The Poetry Fix News
| VOL. II, ISSUE 11 |
Doing good while doing well.
Earlier this week I found myself faced with the possibility that I might not be able to have the best of both worlds. Could I balance my passion for social change and building folks up, with my own desire to be a successful poet and writer? The more I get involved in the business of performing for pay (or press) the more I realize what a competitive space it can be. Now, I know that makes me sound super naïve but that realization has been sobering for me.
I have read a couple of articles over the last few weeks that gives credence to the competitive field that performance poetry has become and the toll it is taking on poets. Due to the success of Def Poetry and rising stars like Staceyann Chin (I love her!) – performance poetry is becoming a lucrative business. Madison Avenue has come a-knocking and there is money to be made. If you can spit a verse (and have a little bit of luck on your side) you could be selling soda, pizza or the latest cell phone plan. Recently, I overheard a couple of poets talking about putting together a road tour and how to keep that info from another poet so that he wouldn't invite himself and possibly steal some of their thunder. As a person who regularly passes performance invites on to other poets – my mouth was hanging open. I can't fathom living that kind of life. I envision occupying a cooperative and collaborative space with other artist. With so many voices out there I can't possibly think I am the only one folks will want to hear. I am a relative newbie to the world of performance poetry. I have not acquired all the bells and whistles that signal that I am trying to make a career out of this. I am still in the place where I find great pleasure in returning to my favorite venues and reading my favorite pieces.
I don't churn out a new piece every week and I don't mind performing a super old piece that someone heard me do three years ago. I get up on the mic in hopes that my words touch someone. That they walk away with a different view point or I articulate something that they couldn’t quite put into words. No, I’m not all Buddha Zen about it but I do enjoy the connection that this particular art form affords. When I first started writing poetry I wrote a lot of relationship pieces (mostly bitter broken heart stuff). At the end of a year, I had so many poems along that vein I was able to put a chapbook together titled “The Lovesick Chronicles”. What amazed me every time I performed something from the book was the response. People would walk up to me and proclaim that I had “hit it on the head” or jokingly accuse me of stealing a page out of their journal. I appreciate when people tell me that I have touched them. I am less interested in hearing that my performance was great. Sure I work on how I present myself on the mic but I work harder on the words that I put on the page and ultimately what ideas I’m trying to put out in the universe. But I share all this to say: how do I promote me without undercutting other poets or getting caught up in the ego destroying act of always trying to top my last great poem? Can I do well in this “business” while doing good in my community?
Recently, I met this woman who gives me hope. I was volunteering at Sisterspace over the weekend where we were having a high end book signing. This one was different because it was happening after hours and was replete with celebrity journalists and Grammy winning artist. During this little shindig I was faced with the daunting task of self promotion. I got a lot of skills - this is not one of them. Faye gave me the "heads up" that the agent of the co-authors, that we were hosting that night, was at the event. Word on the street is that she's one of the more sought after New York agents. My mission was to chat her up and slip in the fact that I was a poet – blah blah blah.
Interestingly enough that’s not how the conversation went. She asked me what book I was reading (I was holding “The Darkest Child – Deloris Phillips). I started raving about the book and the excellent work the author had done in building the characters off the page. At some point she revealed that she was an agent. I revealed that I was a poet. She said “I love poets!” I smiled. No, I didn’t pounce on her with my latest and greatest creation but she did invite me to send something her way and she would look at it. What struck me about her was her ability to be humble in the midst of all the fanfare. She said ultimately what she was looking for was a “page turner”. If she could love the book then she could promote the book. She said she liked to keep it simple. In the end she knew what she liked and didn't lose sight of that. Now that is something to meditate on.
Now go on and dive in to all the possibilities for the week!
Michelle
She asks me why I only write of sad things.
I tell her I only write the truth.
And when joy enters my life
then I'll write about that.
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