I like working my classes around themes even though I cringe at constantly looking for the theme (meaning) of a poem, story etc. The theme of this week, for me, seems to be The Quest.
I’m borrowing the picture for today’s post from one I took at a UNCC Writing Project meeting from last month. You can read more about that meeting at a guest blog I did for the Writing Project.
On – speaking of guest blog kind of things – in case I forgot to mention it I was interviewed over at CL Bledsoe’s blog. And, while we are sharing, I do have a few poems up in the current issue of Wilderness House Literary Review. Each of these poems has a role in what I hope will be my second full length collection, tentatively titled, What if We Could Morph?
In my interview with Cort, he asked me about ongoing projects and it almost feels painful for me to discuss ongoing projects right now because I feel stuck. I’m one of thsoe who loves to start and finish things, but I sometimes ZOOM through the middle part – the journey part – the quest – the now. Because, right now, I can’t seem to hear my own poetry. I know these moments come, but there is part of me that worries just a bit (interestingly enough Robert Lee Brewer was kind of talking about this this week too!) about whether or not I have any more poems in me – or at least ones I like.
For example, here is a poem I am working on in the Tiger project I mention in my interview. I’m really not sure it is a keeper, but I’m here to show you all sides of what is going on in the writing life so here it is.
Goodbye poem – back to the revision pile 
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As I’m pondering all of this and wondering if I am at a wall in my writing journey I also found myself watching the movie Chasing Amy this week. I know, I’m like 10 years (or 15) late watching most of the Kevin Smith movies. I think I saw Dogma first on Comedy Central before I ever went back to watch his New Jersey films (and I saw Mall Rats first. I love the mall so I even blogged about that once). At the time when they came out I was just getting out of college and into my first career life. I was at an in between place similiar to a lot of his characters, but I wasn’t ready to see it yet. (Note – for thsoe who don’t know – lots of language and sexual discussion in CA if you aren’t into that kind of thing).
So what am I getting at? I wonder if I am, in a sense, chasing the amy poems I wrote over the last few years? In a previous poem share I mentioned watching a documentary about Kevin Smith where he talks about having success and whether or not that means he can no longer write the movies of his 20′s because that isn’t who he is anymore. What if I’m not a person who can produce the narrative poems I love so well anymore?
I try to remind myself that it is the task of trying that matters so much; that the quest sometimes is all there is . . .
Time for comments, your poems etc. Let’s chat
PS Almost forgot: a poem from my Poetry app that I enjoyed
