Is a poem the sum of calculated silence?

Thinking Cage. Feeling spontaneity and spaces between words, translating as “silence.”



Of food? Leftovers are calculated spontaneity. Spaces between celebrate the largess and flavor of small dishes. Over which, a fine conversation is largely memory; what the spoken pays homage to silence.

Is a poem inherently a film?

The visual inseparable from word. Visa versa. Page animated or performance stilled, image & word in self-induced trajectory. Catch & release.




Think fish --wild. Farm-raised, I think of fruit. Ideally, never underweight. Patience & appreciation for visual ripening.

In which ways are poems unfaithful?

As love affairs with the seasonal – ripe and necessary. Go write/be with that poem about pomegranate or persimmon. Pears will understand and hold no malice for your action.



Isn’t it comforting to know that you can get a good lemon year-round.

Which poems are most like persimmons?

Every mark of language welcomes the seasonal and derives its breath from. Graft the line accordingly. Thus, your poems might be picked. Thus, the contour and sweetness or distance from, savored.




Thank the peach; anticipate the fuyu.

Does a manuscript of poetry usually begin as a project?

Are most manuscripts, projects completed? A task. Something seen through to the end. Whatever does the end mean in a poem? With a manuscript.



Food seen as a project is the meal.

Can a poem be written devoid of audience?

No. Always, someone/something listens. People & pebble. Sometimes, an audience of one – the poet.



I’ve heard it said, at minimum a meal requires one eater. Food’s audience, if you will.

Is word count a poetic form?

Yes. The obvious one, I don’t subscribe to in English -- haiku 5-7-5. So, that doesn’t satisfy the question. There are journals with word limits: CLWN WR (Bob Heman), Right Hand Pointing (Dale Wisely), Teeny Tiny (www.teenytiny.org, Amanda Laughtland) leap to mind. Others, of course. Recently, I discovered Benjamin C. Krause, (editor of twenty20journal) who created quincouplets (http://quincouplets.com). Have a look see.

Regarding chapbook publishers with exact word count, check out my posting 9/17/10. Dan Waber 500 Favourite Words chapbookpublisher.com.

I’m working on poems of 36 words. We’ll see if it ends up as an interesting but shelved exercise or a box worth opening 35 times.



Regarding food, I recall several cookbooks which limit ingredients, say no more than 5 or 7. Remember, a modest number of leftovers makes a meal unexpected & delicious. Think, small dishes to accompany small poems. Yup!