Poetry

 -- Quote of the Day -- 

“I have had better luck in doing a book signing if it is for a reader-specific group as opposed to the general open-to-the-public book signing. …If you have a general open-to-the-public book signing you get a lot of lookie-loos who what to have their photos taken with the author but they won’t buy the book. …With a reader-specific group you would be doing it for people who have an interest in what you write. …If you can avoid general open-to-the-public book signing you get a lot of lookie-loos who what to have their photos taken with the author… I have to travel 2-3 hours or more to be in an area where there are enough people for doing a book signing so I do try to limit it to a group that is actually interested in reading mysteries.”

~ Elizabeth Eagan Cox

http://tobtr.com/s/5058479

-- Poetry --

I WILL PREVAIL

 

There’s knowledge in abundance, all around.

Seems to be easily tripped over and found.

Yet just can’t seem to get enough:

To get anywhere seems so very tough.

Just have to reach out and grab it

Have to make positive attitude a habit.

Wanna do so very much

Just desire the winner’s touch.

So very impatient in a hurry,

And let myself too often worry.

Suppose, in time, it will all come.

Pray it happens, before my time has gone.

Life’s crazy humour of surprise,

Teaching me to fairly compromise.

Try to do the best I can,

And keep from following every day men.

Will do whatever I think is best

And if I fail, will I still pass the test?

My goal is to love and to learn,

To accomplish what I now yearn,

To leave my footprints on life’s crazy trail,

And against all else, I will prevail.

- This poem was written at the brink of when I was beginning to feel empowered; I was completing the university level of grade 12 and taking hospitality management courses while thinking about a career in biology/ecology. At this moment I was likely around 24 years of age.

 

Poetry was the beginning of my writing career, but it also provided a way for me to release the coveted emotions that I could not, would not release. You see, I could not share myself really with others; I didn’t know myself, so how could others ever really know me? Being alone much of my childhood and youth, I learned from observing and poetry became a way of recording and analyzing my interpretations of what I saw. Writing poetry allowed me to understand the past, stages of angst or strife, and how I fit into this world.

I grew up in an abusive, broken home with no fixed address and because of this I had a lot of rage, self-hate and confusion going on in my mind. The only thing that kept me sane and functioning in society was the power of poetry. I would write and write, and then burn it so that no one would ever know. Over time though I began to keep some of the bits of torn paper, scraps of napkins… these were kept in boxes or in binders. The first time a visitor found and read one of these, well - that really upset me, but their response actually became a validation of the writing. Eventually I was able to show them to others who would then encourage me to enter contests and query publications. After winning a few awards, I was prompted by readers to tell my story with a book.

When I began the developing the manuscript for Towards Understanding (1^st edition, paperback Nov. 2005), I was intimidated by the sheer mass of work that needed to be gone through. In fact, there were over 300 poems written on loose-leaf pages – some were definitely not fit for others to see and were easily eliminated, others needed some tweaking. *Note: A revised, 3rd edition is now available with 125 poems.

Trepidation set in once the release date was announced, though. The scariest notion is that we cannot predict how any one reader will interpret our work the way it was meant. Poetry is an internal craft, a private craft of therapy and recordings of observations on life. Yet, this genre also requires a slightly different marketing approach – like reading the poems on live radio, in front of groups of people, and talk about the past. This required some practice, and repetition certainly built confidence over time – but what inspires me to continue promoting this book is hearing how much my story helps others.

The process of writing poetry, for me, is a matter of inspiration. I may not write for months and months – when all of a sudden a poem rises out off my chest and I can hardly get the pen to move fast enough to record the phrases in time. It is an amazing process – they just seem to come out all at once. The thoughts are so sudden and violent that I am often left with just snippets of what I heard in my head, but I keep them anyway.

I have returned to poetry time and time again – pouring out the grief from losing beloved pets, expressing thoughts on society, changing relationships, and dealing with my parents’ suicide. I’ve learned to use poetry to express humor, love and joy as well. This art-form of expression has been one of the greatest joys in my life - to play with words, painting with them, using new and old styles, techniques and rhythmic patterns.

Find Dave and Lillian Brummet, excerpts from their books, their radio program, blog, and more at: http://brummet.ca * Support the Brummets by telling your friends, clicking those social networking buttons, or visiting the Brummet's Store - and help raise funds for charity as well!