Arse Poetica

Posted on 2025-04-28 by Bartholomew Barker

Poetry is a mistake,
an elaborate typo,
a series of errors,
in tricky rhyme.

Events misrecalled,
premises that don’t follow,
lists of bad analogies
and mixed metaphors.

Malaprops and Spoonerisms,
auto-corrected and misinterpreted,
forced by circular OCD
into a square form.

Yes, poetry is just a mistake—
mistaken for profundity.

 

 

Yesterday, Living Poetry held a Germination Workshop over Zoom. We had five poets write to seven prompts over the course of two hours and while we don’t expect finished work in these sessions, several poems emerged with “good bones”. I know I’ve had multiple poems whose first drafts were composed in these workshops that have later been published.

If you don’t have a poetry community, feel free to join mine. While the majority of us live in North Carolina, most of our events are now held on the internet so you don’t have be physically nearby. Check out our Meetup group to see the calendar of events.

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About Bartholomew Barker

Bartholomew Barker is an organizer of Living Poetry, a collection of poets in the Triangle region of North Carolina where he has hosted a monthly feedback workshop for more than decade. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he lives and writes poetry.
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15 Responses to Arse Poetica

  1. DD's avatar DD says:
    2025-04-28 at 21:02

    I’m pretty sure typos plsy s major role in at least some work. ~ Nice peace of work yourself though.

    Liked by 2 people

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  2. berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
    2025-04-29 at 03:41

    BAD poetry is……..

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. JeanMarie's avatar JeanMarie says:
    2025-04-29 at 04:35

    I was there! I liked this poem then, and I like it now. Good job.

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. thelongview's avatar thelongview says:
    2025-05-02 at 09:00

    That’ll learn it! Very enjoyable insult to poetry 😃

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. LuAnne Holder's avatar LuAnne Holder says:
    2025-05-04 at 13:51

    And what a fun mistake it is!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  6. luvgoodcarp's avatar luvgoodcarp says:
    2025-05-04 at 16:19

    Nice work, Bart. I love the closing lines.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  7. Susi Bocks's avatar Susi Bocks says:
    2025-05-19 at 00:46

    I’m hearing “imposter syndrome.” ;)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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