I'm new

mindywag

Hello. I'm a writer from Naaavan. I'll get in there before someone else does. I'll also use one of these even though i don't really have big teeth. Not like Simon Cowell's anyway! LOL. I hope that was funny!

Basically (Yes people from Navan use such words) i'm here to meet other writers and find out what they have wrote in their own lives. I wrote a few poems about love and nature some years ago when i was going through a difficult break-up and one won a prize in a local newspaper. Maybe someone might like read it sometimes . I call it 'Thunderbolts and Lightnight'. ????????

:eek: I love these yokes. His eyes remind me of a guy i used to know. There were exactly the same. Being a dedicated writer and golfer does not leave time for socialising much these days and i have been single for 4 years now and maybe this can be my social outlet. I know it sounds girly and a little gay (I'm not a homophobe ok) but i'd love to meet and talk to new people via this exciting new medium called the net. I'm a bit of a novice so it will take me some time to get used to how this works but hopefully a few of us will get to go out on the lash soon. I'm a great guy to be out with. I love the Palace and the Solar. I've met a lot of stars at the Palace and even kissed your one out of Cornation Street . (on the cheek!!!)She gave me her number but i lost it. Your one that used to go with Tyrone. The good looking one, not the ginger one.

See you guys soon!! :cool: Mindy

leon35

Id like to read your poem.....

mindywag

mindywag wrote: »

Hello. I'm a writer from Naaavan. I'll get in there before someone else does. I'll also use one of these even though i don't really have big teeth. Not like Simon Cowell's anyway! LOL. I hope that was funny!

Basically (Yes people from Navan use such words) i'm here to meet other writers and find out what they have wrote in their own lives. I wrote a few poems about love and nature some years ago when i was going through a difficult break-up and one won a prize in a local newspaper. Maybe someone might like read it sometimes . I call it 'Thunderbolts and Lightnight'. ????????

:eek: I love these yokes. His eyes remind me of a guy i used to know. There were exactly the same. Being a dedicated writer and golfer does not leave time for socialising much these days and i have been single for 4 years now and maybe this can be my social outlet. I know it sounds girly and a little gay (I'm not a homophobe ok) but i'd love to meet and talk to new people via this exciting new medium called the net. I'm a bit of a novice so it will take me some time to get used to how this works but hopefully a few of us will get to go out on the lash soon. I'm a great guy to be out with. I love the Palace and the Solar. I've met a lot of stars at the Palace and even kissed your one out of Cornation Street . (on the cheek!!!)She gave me her number but i lost it. Your one that used to go with Tyrone. The good looking one, not the ginger one.

See you guys soon!! :cool: Mindy

Thunderbolts and Lightnight
A peom by Mandy Joyce

My name is Mandy but i like to be called Mindy. Here's the peom-

My heart crushed like rocks
He's gone again.
My wrath of fury
His betrayal... again
Thunderbolt.

Stars in the sky
Ease my yearnings
My path so knew
Sensational Seasons
Light Night.

It took me a long time to get over this but someone said to me to write down the feelings and then burn them later. But it turned out so good i didn't do the burning thing. LOL :eek:

What does everyone think? You're all so friendly. :pac:

Aelfric

I think it's very good MindyMandy Did you take one of Tommy's courses at the local college? I started one last year, but I'm not mad into poetry, which he obviously focuses on being a well established and published poet himself. I only did three weeks of his 10 week class, but I came away with a few good ideas nonetheless.

I'm writing novels, or trying to at least, in my spare time. I have one that's about a third of the way through, and a few others barely started. I have a Polish friend here in Navan that is also a spare time writer. There are a few of us about. I had thought about joining the Meath Writers Circle, but I don't know.

Stu

mindywag

Who Tommy? Is there a writers circle in meath? I never realised. My Dad reckons i just have some natural flair but i don't know. :eek:

I'm thinking of starting up aome course and get some poeple involved. Would your Polish friend and you like to be a part of it. Who knows one of us may be the next Cecilia Ahearne. She always makes me cry.

leon35

mindywag wrote: »

Thunderbolts and Lightnight
A peom by Mandy Joyce

My name is Mandy but i like to be called Mindy. Here's the peom-

My heart crushed like rocks
He's gone again.
My wrath of fury
His betrayal... again
Thunderbolt.

Stars in the sky
Ease my yearnings
My path so knew
Sensational Seasons
Light Night.

It took me a long time to get over this but someone said to me to write down the feelings and then burn them later. But it turned out so good i didn't do the burning thing. LOL :eek:

What does everyone think? You're all so friendly. :pac:

Poem. That's how you spell Poem. Not being a pest but you repeated the mistake on two occassions.

The poem is not great. I'm not sure you can make sense of it. How long did you spend writing it? Should knew not be new?

I don't think it's very good to be honest. But keep trying and join a writers group it will help you if you wish to be a writer.

Aelfric

Tommy Murray

http://community.meath.ie/meathwriters/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

They meet in Trim on a regular basis. You might actually get a lot from one of his courses if you're just starting out. The courses are usually held at Beaufort College in the evenings, but I don't know when the next round are on.

Virtual Writer is another good resource - http://www.virtualwriter.net/

As for getting together, you seem quite young still (lucky you!), and I'm not sure I'd like my daughter hanging out with a 40 year old she'd met on the internet!!

Still, you can always contact me off list if you wish - st(dot)george13(at)gmail(dot)com

Stu

Matt Holck

the short phrases
establish a strong rhythm

mindywag

Leon i spent probably about a half hour writing the POEM. God people are so finicky about small things ain't they?

I'll look up that A. I'm 19, and well i don't want to spend my life as a waitress so i aspire to greater things like marrying someone in the higher echelons of society to allow me to develop my talent.

Matt i'm not sure what your on but i'd like some. xxxxx

Mindy.

rockbeer

mindywag wrote: »

God people are so finicky about small things ain't they?

I wouldn't have much time for a craftsperson who doesn't care about his or her tools.

mindywag

I thought you guys might be supportive to me. I'm only a learner. Now i feel sad. Thanks so much.............

leon35

Mindy,

i think we are trying to be supportive it's just you are not putting in the effort and if you decide to publish then you have to be prepared for some critique. But don't be sad i can understand you're in your infancy with regard to writing. Perhaps try something new and maybe we can help you along with it and give you some pointers.

rockbeer

I'm not trying to undermine you Mindy - but in your first post you call yourself a writer. In my view a writer is somebody who cares about words and language above everything. They aren't 'the small things' - as a writer they're all you've got.

When corrected you have two choices - accept the correction gracefully or get defensive. You got defensive, which says to me that you care more about your ego than about the tools of your trade.

davyjose

mindywag wrote: »

I thought you guys might be supportive to me. I'm only a learner. Now i feel sad. Thanks so much.............

People are just offering pointers to help you out. Writing "peom" isn't a big deal, but to a publisher, it might be. It certainly won't help your cause, having spelling errors. Take it on the chin. And by the way, I think it's a very good peom .... ahem, poem

Matt Holck

point taken

but I'm not sure I want a publisher with a stick up their ass

rockbeer

Matt Holck wrote: »

point taken

but I'm not sure I want a publisher with a stick up their ass

So you think publishers 'have a stick up the arse' if they expect writers - users of language - to be able to use language properly?

I can't believe the astonishing arrogance of some 'writers' on this board - they seem to think, with no evidence beyond their over-inflated opinion of themselves,that they're so good that they're above needing to care about their tools.

What kind of craftsperson takes that attitude? When did you last see a decent chippy turning out good work with a blunt chisel?

tbh I think most new writers are happy to find any publisher willing to take their work, whether they've a stick up the arse or are covered in pestilential boils. It's a cut throat business and you're very lucky if you get to choose. Getting language right, and respecting it, are two of the things that separate the potential professionals from the wannabes.

Matt Holck

spelling has little to do with using language creatively

spelling is what editing and proof reading is for

cleanliness is next to nothing
I'll be damn f I'm going to groval to a publisher
either they work with me or they don't
I ain't working with no cut throats

Singer73

I reread the poem - just to see if I could get a feel for it. I didn't. It's poor. A collection of words that make no sense together.

On the positive side, when I was 19 I wrote some shocking rubbish... It takes a lot of hard work and dedication, not to mention discipline, to improve as a writer. It's not something that 'happens'. At least it hasn't 'happened' to me!

rockbeer

Matt, I hope for your sake you're a damn good writer - you'll need to be with an attitude like that. Lazy old you, happy to let editors do the donkey work for you while you knock out your works of creative genius.

If I were you I'd prepare to remain unpublished.

You've just shown how breathtakingly ignorant you are about the publishing industry. It just doesn't work the way you fondly imagine it. It's not a question of grovalling (sic), it's just business. Publishers can't afford editors and proofreaders to tidy up after the lazy and ignorant. Not unless they're already famous or the new shakespeare, and even then they'll probably tell you go away and come back when you've learned to write. Or at least learned to use a spell checker, ffs.

Would you take a punt with your money on someone who didn't care about their tools?

davyjose

Matt Holck wrote: »

point taken

but I'm not sure I want a publisher with a stick up their ass

I would. I don't want my publisher to be the artist type - I want my publisher to be professional. I don't want to smoke joints with the guy. I just want him to take my work seriously and make it so that my job can be a writer, not a waiter.

It's not necessarily that he has a stick up his ass either - people rely on first impression, and there are a LOT of talented artists out there failing. You have to be impeccable to separate yourself. Little things make impressions, and spelling mistakes are akin to showing up for a job interview with a nice suit and your runners on. It doesn't mean you're not qualified, but all they will think is "what's the deal with this guy's runners????"

davyjose

Matt Holck wrote: »

spelling is what editing and proof reading is for

Ah man ... I can't agree with this. Spelling is what WRITING is for. Editing and proof-reading are for mistakes. And yeah, they happen, but whoever you are, you do your best to eliminate them.

BTW, Spellchecking and Editing are costly. Those expenses are well and good if your client is Roddy Doyle. But if you're new, then they're taking a chance on you (however good you are, they're taking a chance; there are NO guarantees based on talent in this business), and they are going to keep costs down. Being the guy who doesn't cost them the hassle and cost, helps getting them to take that chance. Simple as.

Pgibson

leon35 wrote: »

Poem. That's how you spell Poem. Not being a pest but you repeated the mistake on two occassions.

No budding Wordsworth I'm afraid.

More "Pain" than "Paen" !

(Maybe Peom is a Post-Modernist spelling for Poem!)

.

Pgibson

I've just "Cast a Cold Eye" on the Peom
and composed some sound advice:

Irish poets, learn your trade,
Sing whatever is well made,
Scorn the sort now growing up.
All out of shape from toe to top.

(All my own work..I swear.....W.B.)

.

Matt Holck

davyjose wrote: »

Ah man ... I can't agree with this. Spelling is what WRITING is for. Editing and proof-reading are for mistakes. And yeah, they happen, but whoever you are, you do your best to eliminate them.

BTW, Spellchecking and Editing are costly. Those expenses are well and good if your client is Roddy Doyle. But if you're new, then they're taking a chance on you (however good you are, they're taking a chance; there are NO guarantees based on talent in this business), and they are going to keep costs down. Being the guy who doesn't cost them the hassle and cost, helps getting them to take that chance. Simple as.

fair enough

Pgibson

I wonder Did Charles Dickens or Shakespeare need others to check their spelling?

I agree that the rules of spelling are weird.
(Note how the word "weird" does NOT put "I before E" for instance!)

But:

A single misspelled word,or bad punctuation, can DESTROY the credibility of a writer.

Aside from creative writing, remember that a single misspelled word on your CV can cost you that job you wanted.

Spelling and presentation are very important.

.
.

dublinario

Pgibson wrote: »

A single misspelled word...can DESTROY the credibility of a writer.

Absolute nonsense Pgibson, no matter how hysterically you capitalise your words. For example, I found multiple spelling errors in one of Kevin Meyers' last columns. I believe he still finds work...

I feel sorry for the original poster in this thread. Their honest endeavour has taken a back seat to the grammar/spelling police, as usual; and as usual, the postings from the grammar/spelling police are littered with bad grammar themselves (with the exception of Rockbeer, who just seems obsessed with his tools, tools, tools, tools, tools...).

I obviously concur that work should be proofed. I'm just sick of seeing novices pilloried up here, on a casual forum, for cosmetic problems. There's less pugnacious ways to usher novices toward proofing -- a term many of them probably aren't familiar with.

Benevolence is not the goal of the elitist grammar/spelling police though. Sure, their guff comes under the guise of constructive criticism. However, of more importance is bellowing into their megaphones, elevating themselves (in their minds) to a higher tier of literary worth. They think vanquishing inexperienced newbies, and stepping on their carcasses raises them a little higher above the mob.

It's laughable. I bet not one of the grammar/spelling police on this forum will ever be published in any credible capacity. I would specifically pick these pedants to be under-represented in the forum contributors' accumulated successes.

Incidentally, I liked the original poster's poem.

Pgibson

dublinario wrote: »

Absolute nonsense Pgibson, no matter how hysterically you capitalise your words. For example, I found multiple spelling errors in one of Kevin Meyers' last columns. I believe he still finds work...

I feel sorry for the original poster in this thread. Their honest endeavour has taken a back seat to the grammar/spelling police, as usual; and as usual, the postings from the grammar/spelling police are littered with bad grammar themselves (with the exception of Rockbeer, who just seems obsessed with his tools, tools, tools, tools, tools...).

I obviously concur that work should be proofed. I'm just sick of seeing novices pilloried up here, on a casual forum, for cosmetic problems. There's less pugnacious ways to usher novices toward proofing -- a term many of them probably aren't familiar with.

Benevolence is not the goal of the elitist grammar/spelling police though. Sure, their guff comes under the guise of constructive criticism. However, of more importance is bellowing into their megaphones, elevating themselves (in their minds) to a higher tier of literary worth. They think vanquishing inexperienced newbies, and stepping on their carcasses raises them a little higher above the mob.

It's laughable. I bet not one of the grammar/spelling police on this forum will ever be published in any credible capacity. I would specifically pick these pedants to be under-represented in the forum contributors' accumulated successes.

Incidentally, I liked the original poster's poem.

Encouraging newbies to strive towards PERFECTION (Hysterical AND bold now!) is a good way of preventing them from developing sloppy habits in the first place.

A misspelled word stands out like a sore thumb on the page.

In the Scientific world (where I come from) a single early miscalculation can result in later disaster so you have to be HYSTERICALLY HYPER (There!) about the minutiae of what you are doing.

Not to encourage perfection is to encourage sloppiness.

.

dublinario

Pgibson, you can pontificate and draw analogies to science all you like. It still won't make this statement...

Pgibson wrote:

A single misspelled word,or bad punctuation, can DESTROY the credibility of a writer.

...even close to being true. Your sentiment about striving for perfection is admirable, but you overplayed the significance of a single typo by a good 99% (with a 1% margin of error).

Pgibson

dublinario wrote: »

you overplayed the significance of a single typo by a good 99% (with a 1% margin of error).

Yup, I sure did.

The Arts are supposed to be..... DRAMATIC.....aren't they?

.

dublinario

Pgibson wrote: »

The Arts are supposed to be..... DRAMATIC.....aren't they?
.

Touché sir, touché!

Insect Overlord

Ok, I think we all get what's going on here, since the original point of this thread has been almost entirely forgotten. It's an argument over how important spelling and grammar are in the credibility of a person's writing. I suggest we take it as a single important factor amongst a much larger spectrum of other qualities necessary to being a good writer. In an early or unfinished draft, such as much of the work posted in this forum, the piece of work itself should be what is judged first. In the rare case of absolutely atrocious spelling mistakes throughout a post, that poster should be asked to proof-read and re-submit. Can we agree on that and get back on topic?

As for this poem, OP, I have read it several times now, growing to like it a bit more each time. Some of the imagery is nice (eg "stars in the sky", "light night"). Welcome to Boards, and well done on winning that newspaper prize.
That said, however, I agree to some extent with Singer73's point. There are some lines that follow each other with very little connecting them as fellow ideas in a single theme (eg "my wrath of fury/ his betrayal").
As a fellow young writer I'd recommend you spend more than just half an hour on a poem if you wish to achieve a more striking finished article. Re-reading while re-writing can inspire more thoughts, better techniques and a better presented poem all round.

rockbeer

Can I just say in my own defence that I rarely criticize people for their grammar or spelling. Life's too short.

I do take exception to the arrogance of certain 'writers' who seem to think their work is so wonderful that good practice doesn't apply to them. I only tend to dive in when people with no success or record start to proclaim the insignificance of the basics. Contrary to certain assertions, I think any writer with a record of success appreciates the importance of good presentation and the power of language when wielded with precision.

In no other craft are people encouraged to be so slapdash. It's generally understood by professionals that the medium is the message; amateurs seem to struggle to get that.

davyjose

dublinario wrote: »

For example, I found multiple spelling errors in one of Kevin Meyers' last columns. I believe he still finds work...

Yes, but where they in his first article? Spelling mistakes are a luxury experienced and popular writer's can afford.

Matt Holck

rockbeer wrote: »

In no other craft are people encouraged to be so slapdash. It's generally understood by professionals that the medium is the message; amateurs seem to struggle to get that.

k
how's the medium the message?

rockbeer

Matt Holck wrote: »

how's the medium the message?

In this case:the impression that is created by the way something is presented is as powerful as the actual content. It's a visual design fundamental but it applies equally to writing.

It has a more sociological meaning too.

Pgibson

davyjose wrote: »

Yes, but where they in his first article? Spelling mistakes are a luxury experienced and popular writer's can afford.

Kevin is that S.O.B who writes about M.O.B.s isn't he?
(Joke!)

.