I didn’t date the poem below, so I don’t know when I wrote it. Can’t even be sure what prompted it (other than its suggestion in this book). It’s possible I’ve put it on this site before without using the right tag to find it again. If I don’t remember sharing it, I feel confident no one else will, either!
I was glancing through different places where I can find poems I’ve written, including the “Write The Poem” book, and I realized how often the below phrase, taken from a source on Instagram, is true of my poetry.
“They” say real people from our lives who we write into fiction don’t recognize themselves. I think that’s possibly even truer with poetry. As a form of self-expression, we can generalize in writing things we don’t want a specific person to hear. In my case, it’s usually to express my own pain without causing pain to someone else. Sometimes, however, my lyrics may be coming from one of my characters instead of myself. There are a lot of voices in my head. That can make it tricky for readers.
I’ve known other writers who use words as weapons, most often in essays, but sometimes in their fiction and poems (songs included). How we choose to express our honesty often reveals more about the writer/speaker than the “target.”
ETA: I just learned today is National Poetry Day. Timely.