how often do you write?

I write poetry whenever the mood takes me. It can be ten times a day or ten times a year. There's really no set pattern for me at all.

I don't tend to proof read as I leave my poems a long time before I go back to them as I have a tendency to write in a very subconscious way, literally picking the meaning out later, so to proof read and edit, I may be picking out something vital which I am yet to disciver in my own work.

I have been offered publication, in an anthology, but didn't do it yet, as my work is so personal, that I didn't feel ready to share it.

Maybe I don't write as much as I could as I have other creative outlets like art, writing, etc.

Good luck for being published x

I am preparing works to submit for publication. I used to write a lot, but now I write vigorously only when I feel I have the kernel of a really good idea. There are different arguments as to whether one should be a slave to their 'muse'. If I don't feel inspired, I do write exercies, try new forms, just for mental exercise. Editing has recently become important to me. I have discovered that not everything that comes out of my head is good poetry. Our A2K member kellyvinal is published, and a strong presence in the Original Writing forum. If you haven't already, I would suggest posting some of your work there for comment.

Thanks much, illl give it a try. A long time ago I wrote an excelent poem and my profesor told me i should get it published but i guess i was just too lazy to do it, now i wish i had. its too late now because the poem is lost forever, what a shame.

Post it in Original Writing!

I'm with Carrie, I write when I'm moved to.

I find that if i don't, I can become stifled. Forcing it out is not productive at its best, and destructive at its worst.

I agree, writing should be done when and where you want to do it, and however you want to do it, much like other kinds of art.

Times a day? Once a month at most! I've only ever completed 4 poems, started ever so many more but they're not quite right. All those 4 were in Ecuador last summer, it was so easy there but now I'm back home it's damn near impossible.

Good inspioration can help a lot, that's for sure.

Those rascally moderators :-) Hello CS! If it is inspiration you seek, then you have come to the right place! You will find that this little forum is a bounty of positive encouragement, filled with great poets with an interest in perpetuating this most human of arts. It is amongst the best kept secrets out there. Everyone reading this is a poet, because there exists a poet in each of us. If it is from the heart, then it is good. I believe the best service we can provide each other is mentoring to nudge poetry to a form which is applicable and relevant to the art, as categorized and studied by scholars. For each thing that serves to inspire us, there is a message that can be conveyed in a poem. Like any art, it takes talent. Unlike many arts, it can be learned. An it is that which brings us together here! As far is being published (and you are too kind Cav), you will statistically never make money with poetry. In a way, that is what makes it cool. Without a profit motive, published poetry is raw emotion, observation, and philosophy. In my published collections, two out of five lost money. The other three reaped just enough to recover the publisher's investments and cover the extraneous costs with the expensive proposition of publication. It is all about the message. Build it, and they will come. Use this forum to get feedback on your poetry. I try to comment on every piece, as do many other members. Give your commentary on the work of your fellow poets. The key to getting published is twofold. First, you must have quality material. Second, you must be persistent and appropriate in submitting poetry for publication. To this day, 21 years after my first book and 27 years after my first published poem, I receive around nine rejection slips for every poem that someone graciously publishes. If I am a marginally successful poet, it is due only to my Terminator-like persistence and love for our art. My material is no better than that which you, or any other fellow poet here, conjures. Keep at it. Don't give up. Emily Dickenson became famous after she was dead and someone came across hundreds of her untitled poems balled up in a chest! Had she had a forum like this, I submit she would have enjoyed a bit of recognition in her lifetime :-) This is a team effort! Welcome, and we hope to be reading your poetry very soon! Oh.. And don't quit your day job :-)