This blog occurred to me after a comment Cyndi made on my last blog(sorry Cyndi but you are an inspiring lady!)
If you check back through your anthology ,do you think you have improved as a poet?
I suppose it would depend upon your starting point.I came to soup already Into many short forms,but went onto acquire an interest into others and after a few years to longer forms and indeed the 'mechanics of poetry itslf'.( this is why I have so appreciated the workshop aspect of this inspiring site).
I suppose my question is very subjective anyway,how good are we at evaluating our selves in artistic matters?
Do we in fact 'improve' or is it that we have differing phases or periods as did Picasso and perhaps our development is not linear?
In my studies of poets throughout the ages often a poet's early work appeals rather more than when they later found fame.Often their poetry finds their ultimate niche without them being truly aware of it.
( one of favourite poets Adelaide Crapsey who sadly died too young,used the cinquain form to create what has become known as the 'American Cinquain.This form IMHO is far superior in quality than much of the remainder of her endeavours and is what she is remembered in Imagism)
I know some poets and artists destroy ( or remove from sites like ours) much of their earlier work.But is this not like detroying part of one self ?.Perhaps leave them for 'posterity ' warts an' all so to speak.
What do you think about these issues ?