Because we all want to write more poems.
Reasons I will never be taken seriously as a poet
One time, I convinced my writing group to hijack a haiku slam, delivering only haikus about flying Orcas.
Another time, my poem was a knock knock joke.
I prefaced a poem based on Springsteen's Thunder Road by singing the song in it's entirety. Imagine my singing voice. It's worse than that.
My poetic nemesis, a local retired professor, does not even know who I am. But many of the open mic poets think of him as nothing but my nemesis. In fact I inspired several poets to name their own nemeses. It was very thereputic.
If I like another poet's piece, I will sometimes parody it.
I read one particular piece every week for a couple months until it was parodied by another poet.
Among the long standing poets in town, I was known as the guy who coined the phrase: "Like standing on kittens."
The first poem I ever read at an open mic began, "When Lisa leaves me it will be for a plumber." Several years later...
True story, once on a drive to the Seattle Slam, with a nationally known poet who has since passed away, we stopped for Vietnamese food. Getting back into the car afterward, he turns to me and says, "Now how do you get to the Slam". I replied, "Practice."
More truth, I made him repeat the question when the other poets came out of the restaurant so I could say the punch line again. His reaction: "Bellingham poets are crazy.
I wooed my sweetheart with a series of bawdy limericks sent via cell phone.
- Neil McKay's Shared Poems
- Log in or register to post comments
Comments
Clayton Medeiros
March 21, 2012
Permalink
Irony
The irony is that all of those reasons are why you will be taken seriously as a poet. The poetry is you and the more you write, the more true that becomes.