Hello & Welcome! - The Creative Process

Hello there! This is the first proper blog post on this site, and it seemed a good idea to talk a little bit about my 'creative process' (if I can call it that). In particular, let's think about poetry.

Poetry is more than just words that rhyme. It is a way of expressing feeling, emotion - humanity, in a way. It is equally capable of making us cry as of making us laugh. Sometimes it is just plain fun. For me, writing poetry normally begins in one of two ways. Either a) I come across or think of a phrase that sounds good and then build something around it, or b) I feel, hear or smell something that I am drawn to express in writing.

The first method often plays into the second. If I enjoy a poem then that makes it worth writing, and part of my enjoyment comes from the rhythm of speech invoked by good text. 'Good', in this context and more broadly, can mean different things for different people. For this piece, I am taking it to mean something like 'worthwhile' or 'enjoyable'; in other words, it is not solely a waste of space, be it digital or vocal space.

Recently, I wrote a poem about a spring evening. I plan to post it on this site. It is a prime example of both the processes above in action. In it, there is reference to a phrase & verse from JRR Tolkien that sounds 'good', rhythmic and thought-provoking. It stirs a feeling. Also, my poem was inspired by the sensations I encountered when on a walk in a spring evening. There was a slightly chilly air, a newly-raised fence smelled fresh and the birds were flying about and singing. The output of all of this, along with commentary on our current societal situation, was a poem, which I called A Springtime Evening Walk. This overview of my 'process' might be helpful to some of you. I hope you enjoy the poetry and other outputs on this site.

May you ever seek the good. I sincerely hope you find it.

Thanks for visiting,

Jeff