2012 Val Vallis awards

[Maureen K Clifford]

Well said David - would be hard to argue with that I suspect

[Mal McLean]

Agreed Dave,

I have always sort of thunk that maybe if you don't try a bit of everything at some time and open your mind, then maybe you risk missing something from your poetic soul...maybe.

Any way, everyone should keep up the good work of entering all sorts of comps. That has got to be good for the poet and poetry.

I'm all ready for the Camp Oven this weekend but wouldn't you know it, I have come down with the lurgi and I'm sick as a baited dingo. Head spinning, nose running, dodgy abdomen......I hope I don't add any unintentional sound effects! Rotten antibiotics again! Can't wait for the winter to p.p..pass off.
I'll report on the Camp Oven next week.

Mal

[Rimeriter]

Well said David and very true
Jim.

[Neville Briggs]

Some scholars try to push one form of poetry,
they won’t open their minds and let their thoughts be free.

Interesting opinion put into verse there Dave. So why do so many 'bush poets' just want to stick to only one type of form ?

[manfredvijars]

So why do so many 'bush poets' just want to stick to only one type of form ?

Probably because there is so much scope and variety in the R&M form. Could also be asked why do so many 'free' versers stick so rigidly to a singular form?

[Rimeriter]

It's on again.

[Neville Briggs]

I think I know what you mean Marty, Manfred.

I try and read as widely as I can, I would agree that in some literary circles there is a sort of ' line' that writers are expected to follow if they are accepted. And so many of these appear to be the most obscure; hall of mirrors style of thing, to be sure.
I reckon that any sort of hard line stylistic requirement is death to an art form. I think that has happened to some degree with modernist poetry. It seems in some areas, to have become a sort of secret incantation business, only understood ( or pretended to be understood ) by a small group of the initiated.
And I think it is evident that poetry appearing as modernist or post-modernist obscurantism has driven poetry away from public interest, which is what one would think is the main point of publishing poetry.

But that is not the whole story of contemporary poetry, there are quite a few modern writers of poetry who turn their hand to anything from free verse to sestinas, pantoums, limericks and even limericks and ballads. This can be proved by reference to a number of recent anthologies and public performances which are broadcast by the ABC radio. I have recordings. And there are some modern poets who get a good attendance at public performance.

I think that bush poetry had made a big contribution to bringing poetry back into the public area, but I think that is mainly due to the performance poetry. The written stuff doesn't seem to be matching the success of the performance stuff.
So I venture the suggestion that this might be because performance bush poetry is more flexible and distinctions between it and other forms of performance, such as stand up comedy ,slapsick patter, dramatic monologue and country music, are blurred to some extent.

That's why I think there is room for bush poetry writing to blur the edges with other forms a bit. More chance of relating to more people. Surely we want to be inclusive not exclusive.

And a final note, I think we would be the richer as poetry writers if we understood the reasons why modernist poetry appears the way it does. I think we shouldn't assume that it is merely the product of pretentiousness or a literary version of the emperor's new clothes, as Cole Porter said " it ain't necessarily so "

[Neville Briggs]

Of course Jim, Marty. Passionate people will discuss till the cows come home

[Rimeriter]

"onya" Neville.
As has been said endlessly - we are all entitled to our own views.

I'm happy to settle for that view.
"Cheers" everyone.
Jim.

[Mal McLean]

Well put Nev. Really well thought out.

I remember reading on a UK website that ambitious poets should perhaps engage in the contemporary until they have established themselves and then they can write and perform whatever they want once they"make" it. Blurring the edges sounds like a plan but if we can cross the divide I suspect that would have to be done on an individual basis. Who knows?

Perhaps we should found a new movement........say,..... contemporary neo-post modernist classical traditionalism.......ah, stuff it...lets just write poetry whatever that might be.

All the best

Mal