ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

I often think about how to get poetic inspiration.

From stories? I've only got so many stories, and not being an experienced bushie, I haven't got the store of bush lore that some can draw on.
I just have to try and find the extra-ordinary in the ordinary.

From reading other poetry. Certainly. I think that this is a daily dose that needs to be taken, come what may, to develop one's senses to the rhythms and colours of poetic language.

From reading instructions on poetry technique from poetry teachers. I got enough of that stuff to keep me going for some time.

From just sitting down and getting on with the job of writing, hoping something will emerge on the page. I think that is important. The famous French painter, Corot, told his students that the great secret of artistic inspiration was " take up the brush and begin "

I find one of the best inspirations for me is listening to music. Real music that is.
Last night I heard a performance by the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra playing Beethoven's Symphony No. 7. It's a wonderful piece of music and this orchestra played it with a verve that I have never heard before. It was Beethoven does Riverdance !

Why should this music inspire, because Beethoven, who was a master technician in the "proper rules " of music, bent the rules to snapping point to get the utmost expressiveness, he took something fairly ordinary; Scottish Folk songs and Scottish reels and turned them into a classical symphonic work of genius. He made something that had never been made before.
When the orchestra sounded the last notes of the symphony the audience burst into applause and cheers, such as you might hear at a football match. Anybody in that hall would have been unable to resist cheering I'm sure, such was the power of Beethoven's passionate composition.

It's rousing stuff. Unfortunately , my lack of ability and knowledge is a bit of a handicap, I'm no Beethoven, Robert Frost, or Henry Lawson.

Ya gotta have a dream though.

'onya,
never stop tryin' mate.

Thanks Jim. All the best for New Year.

I think you sell yourself short, Neville. If you tell yourself you are no Robert Frost, it's as though you have cut one of your own hands off before you even begin. I'm sure there are things all the great masters could do that you couldn't, but there are sure to be things - excellent things - that only Neville Briggs can do. If you're feeling a bit as though you have peaked, why not try writing something as 'un-Neville' as you can possibly imagine?

Thanks for the kind words Stephen.

That's a very intriguing suggestion I'll give that some thought. The mind boggles.

It's a hard thing to be unlike yourself. One of the little amusments I do when in the car listening to the radio ( ABC Classic FM of course ) is to try and pick the name of the composer as I listen to a piece and see if I am right when the name is announced at the end of the piece. I am usually right, because no matter how inventive and varied these composers works are, Beethoven could never be un-Beethoven, Mozart could never be un-Mozart etc etc.
Was C.J. Dennis ever un-C.J.Dennis, or Henry Lawson ever un-Henry Lawson, hmmm very interesting. Could be


Interesting project to be un-self, I'll work on that. That's a good suggestion for a poetry workshop.

G'day Neville,

In a way I agree with the thought that... you just take up the pen. In my case I prefer pencil (more easily erased) I think it saves a lot of paper. I have found a lot of inspiration and 'thought clearing' in going for a walk. To overcome the problem of stopping every few minutes to write down your thoughts I have a recorder. They come very small and tapeless these days. Often nothing comes from the 'notes' I record but occasionally I come up with just one line... but a good one. I have found inspiration for whole poems in the birds or places I walk past. The poem 'Rain' was almost completely written on one single walk. It has been one of my more successful ones. I haven't been walking for a long time. I'll have to start. I might just get the poetry juices flowing again as well as get some fitness back. (not to mention losing some of the excess I am currently wearing round my middle) If I do I will have you to thank. I'm off right away even if I only make it round the block!

Never could understand how people get so concerned about not being inspired, The idea that I would feel that I had to write something just because I had not for a while would take all the enjoyment out of it !

I do however love being given the challange to write something specific for say a function or a birthday or perhaps a political comment but other then that I have a store of started and unfinished pieces that I might visit from time to time and may on occassion add one line or only a word.

I can go for months and not write or even touch on anything but that does not concern me as I also enjoy seeing others putting pen to paper and that alone can give some inspiration I surpose.


Bob

Yes Bob, I too draw from a large 'pot' of previously written pieces, both complete and unfinished.

During my earlier Aussie travelling years , opportunities just belted me around the ears.
(make that mostly eyes)
Athough many yarns with Outback Jack the Tall Tale Teller were grist for the mill.

One of my four major collections gather together under - Bootin' About The Bush.

So findin' reasons to rhyme were enjoyable.

Jim.
the backward poet who writes inverse.

Zondrae, You've made my day, to think that I have encouraged someone to 'ave a go
I'm ecstatic. Much better than being a discouragement

I think Bob, it's not really that you have to write something because you haven't for a while. I agree with you there.
If a person is passionate about poetry and they haven't written for a while, I think there is this persistent urge to write, not based on lack of ideas, but based on a sort of vague notion that you want to say something but sometimes can't quite think of the words to say it, so it starts to nag at you and you get very uncomfortable if you can't get it out.

For me anyway, it's not just a matter of telling the story, if that's what it is, versifiers can can do that anytime. But saying it in the most well chosen and active words, making a poem, that is the inspiration that is hard to realise sometimes.

It's a bit like eating, you don't eat because you haven't done so for a while, you eat because you're hungry. Your hunger drives you to it and won't let you keep putting it off.

As you can see, Neville, even writing about poetic inspiration can sometimes provoke poetic inspiration. But be careful...it's a strange place out there in un-land!

I first went all un-C. J.,
un-Banjo-like as well,
and then I went un-Lawson,
but found it hard to tell
just where this crazy unning
had taken poor old me…
for when I checked the landscape
there wasn’t much to see!

Cheers
David