Ph: Poetry Writing: Open Letter #a. Poem by Brian Johnston

Ph: Poetry Writing: Open Letter #a.

(A collaborative discussion of Poem Hunter, Poetry Writing, and Intention by Brian Johnston and Dr. Tapan Kumar Pradhan)


Letter 1:
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From: Brian Johnston
To: Dr Tapan Kumar Pradhan
Date-Time: 1/27/2014 1: 06: 00 PM (GMT -6: 00)
Subject: Re: Re: Part 2 of viewing 'popularity listings'

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There is an old English saying 'There are statistics' (meaning those you agree with) 'and damn statistics' (meaning those that you dislike) ! 'Popularity' in the PH vernacular is not tied in any way to the quality or even to the 'ratings' that others give us, it simply means that out of all the poets on the site there are more visitors on your site per day from different computers (the assumption is that this means different people) than for any other poet on average. So I think it is a compliment of a sort, but certainly not an assurance that either of us is going to win a Nobel Prize. Ha! And yes the number of points you receive changes daily so statistics alone almost guarantee that someday your visitors will drop and someone else's will surge and on that day you will of course not be the 'Most Popular Poet in the World' meaning only in reality the most popular poet on the PH web site. Although it is certainly not a gold standard for quality, I do not think it is meaningless however.

I am petitioning PH to improve their rating system in a way that uses a distribution graph of the number of votes for a poem vs the ratings the poem gets. In this way people who actively dislike a poem could do so in a democratic and anonymous way without effecting the fact that many people like the poem and rate it highly. The full range of reader approval could be expressed in this way. As a programmer with many years of experience I believe it would be fairly easy for PH to implement my idea on their site. I think it would make the rating system a valuable resource to both member poets and to visitors as well.

Yes I agree, to have a single person genuinely moved by one of my poems (even if it is a high school girl with an absurd crush) is much more meaningful to me than 5 anonymous 10's on PoemHunter. I have only gotten one 'my most favorite poem award' so far but I have to admit that did feel special.

Anyhow I get that you are a good person, and a good poet. I think it likely that over time we will become good friends. At least I know I am open to that.
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Letter 2.
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From:
Dr Tapan Kumar Pradhan (Bhubaneswar India; Male; 42)
To: Brian Johnston
Date Time: 2/8/2014 8: 10: 00 AM (GMT -6: 00)
Subject: Re: Understanding the meaning of 'popularity listings'
Dear Brian

(Of course in our culture it is very awkward to address someone quite elder to you by the first name. Even if my own brother is elder to me by a few minutes, I cannot or won't call him by first name! ! ....but each culture has its own style, and although you are an honourable 71, you can be just Brian for me.)

For a few days I watched this Popularity List and saw how the numbers go up and down. It is really addictive. I watched it again and again, although I know it is quite a meaningless list of quite very ordinary poets. Being in that list does not bring any distinction or happiness to you. And so I stopped watching it.

I read about 10-12 of your poems. They are good and well-written - but they are not very great either. What I like about your poetry is (1) Sincerity (2) Hard work (3) Neatness of composition and (4) Respect and awareness to various poetic traditions - in that order.

But the poems do not do justice to your talent level and hard work. I feel, with your capability and dedication, you can compose poems which are even 10 times better than what you have achieved till now! !

Having analysed a few of your poems, this is what I observe: -

There is a time lag between the time the idea of a poem first enters the mind and the time it comes out as a final product - like (1) Observation / feeling about something (2) Idea taking root in the unconscious (3) Inter-play between that unconscious idea and your day to day mental inputs from other observations (4) Decision to convert your ideas into a poem (5) Ideas further getting root in the sub-conscious (6) First draft of the poem through conscious effort (7) Revision of the poem by drawing resources from the sub-conscious etc & etc...until the product comes out.

What I feel that, your poetry is mostly driven by your conscious effort. You can draw more strength and unlimited resources by relying more on your sub-conscious.

This can be done in many ways (of course you know all of this, being a veteran yourself! !)

(1) Trying to write down the poem the Moment the idea first comes - the music and rhythm will be captured. If you write much later, it will be more of a conscious effort

(2) Writing poetry just before going to bed and revising the first thing upon getting up

(3) Writing down all your thoughts (howsoever banal they may seem! !) without consciously editing them, and later forming them into creative patterns

(4) While editing poem, I feel, we should be ruthless while clearing away the dross (the verbose excess) , but the basic central idea/ rhythm/ cadence/ gut-feel etc should not be edited.

But there is no set rule for any poet. Each poet follows his/her own unchartered territory. In God's creation there is no dearth of creativity. Billions of rhythms and formats are hidden in the universe - all waiting for Free Download! !

As for myself, I am losing the natural ease with which I was composing long ago as a child. With office workload and myriad family obligation, my mind is rather losing its natural unfettered character. I am seriously thinking of taking a year-long vacation to become a child again and to discover poetry afresh....

For me poetry is all about Freedom. I should be able to write with gay abandon. My poem should make me feel happy, before it can make others happy. I have to re-invent myself. I have to let go. I want to become a child in my heart - although my hairs are all getting white. That is why I write poetry - to attain total freedom within the space of my own consciousness....

Hope I shall be able to meet you someday in person.
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Letter 3.
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From: Brian Johnston
To: Dr Tapan Kumar Pradhan
Date-Time: 2/8/2014 12: 39: 00 PM (GMT -6: 00)
Subject: Your letter does me great honor...

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It would be my pleasure to meet you too someday God willing. There are so many things I want to talk to you about. Start off slow Brian!
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'But the poems do not do justice to your talent level and hard work. I feel, with your capability and dedication, you can compose poems which are even 10 times better than what you have achieved till now! ! ' =======
From you lips to God's ear! How I long for that kind of ability (and maturity) , not for the fame that might follow, but like in the Beatle's song, 'take a sad song and make it better! My soul's desire is to leave the world a little better than I found it, or in the words of my own poem, 'Separation', 'to bring comfort to Spring's foal and help it to survive.'

My first real success with my poetry was an 'Honorable Mention' in an Oklahoma State Poetry Contest. The judges had written on my poem (called 'Venice' if you want to check it out) 'Most Polished Poem.' Although I was taking graduate courses in poetry in the English Dept. at the time (while I working on my Master's Degree in Physics) I understood the 'coded message' even then, 'Shows potential. You work hard but you channel feelings poorly.' I had written maybe 40 poems over the course of my life at the time I discovered Poemhunter. At that time I was watching maybe 50 hours of TV a week. Since discovering Poemhunter and beginning to connect with people who share this passion, I am watching almost no TV at all. I feel like there is an opportunity to reinvent myself all over again, that I have a new lease on life and even new love.
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'I read about 10-12 of your poems. They are good and well-written - but they are not very great either. What I like about your poetry is (1) Sincerity (2) Hard work (3) Neatness of composition and (4) Respect and awareness to various poetic traditions - in that order.' ====================
Your description of my poetry is really a description of my life as well. As both a farmer and a computer programmer I enjoy the feeling of steady progress toward a goal, the farmer can look at the newly plowed field (see no weeds) and know that his work was valuable, the programmer can look back on blocks of code that steadily build on each other to create a logical edifice that feels so much bigger than his own intellect, the power of logic linking it all together into an almost incomprehensible whole that seems almost to breathe (have a life of its own) . Wasn't it Michelangelo who struck his newly finished statue of 'David' or 'Moses' I think with his mallet on the knee and exclaimed 'Breathe! ' or 'Move! ' I too, with my limited talent, have felt that ecstasy of creating something bigger than myself. It truly is a feeling akin to finding oneself in the presence of God! (See 'One Man's Miracle')

Feeling uncomfortable with my own feelings has long plagued me. I was resistant to sharing either my poems or short stories for years because I felt that they revealed too much about me, that opening up more would expose me to slings and arrows of those who would do me harm, and in my experience there are many who would do so. Any hints for putting that behind me? Clearly that is a core issue for me.
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Thanks again for your amazing letter. I will comment more later. I want to give myself time to take it in even more deeply and think about my response to you so far before I risk more. Would it be a violation of trust for me to share your letter with other poet friends? I will not do so without your permission.
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Letter 4.
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From: Dr Tapan Kumar Pradhan (Bhubaneswar India; Male; 42)
To: Brian Johnston
Date Time: 2/9/2014 10: 52: 00 AM (GMT -6: 00)
Subject: Re: Your letter does me great honor...

Please share my letter with everybody. I am a public person and do not believe in a secret personal life. I do not mind even if all the love letters I wrote in my youth get openly circulated.

You have all the ingredients for creating great poetry. The only thing you are missing is Total Freedom of Spirit. That freedom nobody can give you. You have to fetch it from within! ! !

Definitely we are going to meet one day.
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POET'S NOTES ABOUT THE POEM
Brian Johnston
February 19,2014

If you would like to give this poem a rating, please do so in a comment that is separate from your regular comment if you leave one. Many poets, including myself, have been experiencing visits from hard to identify PH members who like to damage other's poem's ratings with illegal multiple votes of 1.0 and make a mockery out of normal voting. You voting in a comment field helps me to protect your rating of my poem which they wish to destroy. I know that this is a bit of extra work for you, but believe me it is appreciated.

Poet's Notes:
I am very interested in finding ways for various poets to collaborate together to create new works of different kinds that collectively might have even greater impact than the individual components published separately. Stay tuned for what I hope will bring a new vitality to this site, shared poems published multiple times on each contributing poet's site at the same time. The hope is that this will both enhance content and also advertise new poets finding friends among more established poets which might serve to hasten their discovery among visitors to the site.
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