What are some of the qualities you look for in a great poem?
Qualities I look for are: 1) good structured lines that show the author was at least attempting to use some techniques of the craft and not just finger painting. Not to say finger painting is bad–not at all; I encourage it for all before they start buying brushes and start trying to paint in between the lines. But I can’t look at every beginners finger painting as if it were done by one of my children. 2) Vivid imagery 3) Sound–sometimes I don’t even care what the poem says as long as it’s musical. And by that I mean strictly a bunch of phonemes in a row that just sound cool. Most of the poems (over 50%) don’t compare to that standard; they’re like finger paintings. Thing is Y!A is like a fridgerator door. The value of this forum is that there is something for everybody. If you want to display your latest finger painting that you just had to do or else you would die–ask about it. If you want a serious critigue or need real help–ask, there are just as many qualified poets out there
