The Tangled Branch Discussion Forums

Hello Nancy-- welcome!

Jean--Welcome.

So glad you are here for NaPo.  I hope during the month you look around and maybe feel at home.

T

Congratulations Jackie!  You must be really proud. And we are proud to claim you as one of ours.

T

On the contrary, Linda, you are MY mentor, and have been for a dozen years (I joined MWC on leap-year day, 2012).

Greg, You'll note that one of the benefits of shopping your poems here is that you can get a variety of opinions and reactions, some contradictory.  I can end up with a minority position, I usually prepare my comments before I read previous comments.  I want to approach a poem fresh without predispo...

This narrative is alluring and invites engagement.   Playful title, works well. L.2 – “the” – delete L.3 – first of 2 “their” in three lines.   L.5 – Maybe change “their” to “a” to eliminate the repeat. It also opens the offer, I think. L.6 – “will remain”  to “remains”; just a thought–more immediat...

Hi Greg-- Scrap it?  NOOOOOOOOOO!! This is a challenging and captivating poem.  I struggle in places, and am awed in other places. The first three-four lines are magnificent.  But L. 5 – if trees were chopped one by one for kindling, that wouldn’t occur in a “matter of moments”.  But then lines 6 &7...

I can't tell you how much I like this poem. It feels good, and the craftsmanship is so strong, which no doubt helps the poem feel so very good. I love the way it so casually glows and meanders through the senses--taste, sight, smell, and texture, and or course the motion of the poem.   Artful weavin...

I love this poem, and your the content of your last posted comment here. This poem finds unsentimentalized ways to humanize everyone involved. I think this was a common way to address neuro-diversity, and I am familiar with the Faribault facility.  S.3 L.2 – consider ending the line with “wrapped”, ...

Gyppo-- A real heart-warming exchange, both the dialog and the non-verbal, which is several places just carries the narrative. For my money, I'd consider cutting the last line.  It is a prosy conclusion which your poetry readers do not need.  But then, if had your story-telling ability, I am not sur...