How To Review Poetry 101

Let me start off by saying poetry is very subjective and to say my way of reviewing poetry is the one correct way would be very egocentric to say the least. I will just give you my thoughts and take them for what they are worth. I am not the most educated poet alive, not by far, but I have studied most of the greats and have been reading and writing poetry for over 20 years, so I have learned a thing or two. Now if you have no idea how to review let me first tell you there is thread on the OP School of Poetry forum about learning how to review poetry. I will be focusing more on how to review poetry in a way that will help you make new friends and make you friends that you already have visit your profile and want to read your poetry, as this is one of the main goals of this forum, to get your poetry read.

Positivity- the old saying goes if you don’t have something nice to say it is often better not to say it. If you read a poem and you can’t find one thing positive to say than better to just move on and read something else. It is not realistic to think that we are going to like and be able to relate to every poem we read, it just isn’t. But if you tear a poem apart with negativity than what do you hope to accomplish by doing so? I know not everyone will agree with me here, but the fact is if you rip someone’s poem they are going to most likely take it personal. So why do you care? You care because you want your poetry read, correct? What is the likelihood someone is going to come running to read your poetry if you jut tore one of their poems into little pieces? They will most likely never visit you profile and if they do they will probably low ball your poem regardless of how good it is, just fact. I am not saying don’t be honest but try and have constructive critism. If you really see something in a poem that could use improvement and you really want to help, rather than blasting them in public on their profile why not send a private PM, this way they tend to not take it as personal. Also if you say something negative try to include at least one thing positive. If you can’t think of at least one thing positive then it is really better to just move on and read something else. You will catch more flies with honey than vinegar, truth.

Objective- if you do not like a poem or can not connect to it then try and not take the poem to personally. People write poems about as many topics as there are poets, so you will not be able to relate and will not like every poem you read. But if a poem is constructed well with good rhyme, meter, flow, etc than why low ball the score just because you personally didn’t like it? Is that really fair? Not everyone will like your poetry but if you write a brilliant poem, than doesn’t the poem deserved to be judged on its own merits? Or if you really feel emotionally overwhelmed by a poem and can really relate by all means give your open and honest feedback. I am just saying that it doesn’t do the poet any good to ripe their poem just because you personally didn’t like it, what do you accomplish by judging a poem this way? It only spreads negativity, better to stay objective in this case or again move on and read something else.

Open and honest with positivity- now if you do connect to a poem, if you do really like it then by all means be open and be honest. I am just trying to say to stay positive. Everyone likes to get their poetry read, that is the point most of us are here but people really love when you give something of yourself. While people will always appreciate a nice pat on the back they will appreciate it even more if you can give something of yourself to them in the comment. What I mean by this is, rather than just saying I like your poem, pat, pat, pat. I love the use of imagery, pat, pat, pat. I love your use of metaphors, pat, pat, pat. Try to give them a little more something personal. Tell the poet what the poem made you think of, what it made you feel, the emotions of the write, what the poem meant to you, how you can relate to the message, meaning, or story, what was your fav line? Any of these is much more than just a pat on the back and it is these comments that poets live for! Plus if you give a bit of yourself and spend just that extra moment to really comment from the heart it will go a long way, you will be surprised how quickly they will come running to return the favor and when they see your name they will remember you. When you ask for a friend invite they will most certainly accept. When you ask for them to review your new poem they will come and they will comment and this is after all one of our main goals, yes no?

No wrong interpretation- poetry is very subjective and once a poet posts the poem it is no longer theirs alone, it is now open for all the world to see and make their own. We each have our own unique perspective to the world, the way we see and interpret things. This perspective is built based off our own past experiences, childhood, values and norms we learn from our parents, society, our family, culture we live in, the life we have lived and the decisions we have made. So each person comes to the table with a different perspective and as such will see the world in different ways and when they read your poem may see it in a different light. One poem can mean many different things to different people, it is really amazing in this sense that one poem can transform into many different poems based on different interpretations. So moral of the story is don’t be too worried about whether you understand exactly what the poet meant, it really doesn’t matter, when you read the poem it is now a matter of what the poem means to you. When you review poetry this way you may be surprised on how close you do come to the real intended meaning of the poem. My self I am known as the poem buster, I really have no special powers of poetry reading ability. I just follow these guidelines and more often than not I come very close to the poets true meaning. I am not saying everyone has to read and review this way, I am only telling you how I do it, my way is only one of many. My team will also post some of their methods, take from them what you like and make it your own.

Be at one with the poem- when you read a poem try and put yourself in the poets shoes, walk for a moment in time in their steps, see the world through their eyes, try and relate. In doing so you have the ability to gain perspective, and will probably write one hell of a review. On a side note you may also learn to see the world in different ways and gain a more broad perspective of the world and those around you. Understanding is the first step to acceptance. You may not always agree with someone else’s point of view but if you try to see it from their perspective you may have a better understanding of where they are coming from. Why bother? Well when people see that you have put some time and effort into your review they will be more willing to come and review you, simple really. In the end, is this not one of our main goals on OP, get our poetry read?

I hope this has helped some and remember there is really no wrong way to review poetry, but if you want to gain friends and thus gain reviews it is good to try and stay positive in your commenting.

Please feel free to contact myself angel33614 at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/angel33614 or the God father of OP papapaczki at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/papapaczki or any member of the team if you have any further questions about the forum, one of the threads, general questions about OP, or any suggestions for future threads.

Here is s listing of the ins and outs of OP team members in no particular order:

Teardrops aka Marie at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Teardrops
Atie at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Artie
Ginga at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/ginga
Malificent aka Mal at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Maleficent
Knight at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/knight4696
Rygar at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Rygar
Wordslinger at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/WordSlinger
Madelynn aka Maddi at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Madelynn
Kah at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/kah
Dahlusion aka Dah at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/dahlusion
Rymer at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Rhymer
Cheronold aka Cher at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/cheronld
Gogant at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/gogant
Aria at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Aria
Chaos at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Chaos128
ApaqRasgirl aka Asha at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/ApaqRasgirl
Supence aka Spence at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/SuSpence
Charlie23 at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Charlie23
Ianscott at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/ianscott
Cousinsoren aka Cousin at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/cousinsoren
Dano at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/Dano
Sammia at http://www.originalpoetry.com/poet/sammia


Purity of the soul, journey well to all!!! With grace and humility ANGEL aka The Poem Buster

Last edited by angel33614 09-21-2010 at 04:54:26 PM

Reviewing with Appreciations

Angel, Poets, and the OP team this is a fantastic idea.
Thank you.
Here is some tools for the trade.

http://www.originalpoetry.com/forum/view/topic/topic_id/4018

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

Had to read Angel on this one, as he does such an excellent job of critiquing a poem. I have never heard a negative comment. I always try to leave encouraging comments on others work. If I have a sugestion or spelling correction to offer I do it by sending a personal message. No reason to embarass a fellow struggling author in public.

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

I always try to leave positive feedback - writing is such a personal and subjective thing - If I don't enjoy someone's poem, I usually to move on.

Reading a poem more than once is a good idea - sometimes I need a second reading to really "feel" the poet's intent.

I don't tend to leave long comments - If I've been moved by a poem, I'm often unable to put that into clear words!! LOL -

I would say - read the poem twice, be positive, any corrections (like spelling, grammar etc) would be best done in PM.

Oh - except if you are a student in the School of Poetry thread - check it out - the students critique each other's work to facilitate and promote learning. But the comments are never personal - only based of the work and form.

kah

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

my methods for reviewing a poem have always been pretty simple...first and foremost i am always encouraging... and i never leave a negative comment on someones work... if i come across something that i dont like i just dont leave a comment at all... with that being said i am a huge poetry fan and i seldom come across something that i dont like...most people write from their heart and it really is not my place to judge someones emotions...

simply stated i comment on other peoples work the same way i would want them to comment on mine

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

That's an excellent rule to live by Dano, comment on others as you would like them to comment on you.

RE: RE: How To Review Poetry 101

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

When I review anothers poem, I usually comment on what I saw in it, whether it was about the topic, form, style, or idea... whatever stood out the most to me, as I so appreciate when others do the same on mine. I try not to give negative feedback even if I disagree with the topic or idea... I try not to be judgemental in that area, but only encourage others who enjoy sharing their work online.

I agree with sending corrections, or suggestions via pm - as it is most respectful.

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

To all those who don't understand how important it is to all the wonderful poets here at op land, to leave their hard work your comments and critique or feedback.

Lately I have come across several of my friends poems that either had no comments or maybe just a few, but then they had several who clicked the "I like the Poem Button".

For those who are new to OP and are learning the ropes and ins and outs of this site, for that reason is why we have started this forums thread, to help you learn the ropes on this site. Please don't hesitate to post any questions you might have about how things work on this wonderful poetry site. We love and appreciate all our members so very much and enjoy reading and sharing with each other.

This post is just a simple reminder to readers.
Please, don't just click the "I LIKE THIS POEM BUTTON" and leave it at that.
If you read the poem and liked it please leave the poet a well deserved comment on their hard work. Many of us struggle in writing our poems, with lots of edits and revisions before we post the final product of our hard work. So try to remember please that we all work hard and love to share our work with all of our OP family. So lets let them know that we appreciate all the work done by leaving them a comment if you like the poem. Just clicking the I like button does not help the poet and does not offer them any help in how they are doing in there writings. They need your comments and feedback. So if you like the poem and you click the I like button, please remember to tell them why and/or how you liked it in a comment. It is not hard dear friends, it only take a moment or two to leave them a few kind words for their hard work.
Peace and Light to all here in my OP family
Blessings to you
***Namaste
love asha

Last edited by ApaqRasgirl 09-29-2010 at 10:58:15 PM

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

Some great comments here, thanks to all who contribute here and elsewhere on the OP site. Many new to the site don't visit the forums. Could someone develop an OP etiquette, combine that with the other great comments here and make sure newbies see it when they join? It sure would have helped me. Its frustrating to even me, that many people don't ever leave comment to a comment you have left them or never at least visit you and leave comment. I read alot of brand new writers here and many long time active/inactive or readers only, there doesn't seem to be a system that works. Be well all k

RE: How To Review Poetry 101

kdarcy, I know your pain and fustration and you certainly are not alone, I think most of us have felt it at one point or another. This is the very reason I created this forum, hopefully as a avenue for newbies to learn the ins and outs of the site and for poets as yourself who are perhaps a little fustrated to find ways to gain more reviews. If you havn't already read my thread for how to get your poetry read 101, I think this may answer many of your question and perhaps you might learn a trick or two, you can also feel free to PM me anytime with any questions or concerns, i am always happy to help in any way I can. We both thank you so much for reading and commenting as it is greatly appreciated and always welcome! Purity of the soul, journey well!!! with grace and humility ANGEL