I hunkered down at a reasonable time one night, but I didn't sleep at all. A poem, and then another poem, insisted I write them down! Just as my new book is ready to publish and on the very verge of releasing I keep writing new verses ... ten new poems, so far ... and they just won't stop coming!!!
I suppose I should be thankful that at the age of 75 I'm still going strong with writing poetry. However, it sometimes takes a toll on me. I often lose sleep due to a poem insisting on being worked on, fine tuned, and finally finished. I am retired and can usually catch up on some missed sleep, but when I've been up for twentyfour hours straight working on a piece or two it takes longer to recover.
It's, of course, hardest when I have appointments or some other obligations to attend to and am dreamy-eyed drowsy most of that day. But occasionally I'm able to jot down the gist of a poem and lay it down for the night. And yes, I do usually write at night because that's when the juices work best fo me.
For me, it's not just a matter of sitting there writing Free Verse ... AKA, jotting down whatever comes to mind. My craft usually involves being tethered to the poem and working intimately with it in all its facets. It's rather like holding a raw diamond, turning it all around, and painstakingly chiseling it into a fine gem.
Needless to say, I do make sure to get some sleep when I can, but poetry takes precedence over this. I can always find sleep but I can't recover a dismissed poem for sleep. Ain't gonna happen.
I suppose I should be thankful that at the age of 75 I'm still going strong with writing poetry. However, it sometimes takes a toll on me. I often lose sleep due to a poem insisting on being worked on, fine tuned, and finally finished. I am retired and can usually catch up on some missed sleep, but when I've been up for twentyfour hours straight working on a piece or two it takes longer to recover.
It's, of course, hardest when I have appointments or some other obligations to attend to and am dreamy-eyed drowsy most of that day. But occasionally I'm able to jot down the gist of a poem and lay it down for the night. And yes, I do usually write at night because that's when the juices work best fo me.
For me, it's not just a matter of sitting there writing Free Verse ... AKA, jotting down whatever comes to mind. My craft usually involves being tethered to the poem and working intimately with it in all its facets. It's rather like holding a raw diamond, turning it all around, and painstakingly chiseling it into a fine gem.
Needless to say, I do make sure to get some sleep when I can, but poetry takes precedence over this. I can always find sleep but I can't recover a dismissed poem for sleep. Ain't gonna happen.
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