The World Through A Poet's Eyes

When I first started writing poetry it was for personal reasons, that being romantic poetic verse for my (then) loving fiance Andrea. I was shocked to discover that what I crafted not only seemed to bare resemblance to actual poetic form but it also triggered emotional response from its reader!

Imagine, putting heart-felt words into verse and finding that the reader is so profoundly impacted emotionally that they weep crocodile tears! From that starting point I began to receive very compelling feedback not only from my fiance but also family and friends imploring that I expand my audience. With that in mind I began to dig online for a poetry website where I could post my poetic musings and seek comment and critique from writers of experience to see just where my writing stood alongside authors of renown.

Just the mere thought of posting my poems in a medium of such mass exposure, with the poetry website exceeding 45,000 members, and the anticipation that many of the members were published, successful writers in their own right, was daunting to say the least. Before I clicked on that submit button for the very first time my heartrate quickened and my index finger on the mouse quivered. But then I suddenly reflected upon the heartfelt appreciation that I received from my (to that point) limited reading audience and suddenly what resulted after clicking that submit button seemed less terrifying and more of curiosity than any blind pretense that my writing would be of the slightest interest to poetry lovers.

So I clicked the submit button and logged off with the plan to sign in a few hours later to see if any response had been forthcoming. Before signing on again to check for replies to my first post I again had that uneasy sense of anticipating what lay ahead. Could there be a savage diatribe thrashing my creative endeavor awaiting me? I tentatively logged on and sought out my post. Lo and behold there were fifteen replies posted. What?? I opened my post and to my shock found post after post praising my write, some going so far as to say they had shed many tears and could not wait to see more!

And so it began. A journey into the art of poetic verse, an exploration of my own thoughts, emotions, opinions, likes, dislikes, and how I could transcribe those thoughts and images onto the page, as a painter does with a brush on canvass, giving my reading audience their own experience into a world seen through my eyes. What a profound experience it is for the writer to receive positive feedback, indeed accolades from peers in the writing community. And even more exhilarating and rewarding is the emotional response received from poetry lovers who come to feel a sense of devotion and return time and again to read and experience what I write.

The thing that attracts me so much about poetry is that although it has its traditional forms and subject matter, the simple fact is that for contemporary poets the subject themes are virtually limitless and not only traditional poetic form but also many variations, and indeed freestyle, has become the accepted approach to poetic writing.

I guess the lesson that one can take from this article is that if you have a sense that you have creative presence, if you can create vivid imagery with words, if you can stir a reader's emotions with what you write, then share that writing with the world. Everyone starts somewhere and if you're willing to be open-minded, learn from others who write with success, then you will develop skill in this craft while still maintaining your own individual trademark or writing style.

Not that long ago I had no inclination to write for the purpose of publication yet my works have been published extensively online, in a anthology book, and most recently in my own book offering a large collection of my early poems.

In subsequent articles here I will explore the many aspects of poetry writing and how I have come to receive global recognition for my works. It has indeed been an exciting, challenging and rewarding journey...to be continued.

Please take a moment to visit my websites through the links below:

A POET'S VIEW

MY BOOK STOREFRONT: WHERE EAGLES SOAR

JOIN MY FORUM: A POET'S VIEW POETRY FORUM