Hello Poets,
I am a one-time frequent flier here at PoetrySoup who has been absent now for a few years. I started sharing my poetry on a personal blog page (https://joeflachpoetry.wordpress.com) and stopped posting them here about four years ago.
The greatest asset that I miss from PS is the number of comments and critiques you get from fellow poets. The comments and feedback from poems on my blog page are few and far between. I also miss the contests hosted here. Some of my favorite poems from the past were inspired by the creative contest themes I entered on PoetrySoup. And, of course, I miss the friendships and connections that PS helped facilitate. Some of you have stayed connected with me through other channels, but most of you are merely memories of mentors and friends from a past experience. Just thought I would stop by and say, “Hey”. I also am likely to try out a contest or two – if you don’t mind. It’s been years since I have been here, but I am still listed as #30 in Contest Winners.
Also, I thought that I might share a piece of my story in the hope of offering encouragement and inspiration to those of you who, like me, sometimes feel like we are writing and posting our works in vain. I did not see a link to what used to be a Community Summary page which told you how many Poems you had posted, contests entered, and the such, but I posted 100s of poems on this site and received very little acclaim and no outside of PS recognition. I didn’t and don’t write poems for fame, glory or fortune; but I always, deep down inside, harbored a fantasy that some might be stumbled upon.
Well, lo and behold, it happened to me. Out of nowhere, one day, I had a message on my voice mail from an advertising company saying that they wanted to use one of my poems in a television commercial they were creating for one of their clients. Of course, I was flattered and shocked. This began a short and sweet journey in having my poem fitted for their purposes. When my poem was featured and appeared in the Marriott, Golden Rule advertising campaign, I burst with pride and satisfaction. I never bothered to ask and do not know today, how they happened to stumble upon my poem, “Human Beings Being Human”, but, somehow, they did. I first posted that poem here in PS and later, on my blog page.
The commercial itself does not give credit to the poem’s author, so the fame is fleeting, but, I am surprised by the number of people who have tracked me down and offered some praise for my work. But, it does give me self-satisfaction and some validation that my poetry has some merit despite the little recognition I get from the few family and friends who I regularly share them with.
Although, I recognize that I am bragging here, I really just want to give you hope that someday, somehow, somewhere, someone may find your poem(s) and recognize your talent and creativity. It may take 100s of poems and postings before it happens, but, if it can happen to me, it can happen to you. I owe some of my success to those of you here who, many years ago, offered me encouragement, advice and friendship, giving me the courage to continue my passion regardless of the silence received in return. I know our common mantra is, “I don’t write for fame, glory or recognition; I write because I love to write”, but, it is fun to fantasize and I am here to encourage you to dream big about what could become of your creativity and the poetry you give birth to.
Thanks to all of you who helped me along the way. I hope others of you are also being nurtured along the way by the many poets I once counted as my friends here in Poetry Soup.