Vol. 2, No. 4 An Online Chapter of Missouri State Poetry Society 1 April 2003
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CENTS Vol. 2, No. 4 An Online Chapter of Missouri State Poetry Society 1 April 2003 |
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IT'S SPRINGTIME, TIME TO RESURRECT DEAD POEMS! Like many of you, I occasionally send poems to
editors in hope one will be selected for publication, though I know there
are at least 100 poems submitted for every poem chosen. In fact, one
editor told me, he uses about five poems for each issue of his semiannual
literary journal. He said he reads until he finds five good ones and
shelves the others for a later issue, but of course eventually for the sake
of space he throws out the accumulated stack. This seems cruel--to
kill a poem before you even know its name--but, as we all know, editors are
almost human and almost live lives. My main concern this month, however,
is not cruel, heartless editors. Rather it is a guideline that is my
concern--the guideline of publications and of many contests that requires
that submissions be unpublished. Once a poem has lived in ink, it is
as good as dead. Had the rule applied to Edgar Allan Poe, poor Poe
would have had one half-book of poetry instead of four books in his body
of work. He wrote only 48 poems but managed to collect them again and
again, changing the title of the book to feature his new poems, but not changing
the titles of the formerly published poems. To me, a poem--mine or
another poet's--gains an ambiance with time, so that it is enriched when
I return to it. It becomes different from the poem it was originally.
It may cry out for revision--and what work doesn't? Or it may not seem
to have found its proper niche, and therefore seeks a new home or at least
proper recognition. It should be resurrected in its newly modified form,
I feel, so I am delighted to find publications and contests that carry the
line "Previously published poems accepted." Practicing what we preach, Missouri
State Poetry Society allows previously published poems as entries in our
summer and winter contests, in Spare Mule, even in GRIST, our state anthology.
Although we don't repeat poems in the same publication, we do allow
poems from one venue to appear in another. So, send along your "golden
oldies" or your "brand newies." Share them for the first time--or the next time-- with us.
--Tom Padgett, Editor
Missouri State Poetry Society
National Federation of State Poetry
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ONLINE NEWLETTERS ARE NOW AVAILABLE NOW Remember to read Spare Mule Online and Strophes Online at the addresses given on the Contents menu. You can keep up with members who get newsletters by mail by remembering to read them on the Net. You get a slightly better issue anyway, since we are always finding mistakes in the newsletters and correcting them, which we can do easily on the Net but not at all on the printed copies. If you, however, feel empty-handed without a hard copy, print you one. Remember to read Spare Mule Online and Strophes Online at the addresses given on the Contents menu. DANA GIOIA, HEAD OF NATIONAL
ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS
Recently named head of the National Endowment for
the Arts, Dana Gioia is also at the center of a controversy over the
place of poetry in today's world. Learn about this man, read some of
his poems, and read his essay that sparked the controversy
Visit the site at this address for Gioia's biography
and four of his poems:
At this same site find his controversial
Atlantic Monthly essay, "Can Poetry Matter?"
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REMEMBER TO VISIT THE WORKSHOP PAGE FOR LESSON 6. |