JohnBoddie
11-14-2001, 02:58 PM
In a recent thread in General, garyg made an observation that captures the essence of the comments that reviewers in that section should offer:
"If you liked the poem, at least make the effort to think of at least one specific aspect of the poem that worked for you and explain why you think it was effective."
This is really good advice, and it's not difficult to put into practice. The thing you like could be an image, or a clever rhyme, or the overall tone and phrasing. It could even be the use of an unusual word that seems perfect for what is being said. It's not necessary to be super-detailed in your comments.
What is necessary is to say more than "I really liked this" or "I really understand what you're saying" or "I liked how you said this."
Of course, you can use any of those phrases or others, but if you liked the poem, take the effort to help the author by saying why you liked it. If someone was commenting on one of your poems and said they thought it was wonderful, wouldn't you want to know what it was that they thought was special?
Even though comment in General should strive to be supportive, reviewers can provide important information to the author when they read poetry that confuses them.
"I didn't understand your poem. I got confused when you jumped from the lion to the oceans."
This is good information for the author. It doesn't say that it was a bad poem. It simply tells the author where you got confused. The author can look at the poem, understand what might have confused you, and then can change the poem to reduce the confusion if he or she wants to do so.
If you are commenting in General, there are a couple of situations where it's probably best not to comment.
1. If the subject or its presentation in the poem is something you find repulsive, it's better to simply keep quiet and let the poem fall off the screen. The alternative is an ugly little flame war that interrupts everyone else's pleasure.
2. If the author hasn't taken the time to get the spelling or grammar correct, there's no point in commenting because the author has already shown that improvement isn't one of his or her goals.
The General Poetry section exists so that authors who want to can share their work without running into a storm of negative critcism.
A quick survey shows that over 60 percent of the comments are variations on "I liked this."
Come on people, If you have the energy to write "I liked this", how much more effort does it take to add another sentence and tell the author what it was in the poem that you particularly liked?
JB
"If you liked the poem, at least make the effort to think of at least one specific aspect of the poem that worked for you and explain why you think it was effective."
This is really good advice, and it's not difficult to put into practice. The thing you like could be an image, or a clever rhyme, or the overall tone and phrasing. It could even be the use of an unusual word that seems perfect for what is being said. It's not necessary to be super-detailed in your comments.
What is necessary is to say more than "I really liked this" or "I really understand what you're saying" or "I liked how you said this."
Of course, you can use any of those phrases or others, but if you liked the poem, take the effort to help the author by saying why you liked it. If someone was commenting on one of your poems and said they thought it was wonderful, wouldn't you want to know what it was that they thought was special?
Even though comment in General should strive to be supportive, reviewers can provide important information to the author when they read poetry that confuses them.
"I didn't understand your poem. I got confused when you jumped from the lion to the oceans."
This is good information for the author. It doesn't say that it was a bad poem. It simply tells the author where you got confused. The author can look at the poem, understand what might have confused you, and then can change the poem to reduce the confusion if he or she wants to do so.
If you are commenting in General, there are a couple of situations where it's probably best not to comment.
1. If the subject or its presentation in the poem is something you find repulsive, it's better to simply keep quiet and let the poem fall off the screen. The alternative is an ugly little flame war that interrupts everyone else's pleasure.
2. If the author hasn't taken the time to get the spelling or grammar correct, there's no point in commenting because the author has already shown that improvement isn't one of his or her goals.
The General Poetry section exists so that authors who want to can share their work without running into a storm of negative critcism.
A quick survey shows that over 60 percent of the comments are variations on "I liked this."
Come on people, If you have the energy to write "I liked this", how much more effort does it take to add another sentence and tell the author what it was in the poem that you particularly liked?
JB