There are people who write poetry but don't read it (or rarely do), and the same is true for people who write fiction. But the best writers are also avid readers.
From a conscientious reader— I get most of my poetry content from books through my local (free) Interlibrary Loan service and most of those are ooold... sorry editors! 😊
I'm a deputy editor of a poetry journal (New Verse Review), and most of the poetry I read is what I can borrow from the library. I can't afford all those books and journal subscriptions. (I also don't have the room to store them!) Fortunately, I have a large local library that is well stocked with contemporary poets as well as the classics.
Fair do. You have statistics and everything. I wonder about those statistics a bit, though. Do 9-12 per cent of American adults *really* read poetry? Also: as you well know, 80 per cent of the million books of poetry sold in the UK each year are sold to Jeremy Noel-Tod.
Whatever one thinks of the data, and it may indeed be a misleading number in some ways, it still seems highly implausible that more people write than read poetry. Even if one or two percent of people read poetry that’s more people than send submissions. (A million writers?) There are undoubtedly people who write without reading but that’s not the whole picture.
I don’t of course disagree. I think we’re in the territory of “seriously but not literally”. There’s definitely a cohort that writes but doesn’t read, but my proposed Venn diagram is kind of a gag.
I wouldn’t take my original joke too seriously - just a way of making fun of some of those gated online communities of poets who only seem to write for (and publish) each other. In a less cantankerous (and/or resentful) mood, as today, I agree with everything you wrote!
I suspect numbers have been on the rise for several years for a couple of reasons, both stemming from social media.
The more populists beat their drums and algorithms divide us, the more we need poetry to bring us together. To give us that sense of belonging to a world that exists beyond the venal, vain and vituperative.
The format also works. To use a horrible Internet expression, poems are 'snackable' in a way other forms are not. Hence the success of a Rupi Kaur who has over 4 million followers on Instagram.
For these reasons, as a poet living in the Gulf, I'm using a daily postings on the The Madrid Review website to offer a more grounded take on what it is like to live in a conflict zone.
See here, if interested. Point is, poetry may be the right 'platform' for our broken times.
Except… It may not be true now but when I won an Arts Council Grant in the early 000s to fund a major poetry project in the south of England, amongst the supporting statistics was the fact that in the UK more people said they wrote poetry than attended football matches. If I can track down the source I will, but it was many years – and quite a few hard drives ago!
There are people who write poetry but don't read it (or rarely do), and the same is true for people who write fiction. But the best writers are also avid readers.
From a conscientious reader— I get most of my poetry content from books through my local (free) Interlibrary Loan service and most of those are ooold... sorry editors! 😊
I'm a deputy editor of a poetry journal (New Verse Review), and most of the poetry I read is what I can borrow from the library. I can't afford all those books and journal subscriptions. (I also don't have the room to store them!) Fortunately, I have a large local library that is well stocked with contemporary poets as well as the classics.
Aw it's so nice to know that! ❤️
I'm so grateful for my library service, life would be much diminished without it.
Fair do. You have statistics and everything. I wonder about those statistics a bit, though. Do 9-12 per cent of American adults *really* read poetry? Also: as you well know, 80 per cent of the million books of poetry sold in the UK each year are sold to Jeremy Noel-Tod.
Whatever one thinks of the data, and it may indeed be a misleading number in some ways, it still seems highly implausible that more people write than read poetry. Even if one or two percent of people read poetry that’s more people than send submissions. (A million writers?) There are undoubtedly people who write without reading but that’s not the whole picture.
I don’t of course disagree. I think we’re in the territory of “seriously but not literally”. There’s definitely a cohort that writes but doesn’t read, but my proposed Venn diagram is kind of a gag.
Henry’s asking all the right questions!
I wouldn’t take my original joke too seriously - just a way of making fun of some of those gated online communities of poets who only seem to write for (and publish) each other. In a less cantankerous (and/or resentful) mood, as today, I agree with everything you wrote!
Similar things have been said about various scientific fields: that the desire to publish papers greatly outstrips the desire to actually read them.
And that's... maybe fine? The point of these things is to _eventually_ produce something of more general interest, but that can take a very long time.
I suspect numbers have been on the rise for several years for a couple of reasons, both stemming from social media.
The more populists beat their drums and algorithms divide us, the more we need poetry to bring us together. To give us that sense of belonging to a world that exists beyond the venal, vain and vituperative.
The format also works. To use a horrible Internet expression, poems are 'snackable' in a way other forms are not. Hence the success of a Rupi Kaur who has over 4 million followers on Instagram.
For these reasons, as a poet living in the Gulf, I'm using a daily postings on the The Madrid Review website to offer a more grounded take on what it is like to live in a conflict zone.
See here, if interested. Point is, poetry may be the right 'platform' for our broken times.
https://themadridreview.com/f/spring-journal-by-mark-fiddes?fbclid=PAQ0xDSwMPvUxleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABp-HT-MdRrfrviTFlwh_o_4UAzF9SqSJk4Kxwvo-Ocx0fg9JjNWTAdjE3lS5i_aem_IAyKJibRT8FkqZotPcAARg&blogcategory=En+Espa%C3%B1ol
Do we include the wonderful poetry of children’s books? Because that is certainly read widely, and I suspect much more widely than any other poetry.
Except… It may not be true now but when I won an Arts Council Grant in the early 000s to fund a major poetry project in the south of England, amongst the supporting statistics was the fact that in the UK more people said they wrote poetry than attended football matches. If I can track down the source I will, but it was many years – and quite a few hard drives ago!
I’m sorry, what’s wrong with the editors having a point of view? (Once and future editor typing)
Nothing… but can they not be wrong ?
History says editors are wrong almost all of the time.
"i'm the only person you'll meet who's written more books than he's read"
100% and that's ok