2006 poets, where art thou? (1 Viewer)

[666_blessings]

Come on guys! Where are you?

 

[bettyb]

2006 ext II, lost already

we are here, thinking about what a wankfest this looks like and wether we really want to do this. We were given the young writers ext II compilations to read- not at all what i was expecting. My class of 4 were amazed at how these boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings were considered top quality by markers. Im not sure if i can do this- i dont understand what the markers are looking for (?)

 

[666_blessings]

I (and quite a few othe BOS members also) think that some of the stuff that goes into the showcase is postmodern blather. Really, this is not what poetry or creative writing is about. I suggest you go through the major works posted in the EE2 forum (i think the thread's called '2003, 2004 and 2005 major works'). Best of luck with EE2 and if you need any help at all, just give me a holler.

edit: i'm glad we've found the lost colony of poets. =)

 

[super katie]

we are here, thinking about what a wankfest this looks like and wether we really want to do this. We were given the young writers ext II compilations to read- not at all what i was expecting. My class of 4 were amazed at how these boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings were considered top quality by markers. Im not sure if i can do this- i dont understand what the markers are looking for (?)

thanks... always nice to hear that your work is "boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings"

 

[nwatts]

we are here, thinking about what a wankfest this looks like and wether we really want to do this. We were given the young writers ext II compilations to read- not at all what i was expecting. My class of 4 were amazed at how these boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings were considered top quality by markers. Im not sure if i can do this- i dont understand what the markers are looking for (?)

Someone has difficulty reading.

Some of the works in the 04 Showcase are simply outstanding.

 

[illodous]

I (and quite a few othe BOS members also) think that some of the stuff that goes into the showcase is postmodern blather. Really, this is not what poetry or creative writing is about. I suggest you go through the major works posted in the EE2 forum (i think the thread's called '2003, 2004 and 2005 major works'). Best of luck with EE2 and if you need any help at all, just give me a holler.

edit: i'm glad we've found the lost colony of poets. =)

Might I add that, just because you don't get into the Showcase doesn't mean you can't get a good mark. While I do maintain that the Board of Studies have an emphasis on post-modern learning outcomes in the 21st Century learning context, I do disagree that you will be hampered for writing in other genres.

Many of last year's poetry submissions were absolutely brilliant and I don't think it's fair to degrade the hard work and effort that has been put in on their behalf.

It is a better idea to lessen your focus on getting into the Showcase and instead think about what you want to put into your story to make it your own - to make it a passionate piece of your own self-expression. That's what the course was designed for. I hope this message goes out to the new 2006 cohort of Extension 2 students. You're not competing for dominance, you are creating a product of your labour which I guarantee, in your post-HSC months you will reflect upon with pride.

 

[kami]

When you say something on a forum you are not merely making a statement to a computer monitor, you are dealing with people and if out of courtesy you would not dismiss someone or their work as blather or ravings in person I see no reason why the same should not apply here.

While I do not agree with everything the Board has chosen to place in their showcase I do acknowledge the merit and effort of the works in there - I know how hard I worked on mine and know a similar effort went into theirs. So maybe we can be more considerate in the future while still voicing our opinion?

And on that note, I'd like to extend a warm welcome to the poets of 06 and good luck in your endeavours.

 

[paper cup]

we are here, thinking about what a wankfest this looks like and wether we really want to do this. We were given the young writers ext II compilations to read- not at all what i was expecting. My class of 4 were amazed at how these boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings were considered top quality by markers. Im not sure if i can do this- i dont understand what the markers are looking for (?)

oh look, could you do better? I do agree that the markers seemed to jump on anything that was post mo or very obscure but they mark to guidelines and stuff, and a lot of work went into those mws...so....

 

[jhakka]

we are here, thinking about what a wankfest this looks like and wether we really want to do this. We were given the young writers ext II compilations to read- not at all what i was expecting. My class of 4 were amazed at how these boring, self indulging, superlative filled ravings were considered top quality by markers. Im not sure if i can do this- i dont understand what the markers are looking for (?)

I would delete this post, as I think it is quite rude, however there has been some lovely discussion about it, so I guess it can stay.

I will just restate what Evan said, and ask that in future you be more considerate of other people and their works.

Thank you.

 

[666_blessings]

Apologies to anybody who i may have offended. I'll admit that a majority of the things that go into the showcase are absolutely brilliant. At the same time, i do find some of them to be annoying and dull. I'll be sure to choose my words more delicately in the future.

 

[super katie]

Apologies to anybody who i may have offended. I'll admit that a majority of the things that go into the showcase are absolutely brilliant. At the same time, i do find some of them to be annoying and dull. I'll be sure to choose my words more delicately in the future.

Sorry for taking it personally, but having authored the poetry entry in last years showcase, when someone says that the entries are annoying and dull or a "wankfest" as it was earlier described without any specificity, I do take offence. If my work is included in those statements people, feel free to pm me and fucking tell me, its always nice to hear constructive criticism.

 

[666_blessings]

Not yours at all. From what i recall, all the poetry in the 2003 and 2004 showcases were brilliant. It's just some of the short stories that are causing me grief.

 

[black_man]

it's a litte bit saddening at the lack of candidature in the poetry medium this year. I'm sorry Alan, i wasn't able to sort of back you up any sooner. I would encourage any prospective student in EE2 2006 to at least consider poetry as a medium. It seems to be subject to some sort of prejudices, but it really is a very interesting medium to sort of work within and to adapt to your own ends. I'm sure Alan and myself will try and assist any students wishing to pursue poetry next year, and if anyone has any queries with regards to the expectations or the course, I'm sure Alan, Katie or Myself would really really like to help

 

[luscious-llama]

I was considering attempting poetry, I have to write the proposal for next week. I guess I could still choose it

However i'm pretty sure i'm staying with short story.

Who knows? I'm fickle fickle fickle

 

[illodous]

I was considering attempting poetry, I have to write the proposal for next week. I guess I could still choose it

However i'm pretty sure i'm staying with short story.

Who knows? I'm fickle fickle fickle

Think about what medium best suits you. Both poetry and short story give you an immense space for self-expression, but many of those who do short stories tend to fall short of time and suffer frequent writer's blocks. No doubt this also applies to poetry, but you need to consider whether you are more proficent at creating a profound, sustained composition (a large one indeed, 6000 to 8000) or whether you prefer to dapple in the poetic verse - essentially short and sweet.

How to choose? Like I said in the initial statement, think about which medium will give you freedom to explore your ideas, and which medium do you feel more comfortable with. Don't worry too much about the depth and quality of your Proposal at this stage, as you have only begun; your Viva Voce is usually when the ideas begin to shine - and even more so in the Report.
Good luck, and keep reading!

 

[black_man]

Illoduous is very very correct. I think i might have said before that it may ultimately be a case of the mediums choosing the students as opposed to the students choosing the mediums. Engaging in EE2 is an artform, and it will be a product of your desires, influences and perceptions, and I'm sure if you were undecided as to whether poetry or a short story is your more preferable medium, it may be possible to consider both in a proposal, perhaps considering two different majors with a similar theme in both mediums. Also, you can investigate into 'poetic fiction', which is a beautiful style of prose which contains a distinct poetic lyricism and harmony (you might study Michael Ondaatje's "In the Skin of a Lion" or "Anil's Ghost" in the Advanced and Extension 1 courses respectively, these are wonderful examples of poetic fiction. Also, David Malouf and David Guterson also maintain a beautiful form of prose (look for Malouf's "An Imaginary Life" in the In The Wild elective for Advanced, and the old Crime Fiction syllabus of EE1 contained Guterson's "Snow Falling on Cedars"

 

[666_blessings]

Maybe we can lure people to the dark side with free chocolate...

 

[black_man]

perhaps it is not so much a case of no student expressing an interest in poetry for this year, it might take a little while before any student might feel entirely comfortable in a single medium, bear in mind that a number of students in the poetry forum last year did not remain for the entire year, and those of us that remained only joined after a considerable amount of time in the course. I recall i only joined in late november or early december, and upon consultation of the 'mediums' poll that justin arranged, it seems there are very few students in any medium outside the critical response and short story.

 

[super katie]

I remember that there were barely any people on this forum doing poetry for my year. I always just put it down to the fact that poetry is such an intensely personal medium that alot of people have objections to sharing their work with complete strangers. I was also pretty worried about plagiarism, seeing as its alot easier to plagiarise a single poem or a few lines from a poem than it is to seemlessly plagiarise a section of a critical response or short story. But yes I may be completely wrong, its just a guess.

I think chocolate is a good idea to lure people in though... or maybe jubes mmmmm sugar....

 

[Estel]

heh at all this stuff about "the medium chooses you" and poetry being "intensely personal"

I've always believed poetry is 99% showmanship and 1% dartboard... rather like any other medium.