Day 119 of the 365 Days of Blogging

The author, Dane F. Baylis

Befor We Get On Our Way, A Reminder Or Two

1. I am a believer in the never ending process of learning. In that cause I would like to put out an invitation to poets living in the Ventura, California area. Wednesday nights, for the next eight weeks, at 7 PM in Ventura at the Vita Art Center, 432 North Ventura Avenue, there will be an ongoing poetry workshop. This is a great opportunity to sharpen your craft and gather with other writers in the pursuit of excellence.

 

2. I have never done this before so I'm still figuring out my proverbial butt from a hole in the ground. What I am proposing is a poetry contest. Before you get to crazy, I am initially aiming this at the Southern California area. Perhaps later I can expand my reach but I'm still trying to get the ins and outs figured and would appreciate suggestions from anyone who has done this, or anything remotely similar, before.

Feel free to contact me in either of these regards at the e-mail address listed st the bottom of the post.

All Of That Having Been Said

 

A QUICK RE-VISIT OF PRESENCE IN POETRY

My Editor-in-Wife...Uh, Chief...brought to my attention that I came out swinging on a couple of recent posts but was definitely like an old guy in a raincoat. I was flashing myself to the crowd without much to see! As much as I would love to believe that I have a handle on this platform (Pardon the unintentional but un-retracted pun.) and the Internet thing, I fall prey to some of the same faults I point out in others.

 

This isn't about ME is probably the smartest thing I've said and, at times, the hardest to remember. When it comes to great voices to admire and emulate when trying to get a handle on presence, among the moderns, two who come to mind immediately are Robert Bly and Charles Bukowski. Predecessors for these men can be found all through the literary tradition and appear in the likes of William Carlos Williams and Hilda Dolittle of the Imagist school who published under the initials 'H.D.'

 

This is just the beginning of learning what presence looks and sounds like. Yeah, I said 'sounds' like. Don't just read these, but read them out loud. Listen to the words and the rhythms as you say them and an ever greater understanding becomes available.

 

 

Meanwhile...live, love, write.

 

 

Want to follow or subscribe to this blog? There are gadgets for that on the right side of the page. You can leave comments in the form below. I can be reached directly at dbaylis805@gmail.com . You can also find links to some of the sites I visit from time to time on the right. I'm also looking for submissions to the Your Work/Your Love page. Authors retain all rights.

 

 

Tomorrow,

 

 

Dane F. Baylis

Author.