as well as hard copies, clothes, accessories and DVD's. Overall, I think this is a great online literary magazine. It has amazing depth and awesome features that allow you to explore a whole new world of literature that you never knew existed! I would recommend this site to any and everybody interested in writing and reading poetry and stories.

Flashback....

I have decided to go back to my childhood for this literary magazine assignment. Let me tell you why: my sister is a junior in high school, she is also an extremely talented writer. Over the last year she has been hankering for an editor and a publisher (if you haven't guessed, her dream is to be a writer). Being the fabulous big sister I am, I have been searching out places she can submit her work. During this search, I stumbled upon a magazine that I used to subscribe to and was quite fond of when I was her age. That magazine is Cicada.

Cicada Magazine is a literary magazine geared toward young adults. They publish work by authors and artists ages 14-23, as well as the occasional piece by a deceased but well know author. Cicada is a small magazine, roughly the size of The Laurentian Magazine (which you should all read when it arrives on campus in a few weeks), and usually has some kind of theme for an issue. The March/April 2010 issue (the magazine is published bimonthly) follows the theme of change and decision making. A regular WWYD (what would you do) collection. The stories and poetry all reflect a moment of 'self' and choosing a path that may end up defining who you will ultimately become. At the end of the issue, Cicada provides information for submissions as well as a contest related to the 'theme' that particular issue may have been following. For March/April, Cicada has worded its theme as "fork in the road," but I thought that was a little boring.
As I was reminiscing about this magazine, it occurred to me how pleasant it is to revisit something that played such a large role in my younger years. I never submitted work to Cicada, though I considered it, but it was inspiring to me as a pseudo-aspiring writer. Each story, essay, poem, or work of art has a mini-blurb about the author. Some have been published before, some have grand dreams, some are in high school, some are in grad school, but all have been published in one magazine, which is fairly encouraging. I believe Cicada has a good thing going. Their age limit opens a market for young writers that is not as intimidating as arriving in your college level writing class and being told you must submit to a journal.
Cicada is a publication that follows you from early childhood through your teens only it is called something else. The young child's version of Cicada is Lady Bug, and the tween's version is Cricket. As a child, I had a subscription to all three, although I must say I don't recall Lady Bug very well. Cricket was more of a magazine and came in an 8x10 (assuming my guestimated measurements are correct) format, however, it also contained artwork and stories by young writers.
If there is anything I would suggest Cicada do differently, it is advertise. As much as I enjoyed the magazine as a teen and as much as I have enjoyed perusing it again, I have only ever heard of it in my own house. Maybe I am just oblivious, but something as wonderful and empowering for young writers should be more well known. Granted, literary magazines are not always well known outside of the literary sphere, but it seems to me this is something school libraries could subscribe to like they do National Geographic and Newsweek.

Literary Journal

The literary journal I chose to read was The Georgia Review, the Spring 2010 edition. It is published by the University of Georgia and the professors at the school are usually the editors of this journal. It features well known poets as well as poets who have never been published before so it involves a good mix of writing. It is published four times a year during each season. This literary journal involves stories, essays, poems, book reviews, and art. They do not separate it into sections but rather go back and forth so the reader can read a poem and following it might be a story. I think this is a good way of organizing the setup of it so people can read it from cover to cover without getting too bored with too many of the same styles of writing in a row. The copy of The Georgia Review that I looked at was very well put together and had nice cover art and the pages and typing were good quality. This journal was originally published for writings and works that were based about Georgia but as time went on, more editors wanted a national feel to it so there are much more diverse works in it now than there might have been fifty years ago.

I really enjoyed this literary journal because it had a really wide range of topics and styles with the poetry. It seems that any poet might have a chance to get their works published here because they are open to up and coming poets and seem to involve as many diverse pieces as possible. One of my favorite poems that I read in The Georgia Review was The Girl in the Neon Tank Top by Stephen Dunn. It was a poem about how people assumed certain things about a girl for what she was wearing and in truth she was just trying to disguise herself from showing her true personality. It had a fun and playful tone to it and it really made me re-read it many times in order to understand the subtle details that were included. Other poems in this journal were about landscapes, history, and ideas that all revolved around different themes so a reader would not know what to expect when they turned the page. There is such a wide variety of literature in The Georgia Review that I think everyone would be able to find atleast one piece that they might enjoy.

Kurt Malkames - Assignment #9

After looking at dozens of journals – I ended up choosing one called Fogged Clarity (foggedclarity.com). It is an independent journal based out of Muskegon, Missouri and it publishes a magazine 12 times per year (another way of saying monthly). They like to describe their magazine as being as “unconstrained” as thought itself. They have an estimated base of 15,000 readers monthly. Past issues have included a wide range of topics including, but not limited to, poetry. I choose to review the current April edition. Starting out I was unable to recognize any of the poets from my extremely limited base of reference, however, this certainly didn’t mean they were equally as entertaining as some of the ones I am familiar with. Alongside the poems, the table of contents also included fiction, visuals, aural pieces, polemics, nonfiction, and even other reviews. The manifesto of the journal states that they aim to focus on the importance of creation. Ben Evans, the executive editor, states that “For me Fogged Clarity is the light caught on the canvas of a rain-slicked street…”. I took this to mean that what he aims to showcase is the sort of spontaneous creativity. The logo of the magazine seems to reflect this spontaneous nature. The smoke dissipating into air has a path that not even the best scientist could ever figure out – it is completely unpredictable and spontaneous. After looking at the magazine as a whole I begin to actually read some of the poetry. Most of the poems seemed to have a pessimistic outlook on things. Dark and shady was the underlying theme. Things like drugs and confusion were mentioned throughout the seven poems on display in this issue – sort of reminiscent of that hazy and spontaneous manifesto. Every poem did have some sort of structure to it although I was unable to explicitly identify any one. I think the works of Wallace Stevens (Of Mere Being comes to mind) seem to be most akin to what I read in this journal. The imagery was excellent and the ideas were far out – yet still graspable. My favorite poem was 1.21 Jigowatts by Daniel Romo. This was the only poem I have read that actually incorporated a specific current event into it – in this case the US Olympic hockey teams in the gold medal game. Because nearly everyone can relate to this moment in time – it is easy to pick on the emotions the author is trying to express. Daniel Romo has been published in Praxilla, Connotation Press, and The Acentos Review. My least favorite was X by Randall Mann, simply because I didn’t feel I got enough out of it. Yes, it was short, but I wished he had expanded on some of the imagery a bit more. What was there was great but I’d like to be able to read on. Maybe that is up to me. I am certainly willing to read pieces from this magazine again. I have even bookmarked the website in my browser for future reference. If poetry becomes my “thing” it would be an honor to publish in this magazine. Wallace Stevens was my favorite poet of the semester so far, and if this magazine is in that flavor then I would be delighted to be considered in that same style.

Assignment 9 - Literary Magazine Review

The Apple Valley Review: A Journal of Contemporary Literature is a semiannual online (http://www.applevalleyreview.com/) literary journal that’s released once in the spring and once in the fall. It was first published in 2005 by its current editor and poet, Leah Browning and each issue features a collection of poetry, short fiction, and essays by a collection of both established and newly emerging writers. I had never heard of Browning’s poetry before reading this journal, but it inspired me to look up some of her work online and I found that I liked a lot of her work and I definitely think she brings her unique style and vision to her this journal. My first impression with this journal was that it was very well organized and had a wide variety of work published in the volume I read. Although it was an online journal it still had a lot of very nice qualities about it. Each volume had a very vibrantly illustrated cover that related to the season and volume it was being published in and the works of writing were all intermingled. Meaning, poetry, fiction, and essays were located throughout the entire magazine, not just located in one place, which I found refreshing because as I read I was constantly getting to read something new instead of reading a section of each kind of literature. The pieces were printed in black against an ivory backdrop and at the end of each piece there was an excerpt that gave a small author biography, which was nice to read. A lot of the author’s The Apple Valley Review include are from many different backgrounds and fields of writing, which I think greatly adds to the appeal of this magazine. I also loved how different the topics were that the magazine encompassed – I enjoyed all of the work I read in this journal. The journal doesn’t specifically say online what its vision is beyond the fact that it wants to create a journal of literary work that’s original, previously unpublished, and not genre fiction, explicit, or particularly violent or depressing. They also note that all work published is also considered for an annual Editor’s Prize competition. My favorite poem in this journal was Recurring Dream, by Avra Wing. It’s a beautifully written poem about a memory/dream (Can’t quite tell which) and the speaker describes a very vivid event where she’s with a man (I think someone’s she’s romantically involved with) in a train station and the man’s mad and the woman has dropped their bags causing them to spill everywhere, making a mess. Something about the speaker’s regret in the inflection of the poem and the sadness conveyed in the image is almost haunting – As if the speaker hate’s what has happened and the man’s anger, but she also doesn’t want this moment to pass, the poem gives the reader a sense that time has stopped. It was very powerful. I would definitely read this magazine again and even consider submitting my own work to this journal because they seem fairly open minded and willing to publish new emerging writers.

Assignment 9

The American Poetry Review is a world wide well known literary magazine. They send out their issues six times a year to their worldwide audience. It tries to capture the best contemporary poetry and literary. It also is perfect for up coming or well-known authors or poets to show off their work to a very large audience. The magazine was founded in 1972 in Philadelphia. When it first came out it was the most recognized literary magazine, packed with just about anything you could think of. To have a little fun the magazine gives out awards to people who they think wrote the best book of poems. They winner gets $3000. The website is very easy to use and explore, it can be easily accessed by looking up the American Poetry Review. The magazine is full of interviews, literary essays and essays on social issues, translations, fiction, reviews, and poetry. But that’s just what I was able to pick up, I am sure its packed with more interesting topics to read about as well. After reading the January/ February 2010 issue, I really liked the way the magazine was set up. I thought the poems were fresh and enjoyable to read. If I were to pick a place to send in my poems I would pick this place, and not just because I would want to keep trying to win the $3000 prize. Each poet has a few of their poems in the magazine, not just one, which I liked, it was nice to read a few different poems from the same author. I not only thought the poems were good, but the way the magazine looked. It looks nice and clean and presents itself to look upper management. The poems have a wide range of different topics. I think most of the poems we have looked at this year would fit nicely into this magazine, with the exception of maybe the visual poems. If I had to pick a literary magazine to subscribe to I would pick the American poetry Review, it has what I seem to believe the broadest amount of categories to read and I like that is has a annual prize giveaway.

Post for Last Thursday

Ok… So I know this blog is late… I just remembered I forgot to do it last week when I was reading through the outline for this week’s blog assignment. I really need to write this on my calendar because I know I’ve forgotten a couple times and had to write late ones after the fact… Anyway… For my blog post today I definitely wanted to discuss how I think learning about what makes a poem enjoyable to read and the generosity of the author has been very interesting so far. I never thought about either one of those aspects until we began talking about it in class and I definitely was given a new perspective as to the different ways a poet can write his/her poems in order to create a certain feeling for the reader and keep them entertained. It also really made me think back to Christian Bok’s presentation in class about what makes a good poem better. I thought it really spoke to how using certain nouns and verbs can really change the way a reader experiences your poem, because poetry should be an experience, not just something you read and forget about. The best poetry is the kind that keeps coming back to you, even after you’ve read it and it makes you want to read it again to further explore it’s meaning. Now speaking about finding the meaning in poems, I loved the discussion we had in class about not always having to pick apart poems to “beat” the meaning out of it. There’s something very intriguing to me about poems that leave one questioning – Poetry, in my opinion, is more about the questions than the solutions. The process in which you reach those possible solutions is something that can be very powerful and overall it makes that process more influential than the answer to the question asked in the first place. I definitely would like to work on maybe writing some poems that do just that.

Assignment 9; Literary Magazine

Poets and Writers is the largest non profit literary organization in the United States. This magazine publishes works of poetry, fiction as well as creative nonfiction. This magazine has been in circulation for 40 years, producing a bi-monthly piece. Poets and Writers in located in New York City. Galan Williams who asked for money for the New York State Council of the Arts started this magazine. The first few pages of the magazine, I read where discussing the new books written by a few poets as well as non fiction writers. These articles discussed the books in a little detail and compared their work to work they have done in the past. Some of the books discussed were Hot Springs by Geoffrey Becker, The Abyss of Human Illusion by Gilbert Sorrentino, and Lamb Bright Saviors by Robert Vivian. The reviews given by these books were so good I decided to check a few out myself. This book has sets of narratives discussing familiar scenarios such as miserable couples, crappy salespersons, and drunken people/ soldiers. A few other sections in this magazine discussed different bookstores around the United States. I really liked the sections on the tips of being published. A few writers offered some great insight and some other suggestions made me laugh. Like getting close to a publisher as a friend and exploit the friendship. I could not believe that this was actually published in the magazine but it made for a great laugh and put humor into the stressful world of trying to become a published writer. There was a section at the end of the magazine, which lists all the awards that the magazine has received over the years. The credentials and awards of this magazine are very impressive and show to be a very prestigious literary work. I enjoyed reading this literary magazine and liked the variety of the reading material.

weekly blog

This past week has been interesting for me in terms of learning about what makes poems interesting and enjoyable to read. I like the idea that authors sometimes need to be "generous" with their poems, in terms of writing poetry that will interest the readers. Readers will be more more engaged and appreciative if they are allowed to take from the poem what they want, and don't feel like their just being preached to. I thought it was interesting that at first I did not like the poem "Year Zero" at all but after analyzing it and pulling it apart I did start to like it more. I finally felt some sort of personal connection with the author, that I did not get when I had initially read it. The poem seemed too impersonal and distant until we started to look at each element of the poem and piece it together. I realized that having some characters or personal aspect to poetry is important to me, otherwise I don't find them enjoyable. I will definitely keep this in mind when writing my own poems to workshop in the future because I want others in the group to actually enjoy reading my poems, rather than just doing it out of obligation.

I also look forward to reading this weeks poems to workshop because I feel like I will be able to see a lot of growth in people's poetry with the tips we have learned. I think people will have really kept these techniques in mind when composing their poems.

Salt Lines

Last Friday, I attended the Salt Lines' workshop as a makeup for missing Christian Bok. I could not be more pleased that fate handed me this awesome opportunity to participate in a workshop that I might otherwise have missed.

The three women, Andrea, Sonya and Denise, are professional slam poets who have been on national tour, giving both performances and leading workshops. While this workshop was based in their poetry, or the poetry of their peers, the attention was also drawn to issues of gender, sexuality, and the ways in which society both liberates and restricts identity. After each of them read a poem, we would have the opportunity to discuss the content of the poem, the lines that struck us most, or more general themes of functions of society. Then, we were given the opportunity to free write in response to the discussion for a few minutes before the next poem was read.

Andrea was the only one of the three who performed one of her own poems for the workshop. I was amazed by how intimate her style is, not just letting us in but sucking us in, allowing the group to experience her individual experience while she led us image by image through a painful life struggle. Her release at the end became our release. They were all incredible performers, speaking with such an intensity and level of control that I found myself forgetting to breathe until they did.

our conversation focused a lot on societies perceptions of gender identity, and sexuality. I was surprised to find myself so emotionally invested in a struggle that on nearly all levels is not my own. I am so happy I attended this workshop-- what amazing people, what amazing talent.

Weekly Blog

It has been interesting last week and this current week talking about certain poems that contain untruthful or unfamiliar aspects to the reader. A lot of the different poems that we read either made the readers become familiar with something that might be completely foreign or to make a common everyday object seem unfamiliar. A poem that really made readers take a different outlook on the content within it was the poem Hair. Even though hair is something that everyone knows about, this poem is able to unfamiliarize us with it because in the story hair is used in a different way. By the characters in the poem hiding escaped prisoners inside their hair, it made me much more intrigued and involved in the story because it wasn’t something I was used to. The language of the poem was very simple but this one aspect of the poem made me think a lot more about it and want to discuss it more. The exercise we did on Tuesday also helped with this because I found that a lot of people were more interested with the untruthful story out of the two we shared. Hopefully in future poems, I can try and create ways to make a certain everyday object unfamiliar to the reader.

Jon Ignatowski -why I revised

For the assignment due today, I decided to reopen the work I had developed for our previous assignments. I have come to the time where I am separated from my work to the extent that it is abominable to read. With a hatchet (an ax would have been too damaging) and a pen to clot the bleeding, I dove back inside "Generation" to work on the heart, as well as some other vital organs. I was no longer married to the original form, which allowed to to probe and scrutinize without attachment to the previous. In process of revising "Generation," I utilized the Bok's advice regarding nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Comparing his methodology to mine, I could see the errors that I am prone to commit. I hacked away unnecessary words, adjectives, and adverbs, and burned the curtains of "high rhetoric" I used initially. I want my words to convey a raw meaning. As a result, I focused on minimizing ambiguous phrases, and developed strong images throughout the piece. Verbs and nouns were sought, and I placed them together to evoke energy and provoke the senses. In addition, I felt that my previous “purpose” was not clear, and I devoted time to clarify the subject of the poem. “Generations” refers to the long chain we find ourselves in from the beginning of life to the future unborn. I look forward to your comments.