Happy International Women’s Day! Today, I am happy to host Lidy Wilks, who is on a blog tour promoting her book of poetry, Can You Catch My Flow?. Check below for a chance to win a free copy. You can find Lidy on her blog, Facebook and Twitter.
Is Poetry Dead?
Many a time I see plenty of articles extolling how poetry is dead. How no one reads poetry anymore. And if they do, they’re somehow archaic or some rare creature, a myth from fairy tales made to flesh and blood. And on what are they basing the demise of poetry? Statistics, book sales, etc. But I refuse to believe or take their evidences as truth. Because if I do, then I must also have to believe that myself, you and this world is dead.
Why? Because poetry is a bridge. It is a connector between time, space, gender, race, religion and sexual orientation. To believe that it is dead is to believe that compassion, love, integrity and hope no longer exist. That like poetry, it is a myth. A fairy tale about magical beings who held such virtues. Something that only exists in imagination and not in reality.
In Dead Poets Society, the character John Keating (RIP Robin Williams) said, “We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.”
So is poetry dead? No. In fact the discussion itself should wither and die instead. It’s useless to think prematurely of poetry’s demise. There’s no use to usher it into a grave. Because poetry has always been the seed beneath the ground.
About The Book:
Debut poetry chapbook Can You Catch My Flow? captures the everyday ordinary events of the human condition in poetic snapshots. No matter the walks of life, the reader is sure to find themselves within the lines.
“Lidy’s poetry reveals an understanding that deep meaning can be felt in the details. Her poetry portrays a range of topics from the pressures to conform to societal expectations, friendship, monarch butterflies, partying, insomnia, and the quest for peace…just to name a few. Enjoy!” – Shelah L. Maul
Amazon | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | eCreate Store
If you’d like to receive 1 out of 5 autographed copies of Can You Catch My Flow?, click here.
Thanks for having me today! 😀
It is a pleasure and honor to have you, Lidy. Thank you.
I don’t think Poetry is dead; it’s just lying dormant underground, waiting to spring forward as a stronger and more beautiful flower than before!
I write, but I find poetry a more immediate, powerful and freeing medium. It releases the stuff that I didn’t even know was within me!
Thanks for sharing this.
Keep poetry-ing! 🙂
Yes, I love the immediacy and inner reflection from writing poetry. Every poem written, during the process of writing a poem and reading poetry, changes you in some way. You’re always discovering something.
I certainly don’t think poetry is dead, or that it could ever really die–that’s like saying that life itself would suddenly cease to exist everywhere. Even if the majority of the public isn’t currently reading large volumes of poems, they still run into poetry every day, whether in poems shared on social media, song lyrics, or simply in the beauty of the day. They might not realize it, but it’s there. That’s what’s I like about poetry so much.
Yes, poetry is everywhere. Regardless if people are aware of it or not. Even have an entire month devoted to promoting, celebrating and spreading poetry. It’s on the radio, on our play lists. But we just call it music.
Poetry is alive and well. It’s in nature, in our hearts, in the words we speak everyday. It’s even present in the refusal to recognize it exists and is meaningful. Great post.
Thank you Erneshia. And yes poetry is all around us. It’s in the changing of the seasons, our loved ones and the moments that shape us. Whether we notice it or not.
I’m writing a poetry chapbook now. Like another commenter said, poetry is all around us nowadays but in new mediums. The most successful contemporary poets have their poetry shared as images on social media. People who’ve never picked up a poetry book will read, enjoy, and share these images. Yes, the world is changed. But people still enjoy a good written thing that makes them feel.
Good luck and happy writing with your chapbook. And yes, poetry has taken new mediums thanks to social media. I also share my poems as images on my FB page, Twitter and Instagram.
So nice of you to tell your side of the story. Thank you!
Awesome share!
Would you mind if I translated a small portion of this post in my Russian blog? I would give you full credit for your work.