I really want to practice being able to talk about one simple moment or a simple event and make in something beautiful instead of trying to fit an entire novel into a 10 page poem which is what a lot of my muse work seems to be.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Cutting the Fat
I have a million different muse writes that 5 pages long each and I really have to cut the fat but I find it really hard to get rid of some of the stuff that I came up with. I could take just two lines from my muse work and make it another page of poem. I think my biggest problem is sometimes finding the unique language and the ramble that may sound cool but says absolutely nothing.
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I agree! Cutting the fat is the hardest part of revision. Its hard taking away something you initially found important. But taking out the unnecessary stuff makes a poem better than what it was.
ReplyDeleteI agree that 'cutting the fat' is a very important part of poetry revision, especially in situations where, like you said, "the unique language and ramble that may sound cool, but says absolutely nothing." You always want to be able to say something.
ReplyDeleteWith that said, if your muse is giving you a lot of material, maybe you should experiment with some different forms of writing. Consider trying some prose poetry, or long narrative poetry, or pile a bunch of imagery into one moment. As long as your details have purpose, they can add to your poetry. Remember, there's no page limit to poetry, or any written works!
In my opinion, a lot of sorting through muse writing is figuring out what details and images are valuable, and what meaning they have for you.