May 2023
This month’s question comes to us from @fordthejord over on our Instagram @cowboypoetrygathering. It’s an intriguing one, and it got us to thinking…Do we pick at a poem? Or does a poem pick at us? Each poet draws the line between inspiration and editing a bit differently. While they’d all probably agree that a steak can be too done, the done-ness of a stanza seems to be a matter of more varied taste. Read on for the pros’ philosophies on getting a poem just right:
How do you approach editing? Is a poem ever really done?
–@fordthejord
Waddie Mitchell:
I'm not sure that editing isn't just as important as inspiration, thought, and story in the process of writing a poem. I will write until I have the idea in the sequence and rhyme scheme (tune) that suits the situation I'm trying to convey. Then I leave it alone for a while (weeks, months, even years) before I start the editing (fresh eyes) process. I might edit six or more times. I might just switch words, change stanzas around, or completely change the rhyme scheme. Leaving it alone for a while allows for new perspectives in the approach to the presentation of the idea.
On second thought, I believe that editing IS just as important as any other part in the making of a good poem. It can take a fair poem to a good one.
I personally have a hard time ever feeling my poems are really finished.
Yvonne Hollenbeck:
Editing is not my forte...by a long shot. After I write a poem, or an article, I print it off and take it to my husband who edits it for me. He doesn't write himself, nor does he do poetry, but he is good at catching misspelled words or something that doesn't make sense.
DW Groethe:
Good question. I, generally, work out a first draft, which can take anywhere from a few hours to who knows, but eventually I'll sit back and say, “that's it.” Then I set it aside for a few days to let it simmer. When I come back to it with fresh eyes there's almost always a few changes to be made and so now I have the second draft. A lot of times this will be the final draft but I still like to sit on it for a little while longer. Doesn't hurt to do it and I might find some little changes that make subtle but important differences. I also have an editor who'll read through all my poems before I release them to the wild. It never hurts to have another opinion on the poems. You don't have to follow their suggestions but you'd be surprised how often they help the poem.
And no...they're never done. Nitpickyness is a deep-seated trait in most poets. (As an aside...most visual artists are just as nitpicky with their work.) You simply have to move on to the next piece. It's out there. Waiting for you to show up at the table.
Thanks for the ask. Ta daa,
dw
Bill Lowman:
I'm a spontaneous poet. I write on instant impulse with a shirt pocket notebook, anywhere, any time. When I organize it later at home, it doesn't change much. I don't labor over the original thought.
The ongoing editing comes about orally. When I recite it over and over from one show to the next, I find myself adding adjectives for "flair" and omitting dull statements, etc., to achieve a better, smoother flow.
After all, cowboy poetry was originally an oral tradition.
Dick Gibford:
I am just a simple cowboy. True, I did go to college a few years, but it didn't make me much smarter. I don't believe I have actually ever had the notion to ever use the word “edit!” I generally tinker around with a newly written “poem" for maybe 20 minutes max. I figure the thing was given to me by the universe, channeling a muse or two to let it enter into my mind's attention. But how much of my mind is really mine, I cant say…at least 50% of it, I would hope! I know when the poem is done to my satisfaction—it’s when the story I am attempting to tell has come to a close. To me, the whole point of a poem is to take a particular incident or happening and set it to rhythm and rhyme, making it more of an art form. Poems are sorta like little short stories that are interesting enough to dress them up some and share with other folks. I sometimes wonder what goes on inside other people’s minds, but I don't really want to know, I am just vaguely curious. I hope this might help to answer the question, if only a little bit. In closing, I will say a good poem cannot be forced, if it’s really meant to be, it will come easy. That is, if you have enough of the soul of the poet in you.
