Position:Home>Poetry> Do you ever look at Poems/Stories that you wrote a long time ago and laugh?
Question: Do you ever look at Poems/Stories that you wrote a long time ago and laugh!?
I have a collection of poems, short stories, and essays that I wrote in high school and college!. At the time, I was told by people who read them that they were really good and I should have them published!. I entered a couple of them in poetry contests and got pretty far, never won!. Anyway, I was looking at them the other day and laughed at how silly they seem now!. Some of the poems were about this guy that I had a crush on in high school!. It felt weird reading them now that I am married to someone else, because in them I swore I would love that person the rest of my life, even if I married someone else!.
I want to get back into writing, but I am drawing blanks!. They just don't sound as good now!. Is this common!? How do you overcome the writer's critisism of yourself!?Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
I have done the same thing and was told the same thing!. I want to revise a lot of them but I don't feel that I can!. I can't get back the emotion I had at the time!. So, they will just stay the way they are!.
As for your last questions: It is very common for writers to get blocked and to feel that their writing is not very good!. The best thing to do is just keep writing!. Set aside a specific time during the day to sit down and write!. When you do this, just write, write whatever comes to mind, don't worry about how it sounds!. That is what the revision process is for!. If there is a particular piece that you feel doesn't sound right, but you want to finish it, set it aside for a day or two and then come back to it!. As for the "internal critic," it just takes willpower and determination to turn it off!. I have a lot of trouble silencing my internal critic!. She just won't shut up!! But, as I said before, just write what ever you think of and then go back and take things out or re-word things, that's what the revision process is for!. The first draft of anyone's writing is never a masterpiece!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
omg,yes!!! i thought i was a genius and that someday someone would find everything i wrote and i would be the next emily dickinson!.re-read everything recently!.embarassed as heck!.emily doesnt need to fear my competition!.!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
Yes, all the time!. Amazing though, I still keep them!. Must think I will improve them someday!Www@QuestionHome@Com
I have a small binder that I wrote some (over 30) poetry in when I was in Viet Nam 66 - 67!. I had forgotten all about it!. My wife was cleaning a closet a couple of weekends ago and found it!. She knew nothing about it!. I came home and it was on her computer desk!. She put some in a few emails and sent them to her family and some of her friends!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
OMG!.!.!.!.I hide them way back in the closet and when I am really depressed I get them out and read them! It will cheer me up every time! Of course I can read some I write now and do the same thing! We all do it, no one is perfect, some are good, some are garbage, but for some reason, I keep them all!. I have stacks of books!. Some people rewrite them!. Sometimes I do, not always, some of them are too hopeless to rewrite!. Just write, and write again!. I never think mine are as good as someone says they are, but they are mine, and I am proud of whatever comes out of this brain I was blessed with!.Www@QuestionHome@Com
well!.!.!.I'm 16 & I know maybe I'm still young for serious writing!.!. but I love to write!.!.!.and when I don't wanna talk with anyone I'm writing and writing alone in my room!. All of my poems are sad and about me and my personal life!.!.!.only my best friend reads them!.!. When I’m feeling sad and depressed I read them and sometimes feel very stupid…I don’t really know how to explain but it’s like all my personal life is on that small paper!.!.they are often about love, life and everything which is related with my feelings!.!.so I keep them under my bad!.!. coz they are my everything!.!. I hope someone understands me!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com