Creative Writing Journal 7

David Colon

Creative Writing

Professor Miller

3/5/18

What I found right off the bat was that “The Poet’s Companion” was very similar to the “Gotham Writer’s” text. At the subject of writing both authors state that creative writing attempts to answer the question: “Who are we?” (19). I always believed that poems tackled the human condition by explaining significant events in life. But what I found is that similar to stories, poems address the human condition by documenting everyday life: “We find it difficult to believe those subjects, those questions, can be explored and contained in a poem about working at a fast food restaurant, a poem about our best friend, a poem about washing dishes…” (19).

Another interesting facet of poetry was that the author of a poem can address what is not known. Poetry can ask a question. One doesn’t need to develop characters, plot, or setting in order to address a question, but to ask one. What fascinated me was the realization that “When we don’t have direct experience to guide us, we always have our imagination as a bridge to knowledge” (24). I’ve always had the preconceived notion that poetry was simply addressing something known and that’s what I never like about it. I always hated writing poetry because I never believed that I could comment on significant known event in my life. After reading this chapter, I became more interested in poetry because of that unknown aspect. I’ve always loved questioning life, death, and uncertainty and I think that through my poetic writing, I will address these questions. I want to use my imagination and my thoughts as a commentary. I don’t need flowery or unrealistic language, I just need to write from my point of view. I believe that this chapter shaped my preconceived notions of what poetry really is.