Challenge for November 12, 2007:

Write a decent sized children's myth about Radion the mythical __________

Cool. I understand about the reason for the lines, but I think it's still kind of awkward. Like I said, in your shoes I would break the longer lines up. It doesn't hamper the meaning to do this either. But like I said, I don't follow poetry much. So take my comments lightly. I'm not saying your poem is bad by any means. Sorry, I feel awkward myself, talking about poems.
DEVILinIRON

Don't worry about it. Any criticism is good criticism. You are right, it would be logical to break up the poem into smaller, easier digested bits, however, the entire way a poem is meant to be setup is through the eyes of the poet. He/she is to setup it in the way that will make their point in whatever way they wish it to be said. It just so happens that in the minor detail to many that is visual format seems much more appealing to the poet than other one's that could have been chosen in this situation.

What you must remember is that a poem is not an essay, it's not formal and it can be very powerful by simply being awkward. Now I am not saying that all poems are beautiful (I've written some pretty lousy ones), but the genius behind the poem is the st.yle in which you write. Some will write perfectly, others won't - we as writers just need to hope that we drive our point home in the minds of as many readers as we possibly can.

I know that many of you are avid quotists (Thats quote with an ist on the end of it, very fancy I know) and love sharing your quotes. The point of this topic is to give you all a place to share your quotes as well as create a bank of which I can pull a quote of the week or two from.

When you post you can either post a quote with or without a reflection on its meaning and/or you can reflect on another's quote. Think of it as dozens of quotes a week!

I would like every quote posted to be numbered, so prior to posting your quotes you should check the previous post. If you do not number a quote or two, I will edit your post and add the numbers in. If you consistently do it, then perhaps it may cost you a little something something (if you know what I mean).

I know I will be asked in the future about this, Prestige Points for this topic are secret, but they do exist. I hope we can leave it at that.

Thank you in advance for your contributions.

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Quote #1 - William Shakesphere through the character of Julius Ceasar, "Cowards die many times before their death."

A man who gives up living for safety truly has died more than the man who risks his life on a nightly basis. Refusing to live is a death in itself despite the reality that you are still breathing.

Quote on!

I'm a little confused to how this thread is supposed to be working. When you (Sparky), post a quote, are we supposed to be offering our thoughts on them as well? Do you think you could sticky a post about how each thread is supposed to work?

Good quotes Butsuekkai38...

DEVILinIRON

I will create something that goes along the lines of explaining various topics. However, generally the quote of the week consists of myself posting a quote which users than agree with or disagree with and post their reasons why. Users are welcome to connect other quotes to the quote of the week, but the focus is meant to be on that single quote.

I don't follow poetry too much. So I don't usually comment on poems. I like this one. The only advice I'll give, is maybe you should break up some of the bigger lines. For example, if you were to read the poem out loud. Wherever you find yourself pausing or taking a breath, put a line break in. But I'm not sure if this is good advice or not. It's only what I would do.

DEVILinIRON

One piece I neglected to mention was the intentional setup of the lines. I feel as no task is the same, some are long, drawn out and take a lot of effort, while others are short. It is a great contrast in the tasks that a true friend is to do on a daily basis.

Also, what do you think as a reader of this poem? It seems like the poem is asking for many things from the reader, but what should the reader expect in return? The same thing? Maybe your poem can incorporate this idea of a give and take relationship a little more? I don't know...

DEVILinIRON

Friendship to me is giving without expecting anything in return. If you can give selflessly you are a great friend. Now that isn't saying that you are friends with anyone you do stuff for because there needs to be a mutual understanding. My point is that anyone can give and expect to receive, but only true friends are willing to give without a clear view of receiving anything whatsoever.

If you don't take pride in yourself and you don't boast about yourself, who will?Unknown World War II General

Grr, I just wrote my entire response and accidently deleted it. I'm off to do various tasks, I will post my own response later. Thanks!

I have a microphone and if d/ling skype doesn't eat into my bandwith I could help. The question is of course timezones!Foolz3h

It's small and doesn't do much to anything really. Timezones ain't much of an issue since I always am able to catch you when I come online.

What does help entail? I'm up for it if it's within my realm of talent.irmeleeman5995

What kind of help do you need? Dowe have to be officers to help?DEVILinIRON

No you do not have to be an officer to help.

I am looking to do a quick conference or something of the sort on the video, just a few minutes. I need approximately two members who have a computer headset and have Skype (it is a free program). Down the line, there will be more positions for members to get involved, however this is just a test run to see if it will work out for the best.