leonardcohenforum.com

What do you think?

I have so much work, but I never know if it is good or not. Mostly, if it is stuctured well, every word is honest + has a purpose, and I think someone might be able to relate to it - I like to share. But still that doesn't mean it is going to be "good."

So in your opinion... what makes a poem good enough to share, and what makes a poem good enough to analyze / take a second thought over?

Dear Anne-Marie ~

If it was written, it is 'good' enough to share. When you post it, you can specify the critical aspects you're interested in receiving on it. "Good" will always be an arbitrary word to a certain extent.

They're all 'good' enough to analyze/take a second thought over. Some who write may be interested only in sharing the feeling that prompted its writing; whereas, others want to think more in terms of 'public'/'open' application.

I hope to see some of yours here, whenever you feel ready to share them.

~ Elizabeth

You are so sweet. Thank-you so much for the kind reply!

What makes a poem good enough??? My approach has been to not really consider this from a literary perspective or from the possible critical reactions. Perhaps this is a fault on my part. Or perhaps such considerations are not relevant. The passion and or desire to express and communicate are for me the over-riding factors. This has at times led me into deep s**t with some forum members. Some poems that I think have been some of my best writing have been severely admonished by others and some poems that I thought were fairly ordinary have recieved acclaim.
If your gut feeling says "I need to share this and be damned with the consequences" then- follow your instinct is my advice.

But who am I to advise?

Cheers, Witty.

If you like your lines - they're worth posting.
If you're not content, but feel there's room for improvement - it's worth posting.
If you're not sure about your poem - it's worth posting.

Sometimes you'll find help. Sometimes you find encouragement. Sometimes there's no reply, and you are where you were before.

Your writing can't grow without submitting the output to the public. So Elizabeth was absolutely right

when she wrote:If it was written, it is 'good' enough to share."

And when you encounter someone who burns down the whole haystack just to find the needle, and then finds the needle 'worn', melted, burnt, ugly - well, the wittiest of all our owls

Some poems that I think have been some of my best writing have been severely admonished by others and some poems that I thought were fairly ordinary have recieved acclaim.

And I have to add sometimes the best and the worst go by seemingly unnoticed.

tom