...Poetry by people who explain that it's just one of their "various different ways of expressing my mind's expression." Poetry with clumsy rhythms, and rhyme schemes that require so little effort you have to ask what the hell the point was? Poetry with words and images so garishly hackneyed you'd think all these people just copied and pasted the same damned shitty poem, barely bothering to change the order of the stanzas. Poetry that I could have written at about eight, and might have even been proud of THEN; but would have hidden or destroyed by the time I hit eleven. And the worst part is that they don't even know they suck...they think they're really good, creative poets, just destined to be the next Shakespeare or something...geez.

I'm not a great poet, but at least I know what great poetry is! It's not four flowery quatrains with an ABAB scheme and a however-many-words-you-have-to-fit-to-make-this-crappy-rhyme-work meter, about the darling dead lover with blue eyes that you made up so you could feel like Poe. Good poetry is coy...a clever mix of the personal and the universal, with subtly placed thematic elements that are as initially pleasing as they are welcoming to a variety of deeper interpretations. It has poetic devices that are unique and fitting to the piece and give it a sense of unity. A strict meter or rhyme scheme isn't absolutely necessary, but there is at least a natural rhythm and flow to the words and accents. In my humble opinion, the primary genius of a good poem is its ambiguity...the suggestion of an emotion or an image, rather than the insistance on it, darting around like a sunfish in and out of the reader's consciousness rather than beating her over the head.

Poetry is an ART, and if you aren't willing to put a little effort and individuality into your work, then you get my scorn. And just once...just ONCE...I'd like to find a poetry group, online or in-person, of people with whom I could share my work--and happily read theirs--who had a few standards and a little pride. This might be cold-hearted or elitist or whatever, but damn it, I always give positive, constructive feedback...always, even after I read something that is absolutely terrible, and I just need to vent for a moment.

P.S. And yes, I know there are people who write poetry because they've suffered the loss of a loved one, or they've fallen in love, or they're going through adolescence, and it's their way of dealing with all the emotional issues involved or whatever. I respect that, and I'm not talking about them. They can write whatever the hell they want. I'm talking about people who write for a hobby or with the hope of some recognition or whatever, who use this art that I cherish without giving it the respect and devotion that it deserves.