Because I’ve been really sick I’m not really doing much else so I found more interesting blog links to put up. The first one (from a Canadian/English poet) talks about your pitiful chances of ever being successful, recognized, or read in the future unless you are anointed by a chosen king/saint-maker. The second one talks about the implications of that, and whether “Fame” – the song/the idea – is really so great any way. Thanks to Bookslut’s blog for both links:

http://toddswift.blogspot.com/2008/01/canons-to-right_29.html

http://samizdatblog.blogspot.com/2008/02/baby-remember-my-name-poets-and.html

My opinion? Fight the good fight. Even one person reading your poem could make a difference. Fight the system! Subvert the paradigm (See Steven’s comic blog post on this phrase http://www.steveschroeder.info/2008/01/two-things-that-make-me-glad-i-didnt-go.html) and write because you love to write, because you can’t not write. Do what you can to make poetry relevant, to get poetry into people’s hands. If I had a defeatist attitude towards other things – like my immune system (what? Born with one kidney? Asthma since childhood? Crappy inability to fight off germs? Rare bleeding disorder? Messed up thyroid? Just give up already, you Darwinian-ly cursed girl!) I’d be dead. That’s why I take my vitamins and antibiotics and herbal teas – and why I studied pre-med as an undergrad – hey, you gotta do something, take some steps, fight the powers that be, have some faith that what you do makes a difference. In health, in life, and in poetry.