[New-Poetry] Re: Poetry Blogs

[Jeff Newberry]

David,

I, too, am (or was) a religious journal-keeper.  The blog has taken the
place of my journal because in my  journal, I wrote the kinds of things I
write about in my blog:  poetry, personal observations, random quotations,
religious questions. theodicy, philosophy, & the like.

I have been trying to get myself back on a regular schedule (including
getting back to my journal).  Since my son was born, everything (& I do mean
everything) has gone out the window:  no more leisurely mornings writing in
my office, no more long afternoon at the library or coffee shop reading a
novel or book of poems, no more regularly-scheduled writing.

So, I'm probably a bad case study, given my three-month-old.

Still, I like having a blog because my blog connects me with other writers.
I don't always agree with what they have to say, but I do enjoy hearing
others' words, even if I never comment.  I've even met & cultivated a couple
of friendships via blogs:  Gary McDowell (of the Midamerican Review) &
Steven Schroeder (of Sturgeon's Law) are just a couple of people I've met
via my blog & theirs.  Occasionally, I've written a small review of a poet
that I like & that poet has contacted me.  I met Nicholas Samaras because
this way.

Aside from meeting folks, I enjoy the fact that however small, I have an
audience for my ideas.

Anywho, just my random thoughts.  I'm off to prep for class.

Best,

Jeff Newberry

On 6/11/07, David Graham <grahamd at ripon.edu> wrote:
>
> No blog for me, alas or hooray as the case may be.  It's not that I am not
> filled with lofty and important thoughts about poesie, and surely it would
> be a kindness for me to share more with the world, but the fact is, I am
> selfish.
> I've been keeping an analog writing journal for over 30 years now, and am
> pretty religious about putting words into it daily.  Like many writers I am
> rather ritualistic about my habits:  has to be a 9x6 lined spiral notebook,
> black ink pen.  I am also addicted to the notion--very much an anti-blog
> ethos, I realize--that the essential nature of my journal is its privacy.
> Knowing that no one need ever see a word I write there is one thing that
> keeps me honest, gives me permission to jot down *anything*, no matter how
> disreputable, pointless, or embarrassing.  Without the privacy option, I'm
> afraid I would do more self-censoring and less wild experimentation.
> One thing that's kept me from blogging is that I'm afraid to fix something
> that ain't broke, at least in terms of my own personal workshop.  It's hard
> to see how blogging wouldn't cut down on my journal keeping.  Or worse,
> encourage more self-censorship.
>
> And when I've got some poetical rumination in my journal that I think the
> world needs to know about, well, I can always type it up & post here. . . .
> If I had more hours in the day, I'd probably be tempted to blog in addition
> to journal keeping, but only if it didn't hurt the analog journal.
>
> I'm curious to know from the bloggers among us:  has blogging changed your
> writing habits notably?
>
>
>
> ========================================
> David Graham
> grahamd at ripon.edu
>
> Home Page:
> http://web.mac.com/drjazz/iWeb/Site/About%20Me.html
>
> Poetry Library:
> http://web.mac.com/drjazz/iWeb/Site/DGPoLibrary.html
> ==========================================
>
>
>
> On Jun 8, 2007, at 12:23 PM, Bob Grumman wrote:
>
> A while back, I announced that I was going to write about poetry blogs in
> my Small Press review column.  Since then, I've done a number of them,
> covering some New-Poetry members' blogs--Mike Snider's and Chris Lott's, for
> instance.  I'm working on another installment in which I'll be mentioning
> David Graham's list of blogs, and his Poetry Library.  I want to mention the
> blog I thought you had, too, David--although it looks like you are one of
> the few of us without one.  If you have one, please let me know its URL.
>
> Anyone else who wants to make me aware of a blog, do so.  I can't be
> exhaustive, but I'm trying to cover as many as I can--across the whole range
> of what's going on in American poetry.  The column I'm doing today will be
> about James F.'s, Halvard's, Anny's, Jeff's, Tom Beckett's--and David's, if
> he has one.  Won't, alas, be able to say much about any of them--but
> something.
>
> Thanks, Bob
>
>
>
>
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>


-- 
"Memory believes before knowing remembers.  Believes longer than recollects,
longer than knowing even wonders."
—William Faulkner, Light in August


http://museoffireblog.blogspot.com
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