Hello frens, anyone else facing this problem? I've read this line 30 times over and I'm STILL not satisfied with what is being said. Am I actually making any sense? Am I reading too much into this? Does it make sense? Could it be better... how can I make this sound better? Am I just muddling myself? dOEs iT maKE sENsE???
This is a continuous challenge I face when writing poetry. I find it difficult to refresh and relax when it comes to reading over my work. It reaches a stage where I feel like nothing is making sense and I am unable to either improve the line, or know when enough is enough and no further editing is required.
I would be curious to know if others out there experience the same thing. How often does this happen to you? Do you have any advice to help clear the mind before re-reading? For me, I like to run my poem through Google Translate and let the automated voice read my poem out to me in a new voice, lol. It does work a lot of the time!
Let me know ya thoughts. Thanks!
I've run into this problem so many times. It is a common occurrence among writers as a whole. We are natural perfectionists when it comes to our work. That is why I would suggest the following:
After you finish writing something (this first draft) set it aside for two to three days before looking at it again. The reason why this technique works is that it gives your mind space to let everything settle. More than likely you won't even remember what you were writing about in the first place, and so when you go to look at the prose again, you will have a new set of eyes.
Have other people review your work. This one is a bit tricky because you have to be comfortable enough to share it in the first place, but I assure you it works if you are willing to accept the process. Pro Tip: Don't judge what everyone is saying about your work, or get combative, but instead consider what they are saying and apply it before ruling it out. Doesn't hurt to try.
Just take a break. Leave the prose alone. Go for a walk to clear your head. Listen to some music. Paint a picture. Check your socials. Go on an adventure somewhere. Anything except focusing on your writing. It isn't going anywhere. It's not like it will fly away. Give yourself the space you need to start refreshed. Then when you are done with that task, come back to it and try again. I recommend looking at the Pomodoro Method.
Thank you everyone, these are some fantastic suggestions! I will definitely implement them the next time I have a bit of the old mind fuzz.
Hey Shen
I find it interesting,only because I never consider rereading a line over and over.
Rather a stanza.
In case of line,I have a rule of thumb where,if the line is taking me long time,to understand,delete.Time is very precious and its counterproductive for me to overanalyze a line.Especially if its 30 times.I will also say understand stuff like this happens all the time.Does depend on poetry genre,and why your writing that line in first place.
If this helps,ask for feedback,yet be specific about it.There are poets at the Cove who are more literate than I am in regards to feedback but would not hurt to ask for second opinion.Just be specific in regards to feedback.
In terms of relaxing,do an activity that wouldn't involve a screen.Or reading.Preferably something physical.Or even taken a nap would work fine too.Interesting what happens when you step away from your work and then when you come back,you have a new pair of eyes.
Hope all made sense.
I think writers of every genre has this problem. Sometimes, I'll mull over a line for days on end and then just as I'm falling asleep, BAM! I figure it out and I have to furiously write the new version of the line in a note on my phone.
I like the google translate idea.
Some other suggestions:
similar to google translate, if you're comfortable with it, ask someone else to read it to you. This will give you an idea of natural breaths/pauses in comparison to line breaks/punctuation.
You could ask for a critique from a workshop or poetry community (hint, hint: The Cove).
Perhaps it is a poem that needs to be put to one side for a few weeks/months. Take a break, work on new projects and go back to it. See if new eyes give you any other opinions.
Finally, never get rid of any line. Ever. (This is where I say: do as I say, not as I do). I participated in a series of workshops last year with Megan Falley and she recommended having a 'good line graveyard'. Sometimes, we have to trim our poems down and that's fine. It happens. But save that line in a google doc or word doc. It could be a perfect fit for a different poem.
This is my problem too, But I think you should be less concerned with perfection, often the first draft of writing is a mood, a fleeting idea. Record your own voice, I like to hear the sound of my poetry in my voice but with an outside ear. You can also read your verses in a foreign language, which allows you to imagine how your poetry travels.
I like that idea of the Google voice.
I have this problem many times. Sometimes I'll just scrap the line altogether, rather than pull my hair out over it. It's not always easy as sometimes it's a great line, but I spend far too much time rewriting and editing my stuff anyway so I try to be quite ruthless.