“unfailing” & other writing ramblings

sjcstidham — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:34:19 +0000

It’s been since May 28th since I submitted work to the journals I talked about before, and I have yet to hear from them. Response time for these places can sometimes be up to a couple of months, so I’m not really worried. To tell you the truth, some days I completely forget I’m waiting for my rejection e-mails and other days I wonder when I’ll hear back. I’m fully prepared for the rejection, I’d just really like to see what they have to say so I can revise my work and write new stuff in a better fashion. But until then…

Today I am going to start my 4th short story (working at that goal I spoke of) and hopefully get somewhere. I want to outline the whole story before starting to write this time–I mean outline down to the detail so that I know what to write instead of struggling with a plot halfway through. I typically say “ok, this story will be about this” and then start writing, but sometimes I write myself into a corner and I have no idea to get to the place I originally wanted to go. So this time I’m going to try an outline. And I am going to tell myself it’s not complete crap once it’s written… since that’s how I usually feel after I’ve read one of my own stories.

While I work on getting some new stuff written, here’s a poem I wrote not that long ago. The language could be more succinct, more tight… but I often find that wordiness is my problem. And, funny enough, my poetry is the one place I use the least amount of words. Any suggestions on this poem are welcomed with open arms.

unfailing

a silk shirt on a wire hanger
never stays in place

roses growing in the garden
always get cut down

lone shoe in the road
never finds a mate

stop signs in the desert
always go unnoticed

a woman crying in a cafe
never misses a stare

the vagrant on the corner
always has an empty cup

your whisperings in the night
never can be believed

my backbone in your presence
always seems to disappear

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Poetry: What I Recently Submitted, Part I

sjcstidham — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 00:51:11 +0000

Until my last semester of college, I had never written a poem written just one poem–it was a poem to my husband about putting the toilet seat down. But I took a poetry writing class because it was four units, which brought me perfectly to the 120 unit mark I needed to graduate. I figured I’d be writing a lot of lovey-dovey crap (it seems to be the most available topic) and hating all of it. BUT… I ended up writing only a few love poems and the rest was completely different. And the best part is that I enjoyed it and I will continue to write poetry while I work on my fiction stories. I feel like poetry keeps my language tight because I’m always trying to say a lot in only a few words. My stories sometimes need that, too.

Anyway, after the semester ended I kept writing poetry and submitting my work to journals, in hopes to be able to have “published” added to my resume because, well, it just never hurts. I fully expect to be turned down a hundred times before just one of my poems will eventually be accepted but to be quite honest, I’m looking forward to the rejection. First, I’m realistic and know my poems aren’t the best. Granted, they’re good but not great–and they aren’t all “leave everything unsaid” and “discover yourself” type of poems, which journals often like. Second, the rejection letters will probably have a lot of valuable suggestions and/or advice in them, which I desperately need. My husband isn’t much of a reader, and he isn’t into poetry, and I hate to always bother my busy friends to read every word I write. So some secondary feedback would be lovely.

I’ve only submitted to two journals–Plum Ruby Review and Fail Better–but this is just my jumping off point. I’d like to hear back from these places to make sure I’m submitting properly (which I believe I am). The poems I submitted are nearly the same and one of the poems I’ve used in class for a presentation and workshop before, so I’m getting pretty tired of it.

That Guy is a persona poem

That Guy

Dude, did I tell you I played football in high school?
Yeah, I was like, totally the star!
Dude, and all the chicks wanted me
And I banged ‘em out in my car!

Man, have I ever told you how drunk I was in college?
Yeah, I drank beer every frickin’ day!
Man, and I never even went to my classes
And I was like, NO work and ALL play!

Guy, do you know that I lift weights?
Yeah, I like am totally the strongest!
Guy, and I jog with my buddies every day,
And I like, totally last the longest!

Bud, isn’t my job the frickin’ best?
Yeah, I’m like checkin’ out the receptionists rack!
Bud, the girls at my work are so smokin’
And dude, you know I’m layin’ down the mack!

Dawg, did you see the 22s on my truck?
Yeah, I spent a couple G’s on them!
Dawg, did you hear my new system,
And how loud I’m bumpin’ Eminem!
Bro, have I ever told you how tight I am?
Yeah, I sag my pants and smoke cause I’m cool.
Bro, if you see my lady have her hit me up
And she can tell me why she thinks I’m a tool.

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Shelby Stidham » Poetry

“unfailing” & other writing ramblings

Poetry: What I Recently Submitted, Part I