deepundergroundpoetry.com
just fiction
you needn’t bend me out of shape
it’s all just fiction kid
a rack with paperbacks
a little excitement for dad
on Sunday afternoon
returned from church
and wanting some cheap thrill
and if i spent last afternoon
fantasising
sweaty palmed
about some blonde and nubile daughter
securely tied to rack
and ruined like a sinner of
the fifteenth century
who can say i’ve not just found
the underground of longing kept
below the upper floors
of social consciousness
i’m read in bulk
and have my blurbs
to settle my good name
(monsters do not get pull-quotes)
see my author’s photograph
in jaunty sailor’s cap
read about philanthropy
i’ve spread
in donations to book buses
so if i spent my saturday
describing child rape
and titillating readers with
a teenage girl’s chopped head
used as a cheap flesh-light
remember i’ve been wed
for almost fifteen years
with offspring raised and loved
it’s all just fiction kid
it’s all just fiction kid
a rack with paperbacks
a little excitement for dad
on Sunday afternoon
returned from church
and wanting some cheap thrill
and if i spent last afternoon
fantasising
sweaty palmed
about some blonde and nubile daughter
securely tied to rack
and ruined like a sinner of
the fifteenth century
who can say i’ve not just found
the underground of longing kept
below the upper floors
of social consciousness
i’m read in bulk
and have my blurbs
to settle my good name
(monsters do not get pull-quotes)
see my author’s photograph
in jaunty sailor’s cap
read about philanthropy
i’ve spread
in donations to book buses
so if i spent my saturday
describing child rape
and titillating readers with
a teenage girl’s chopped head
used as a cheap flesh-light
remember i’ve been wed
for almost fifteen years
with offspring raised and loved
it’s all just fiction kid
Published 23rd Jan 2021
Author's Note
This is a re-write of a poem I wrote 7 or 8 years ago. The bookmarked webpage including it has since become defunct, causing it and a fair amount of other work to become lost. (Always save your poems to a separate file, guys.)
I’m not too worried about “just fiction”, though, as I’m glad I got the chance to rewrite it into something better. It was inspired by James Patterson, an American thriller novelist who wrote awful novels about women being stalked, raped, and killed, inviting the reader to share the killer’s gaze. He now peddles women’s and children’s books.
In a larger sense, tho, the poem is about writers of that ilk, who traffic in scenes of grotesque female suffering under the “thriller” label. The victims tend to be either prostitutes or attractive girls.
I’m not too worried about “just fiction”, though, as I’m glad I got the chance to rewrite it into something better. It was inspired by James Patterson, an American thriller novelist who wrote awful novels about women being stalked, raped, and killed, inviting the reader to share the killer’s gaze. He now peddles women’s and children’s books.
In a larger sense, tho, the poem is about writers of that ilk, who traffic in scenes of grotesque female suffering under the “thriller” label. The victims tend to be either prostitutes or attractive girls.
All writing remains the property of the author. Don't use it for any purpose without their permission.
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The author encourages honest critique.
This is a very brave ( and well done ) write, Jack. I love writers who succumb to their imaginations ( or desires, whichever one holds truth ). We all feel like we could kill others in an unimaginable way at times; writing allows us to vent.
who can say i’ve not just found
the underground of longing kept
below the upper floors
of social consciousness
That right there is a kick-ass stanza. Just damn.
I've read quite a bit of Patterson myself. I think that was in my Dean Koontz phase of reading. LOL!
who can say i’ve not just found
the underground of longing kept
below the upper floors
of social consciousness
That right there is a kick-ass stanza. Just damn.
I've read quite a bit of Patterson myself. I think that was in my Dean Koontz phase of reading. LOL!
23rd Jan 2021 8:50pm
Anonymous
24th Jan 2021 3:38pm
I refuse to read Patterson because his books are padded with large printed lines muchly spaced apart, creating more pages and the illusion of thicker novels. It's ridiculous.
Anyhoo, I enjoyed this, especially how at first the narrator appears to be only a reader until the revelation he is a writer.
Don't know if you saw it, but I started a thread in the Speakeasy forum about recovering lost poetry.
Anyhoo, I enjoyed this, especially how at first the narrator appears to be only a reader until the revelation he is a writer.
Don't know if you saw it, but I started a thread in the Speakeasy forum about recovering lost poetry.
24th Jan 2021 4:52pm
That’s also one of the reasons I dislike Patterson. He's probably my least favourite writer in that respect. The wide margins, one or two-page chapters, co-authors who do the real work while he just writes an outline...
Thank you for your kind comment, JB, and I’ll check out the thread.
Thank you for your kind comment, JB, and I’ll check out the thread.
