diVERSES reKINDLED: In Conversation With JG

If one person likes my _, I'll be happy.

It's a lie to preserve humility, save face, maintain status, avoid judgment. What happens when the artist isn't happy that a single person likes the work?

We don't think about it.

I spoken with Emmy-winning poet JG, where he expressed some of the most valuable poetry advice he received. Some had nothing to do with writing, everything to do with how we present art to others.

When putting out poems, ask why, ask why that poem, and ask why that poem right now.

What this advice demands is honesty. In an art form that prides itself on authenticity and often looks down on ambition based on vanity metrics, this honesty may be harder to admit than the depths a poem reveals.

Many poets aren't going to open mics to experiment, but for claps and connection. Many poets submit not with the goal of one reader, but one whole award or name to put on a resume. What is harder to find, though, is the poet who admits they were upset when no one responded. What is harder to find is the poet who says the goal of their poetry book is to sell a thousand copies.

Even rarer is the poet who has these goals and puts in the work to achieve them. Of course, the logic doesn't make much sense. If I want my poetry book to become a NYTimes bestseller, then I can't just do what every poet at the open mic does.

I'm not writing this as a critique —quite the opposite. I think even having a goal for art is something to work towards, whatever that goal may be. It’s ok to be satisfied if one person likes your poem; it’s ok also to write for attention. What matters is honesty and alignment.

Aside from judgment, as soon as we state numbers goals with poetry (books sold, events attended, people reached, etc.) we take on the responsibility—and also potential failure—that comes with the goal. It is easier to find a person who likes a poem than a person who wants to buy a book of poems. For a poet who wants to live on poetry, that can be scary to admit, because if books are the only product, it'll take selling boxes on boxes. It takes the time to learn how to make a business.

Whatever the path for the art, the key is admit which path you are on.

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Full conversation with poet JG and poet Geoff Anderson: https://youtu.be/wPTLo-znxcA