Format for POEM OF THE MONTH?
66.67%
• 14 votes •
A. One winner in a given month, that poet cannot win again in the calendar, and should not be nominated until the next year.
19.05%
• 4 votes •
B. Any poet can win in the given month, and poets can multiple times per year.
14.29%
• 3 votes •
C. Choice A or B with the addendum that least three competitions set aside for new poets and or those with less than 10 wins
Format for POEM OF THE MONTH?
Anonymous
May I suggest something?
Running a comp alongside this one: ”Discovery of the month” or something like that, that specifically highlights newer members that will encourage people to read newer writers and discover them. Personally, I’d love to see something dedicated to new talent and highlighting new members of the community. This will also help with member integration. We have tried starting this with the podcast, encouraging newer members to submit their poetry for us, which I know Daniel has also been trying to do more of with his Spotlights.
Poem of the month however, should be just that — a poem that truly touched you, whether the member is new or well established, that shouldn’t matter. To take that away just feels too restrictive of the spirit of the comp in the first place.
Running a comp alongside this one: ”Discovery of the month” or something like that, that specifically highlights newer members that will encourage people to read newer writers and discover them. Personally, I’d love to see something dedicated to new talent and highlighting new members of the community. This will also help with member integration. We have tried starting this with the podcast, encouraging newer members to submit their poetry for us, which I know Daniel has also been trying to do more of with his Spotlights.
Poem of the month however, should be just that — a poem that truly touched you, whether the member is new or well established, that shouldn’t matter. To take that away just feels too restrictive of the spirit of the comp in the first place.
I voted A because I feel the usual favorite poets (obviously they are highly regarded, respected, loved, talented etc, etc...) keep getting nominations and (have won in that year) It would be nice to see different names per month.
But the confusion here is...are we nominating the poet, or are we nominating the poem?
Let's keep in mind they are not the same thing.
From what i read in the instructions of the competition its about the poem, what have we read that we felt was exceptional. There's no mention of, nominate the poet whom you feel is exceptionally talented.
If its about the poem, then the same poet can be nominated every month, and have a chance to win every month, since its about the work itself.
If its about the poet, then they can be nominated till they win, once per calendar year. then they shouldn't be nominated again to give others a chance.
As for new poets or the ones with less than 10 trophies, I feel that's a whole different topic and it should have its own competition.
But the confusion here is...are we nominating the poet, or are we nominating the poem?
Let's keep in mind they are not the same thing.
From what i read in the instructions of the competition its about the poem, what have we read that we felt was exceptional. There's no mention of, nominate the poet whom you feel is exceptionally talented.
If its about the poem, then the same poet can be nominated every month, and have a chance to win every month, since its about the work itself.
If its about the poet, then they can be nominated till they win, once per calendar year. then they shouldn't be nominated again to give others a chance.
As for new poets or the ones with less than 10 trophies, I feel that's a whole different topic and it should have its own competition.
Thank you, SanPedro! Much appreciated.
I am somewhat defensive of Poem of the Month competition, because, as you know, it's one of my babies and legacy to DU ( as is Poet of the Week, Classic Comps, NaPo, etc. ). Please do not take the below suggestions personally. It's just that I worked VERY HARD with my facebook team to develop, implement, and establish this competition, then ran it solo for months before passing the torch to you, so it means the world to me.
1. Firstly, October's comp: none should've been hidden because no one violated competition guidelines. It's wonderful to go back to the old ways; however, the new rules should've been established in November's competition. I respectfully request that October's be put back on the table with the hidden poems restored, so we don't have a month missing.
2. Restore the original 'Poem of the Month Hall of Fame'.
https://deepundergroundpoetry.com/forum/speakeasy/read/9271/#373412
The competition didn't start in August of 2017, but the Fall of 2016. Therefore, the first winner, John Feddeler, followed by many Veteran DU members such as Vee, Crimsin, Case, AEMelia, and The_Silly_Sibyl have been wiped out of a well-deserved honor by having their wins unacknowledged ( I didn't mention onefiftysix, Daniel, or myself because we were not veterans then ).
I know you are busy, but in all fairness to the origin and history of the site comp, those winners should at least be listed ( if nothing else ) as well.
3. I originally had it at one win per year ( with an evaluation at the end of the year ), to allow more membership an opportunity to win. I strongly advocate returning to that, thus voted for A.
4. Review the spoken word aspect. Spoken word pieces clearly show DU avatars ( previous and current ), myself included, as well as user's names on their youtube page. Therefore, I strongly advocate reviewing the anonymity of these entries in regards to the competition.
5. Forum Signatures. Crimsin has pointed out signatures showing at the bottom of entries, which is also a breach of anonymity. She has posted a separate thread about this.
6. The nominating those with no more than 10 trophies should not be a factor in the Poem of the Month competition. What about those with more than 10 trophies ( or now you've said 15 or 20 ), who have never won the Poem of the Month? That is not fair to exclude them. If you want to hold competitions for those holding less than 10 trophies, then I suggest a separate competition geared toward that. But the Poem of the month should be open to EVERY POET once a year, regardless of the number of trophies they've won.
Thank you for both this poll and your consideration. I felt comfortable passing this torch to you because of your willingness to listen and ability to be fair.
I am somewhat defensive of Poem of the Month competition, because, as you know, it's one of my babies and legacy to DU ( as is Poet of the Week, Classic Comps, NaPo, etc. ). Please do not take the below suggestions personally. It's just that I worked VERY HARD with my facebook team to develop, implement, and establish this competition, then ran it solo for months before passing the torch to you, so it means the world to me.
1. Firstly, October's comp: none should've been hidden because no one violated competition guidelines. It's wonderful to go back to the old ways; however, the new rules should've been established in November's competition. I respectfully request that October's be put back on the table with the hidden poems restored, so we don't have a month missing.
2. Restore the original 'Poem of the Month Hall of Fame'.
https://deepundergroundpoetry.com/forum/speakeasy/read/9271/#373412
The competition didn't start in August of 2017, but the Fall of 2016. Therefore, the first winner, John Feddeler, followed by many Veteran DU members such as Vee, Crimsin, Case, AEMelia, and The_Silly_Sibyl have been wiped out of a well-deserved honor by having their wins unacknowledged ( I didn't mention onefiftysix, Daniel, or myself because we were not veterans then ).
I know you are busy, but in all fairness to the origin and history of the site comp, those winners should at least be listed ( if nothing else ) as well.
3. I originally had it at one win per year ( with an evaluation at the end of the year ), to allow more membership an opportunity to win. I strongly advocate returning to that, thus voted for A.
4. Review the spoken word aspect. Spoken word pieces clearly show DU avatars ( previous and current ), myself included, as well as user's names on their youtube page. Therefore, I strongly advocate reviewing the anonymity of these entries in regards to the competition.
5. Forum Signatures. Crimsin has pointed out signatures showing at the bottom of entries, which is also a breach of anonymity. She has posted a separate thread about this.
6. The nominating those with no more than 10 trophies should not be a factor in the Poem of the Month competition. What about those with more than 10 trophies ( or now you've said 15 or 20 ), who have never won the Poem of the Month? That is not fair to exclude them. If you want to hold competitions for those holding less than 10 trophies, then I suggest a separate competition geared toward that. But the Poem of the month should be open to EVERY POET once a year, regardless of the number of trophies they've won.
Thank you for both this poll and your consideration. I felt comfortable passing this torch to you because of your willingness to listen and ability to be fair.
Layla said:I voted A because I feel the usual favorite poets (obviously they are highly regarded, respected, loved, talented etc, etc...) keep getting nominations and (have won in that year) It would be nice to see different names per month.
But the confusion here is...are we nominating the poet, or are we nominating the poem?
Let's keep in mind they are not the same thing.
From what i read in the instructions of the competition its about the poem, what have we read that we felt was exceptional. There's no mention of, nominate the poet whom you feel is exceptionally talented.
If its about the poem, then the same poet can be nominated every month, and have a chance to win every month, since its about the work itself.
If its about the poet, then they can be nominated till they win, once per calendar year. then they shouldn't be nominated again to give others a chance.
As for new poets or the ones with less than 10 trophies, I feel that's a whole different topic and it should have its own competition.
It is NOT about the poet, but poem. Or, that was the original intent and spirit of the competition. It's about a poem to represent DU across social network sites. Of course the poet is highlighted as having written it; however, it's ALL about the POEM ( or should be ). However, I disagree with allowing that same poet to win repeatedly in one year because there are many great poets at DU who put out some amazing poetry. Certainly more than a dozen ( by my count, anyway ).
But the confusion here is...are we nominating the poet, or are we nominating the poem?
Let's keep in mind they are not the same thing.
From what i read in the instructions of the competition its about the poem, what have we read that we felt was exceptional. There's no mention of, nominate the poet whom you feel is exceptionally talented.
If its about the poem, then the same poet can be nominated every month, and have a chance to win every month, since its about the work itself.
If its about the poet, then they can be nominated till they win, once per calendar year. then they shouldn't be nominated again to give others a chance.
As for new poets or the ones with less than 10 trophies, I feel that's a whole different topic and it should have its own competition.
It is NOT about the poet, but poem. Or, that was the original intent and spirit of the competition. It's about a poem to represent DU across social network sites. Of course the poet is highlighted as having written it; however, it's ALL about the POEM ( or should be ). However, I disagree with allowing that same poet to win repeatedly in one year because there are many great poets at DU who put out some amazing poetry. Certainly more than a dozen ( by my count, anyway ).
Anonymous
Can I just say that spoken word anonymity or not, people know what people’s voices sound like. It ain’t rocket science.
Can I also say as somebody who runs a spoken word group that we encourage and nurture our members to enter their spoken words into comps, and to eradicate that aspect is counter productive as it is an equally valid creative area of the site.
Can I also say as somebody who runs a spoken word group that we encourage and nurture our members to enter their spoken words into comps, and to eradicate that aspect is counter productive as it is an equally valid creative area of the site.
Miss_Sub said:Can I just say that spoken word anonymity or not, people know what people’s voices sound like. It ain’t rocket science.
Can I also say as somebody who runs a spoken word group that we encourage and nurture our members to enter their spoken words into comps, and to eradicate that aspect is counter productive as an equally valid creative area of the site.
Firstly, I'm not the one who suggested it ( it was suggested to me privately ); and, secondly, I've had my own nominated, as well as entering myself, so understand exactly where you are coming from; however, if you're going to make the voting anonymous ( sigs and all ), then might as well make it text alone. Implementing one to preserve anonymity without the other isn't balanced.
Perhaps the spoken word group could hold a monthly comp and allow members of the group to vote in the group vs requesting a public vote. Spoken Word of the Month or something like that.
Public votes are the only competitions regarding issues with anonymity.
I personally feel anonymity isn't anonymity anyway. Most members know who penned the poem, as who they intend to vote for come the time. I'm just happy it wasn't implemented during my tenure running Poem of the Month. What a headache.
Can I also say as somebody who runs a spoken word group that we encourage and nurture our members to enter their spoken words into comps, and to eradicate that aspect is counter productive as an equally valid creative area of the site.
Firstly, I'm not the one who suggested it ( it was suggested to me privately ); and, secondly, I've had my own nominated, as well as entering myself, so understand exactly where you are coming from; however, if you're going to make the voting anonymous ( sigs and all ), then might as well make it text alone. Implementing one to preserve anonymity without the other isn't balanced.
Perhaps the spoken word group could hold a monthly comp and allow members of the group to vote in the group vs requesting a public vote. Spoken Word of the Month or something like that.
Public votes are the only competitions regarding issues with anonymity.
I personally feel anonymity isn't anonymity anyway. Most members know who penned the poem, as who they intend to vote for come the time. I'm just happy it wasn't implemented during my tenure running Poem of the Month. What a headache.
Anonymous
Firstly, didn’t say you did.
My second point is spoken word is not a separate part of the site and shouldn’t be separated from other valid entries. It’s a part of the DU. An expressive craft just as worthy as being written down.
That creativity should not be penalised.
My second point is spoken word is not a separate part of the site and shouldn’t be separated from other valid entries. It’s a part of the DU. An expressive craft just as worthy as being written down.
That creativity should not be penalised.
Miss_Sub said:Firstly, didn’t say you did.
My second point is spoken word is not a separate part of the site and shouldn’t be separated from other valid entries. It’s a part of the DU. An expressive craft just as worthy as being written down.
That creativity should not be penalised.
I wasn't accusing you of saying I did. I was merely listing points. I'm trying to have a nice conversation. We agreed on many of the issues. Now I see why the one who suggested it didn't want their name mentioned.
Then the only resolution would be to NOT make Poem of the Month anonymous. Though if the site is geared to make all public votes anonymous, then I don't see any way around it. Crim has a valid point about the sigs and the other has a valid point about spoken word. Both are valid points in regards to anonymity.
The actual written poem would not be excluded. Only the spoken version of it. I personally have no problem with submitting only the written version of my spoken word poem. But, if the spoken word is posted on the page, then the video will automatically show up if the link is nominated. So I don't know any way around that one. Plus there is a different dynamic between poems written to be spoken ( such as slam, etc. ) and poems written that are simply read.
It's an impasse. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
Again, I suggest a Spoken Word Poem of the Month ( or something of that nature ) for spoken word only. This would address the anonymity issues mentioned by membership regarding the current Poem of the Month. Such a comp is not separate from the site - it's a nice addition to the current honors of Poem of the Month and Poet of the Week. And, would be your legacy to DU, like the podcast.
But whatever.
My second point is spoken word is not a separate part of the site and shouldn’t be separated from other valid entries. It’s a part of the DU. An expressive craft just as worthy as being written down.
That creativity should not be penalised.
I wasn't accusing you of saying I did. I was merely listing points. I'm trying to have a nice conversation. We agreed on many of the issues. Now I see why the one who suggested it didn't want their name mentioned.
Then the only resolution would be to NOT make Poem of the Month anonymous. Though if the site is geared to make all public votes anonymous, then I don't see any way around it. Crim has a valid point about the sigs and the other has a valid point about spoken word. Both are valid points in regards to anonymity.
The actual written poem would not be excluded. Only the spoken version of it. I personally have no problem with submitting only the written version of my spoken word poem. But, if the spoken word is posted on the page, then the video will automatically show up if the link is nominated. So I don't know any way around that one. Plus there is a different dynamic between poems written to be spoken ( such as slam, etc. ) and poems written that are simply read.
It's an impasse. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
Again, I suggest a Spoken Word Poem of the Month ( or something of that nature ) for spoken word only. This would address the anonymity issues mentioned by membership regarding the current Poem of the Month. Such a comp is not separate from the site - it's a nice addition to the current honors of Poem of the Month and Poet of the Week. And, would be your legacy to DU, like the podcast.
But whatever.
Anonymous
I too was trying to have a constructive conversation about something I’m passionate about with no connotations of personal attack what so ever. Perhaps if you didn’t take stuff so personally we could have one.
But whatever.
But whatever.
Miss_Sub said:I too was trying to have a constructive conversation about something I’m passionate about with no connotations of personal attack what so ever. Perhaps if you didn’t take stuff so personally we could have one.
But whatever.
If having a constructive conversation is true, perhaps you could lay off the personal labeling and focus on constructive solutions regarding the actual issue? Because the former certainly doesn't help. I said I understand exactly where you are coming from. If I'm taking anything personally, it's that I understand exactly where you are coming from.
I was very honest about why I am so passionate about this in my opening statement; I'll repeat it:
Please do not take the below suggestions personally. It's just that I worked VERY HARD with my facebook team to develop, implement, and establish this competition, then ran it solo for months before passing the torch to you, so it means the world to me.
Final Edit: Look, when the Poem of the Month Competition was developed, anonymity wasn't an issue. But, times change; it's an issue now - one that needs to be addressed. If anonymity is required and we heed our membership's suggestions, then perhaps "Written Poem of the Month" should be separated from "Spoken Word of the Month" or whatever. The honors are still the same either way - it's just one is "anonymous" voting while the other can't be for obvious reasons, e.g. - user's names, avatars, etc. on their respective video sites.
I don't know what else to constructively suggest which would address all the concerns put forth by membership.
But whatever.
If having a constructive conversation is true, perhaps you could lay off the personal labeling and focus on constructive solutions regarding the actual issue? Because the former certainly doesn't help. I said I understand exactly where you are coming from. If I'm taking anything personally, it's that I understand exactly where you are coming from.
I was very honest about why I am so passionate about this in my opening statement; I'll repeat it:
Please do not take the below suggestions personally. It's just that I worked VERY HARD with my facebook team to develop, implement, and establish this competition, then ran it solo for months before passing the torch to you, so it means the world to me.
Final Edit: Look, when the Poem of the Month Competition was developed, anonymity wasn't an issue. But, times change; it's an issue now - one that needs to be addressed. If anonymity is required and we heed our membership's suggestions, then perhaps "Written Poem of the Month" should be separated from "Spoken Word of the Month" or whatever. The honors are still the same either way - it's just one is "anonymous" voting while the other can't be for obvious reasons, e.g. - user's names, avatars, etc. on their respective video sites.
I don't know what else to constructively suggest which would address all the concerns put forth by membership.
Anonymous
I voted A.
Thank you and goodnight.
Thank you and goodnight.
My 10 cents coming your way:
1. Anonymity is bull shit regardless of what shape it takes. Competiton readers and voters make up their mind before the vote in full view of the poets' ID
2. Anonymity is not possible or desirable it just doesn't work to anyone's benefit.
3. The competition calls for "Poem" of the month. Poet of the month would be a very different competition.
4. It should be voted the best poem of the month regardless of format. Graphic poems, Spoken word, Performance etc
5. Repeated wins are ok regardless even if a poet wins it every month - if it is truly POEM of the month
6. 10 trophies or less is bullshit. If it is Poem of the month it should include everyone, no exceptions.
7. I am not fond of the nomination system either with all the same names being nominated every month by the same nominators.
8. If you happen to be occasionally proud of something you have written you should be able to self nominate.
9. The poem of the month should be open to all genres regardless of topic. If it is too much for facebook then the poet's avatar should be posted with a link to the poem and maybe a trigger warning.
10. If this competition is truly democratic by vote it must be all-inclusive without poems being withdrawn,, taken down or hidden by one person in a postion of power - It should be a free vote surely
1. Anonymity is bull shit regardless of what shape it takes. Competiton readers and voters make up their mind before the vote in full view of the poets' ID
2. Anonymity is not possible or desirable it just doesn't work to anyone's benefit.
3. The competition calls for "Poem" of the month. Poet of the month would be a very different competition.
4. It should be voted the best poem of the month regardless of format. Graphic poems, Spoken word, Performance etc
5. Repeated wins are ok regardless even if a poet wins it every month - if it is truly POEM of the month
6. 10 trophies or less is bullshit. If it is Poem of the month it should include everyone, no exceptions.
7. I am not fond of the nomination system either with all the same names being nominated every month by the same nominators.
8. If you happen to be occasionally proud of something you have written you should be able to self nominate.
9. The poem of the month should be open to all genres regardless of topic. If it is too much for facebook then the poet's avatar should be posted with a link to the poem and maybe a trigger warning.
10. If this competition is truly democratic by vote it must be all-inclusive without poems being withdrawn,, taken down or hidden by one person in a postion of power - It should be a free vote surely
Anonymous
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