I’ve been thinking about how much our writing is shaped by the people we read, especially the poets we encounter right here in this community. Who are some writers from this site who have influenced your poetic style, challenged the way you approach a poem, or inspired you to try something new?
@LadySpark has taught me how important it is to cut poetry down to the bone!! she's always so concise and clear with her images and her reviews have challenged me to do the same. I adore her style and have tried to emulate it a couple times. @/cocteau, otherwise known as chi, was also a great influence. he taught me so many things about poetry that i can't list them all, but chief among them was the art of tone and how the same words in a different order can feel completely different. I take a lot of inspiration still from his work. @Avian has shown me how important it is to be honest with yourself in poetry!! to be authentic and raw and real (with a little embellishment, of course).
Just to name a few: @alliyah, because I'm such a sucker for her ancestry poems. @herb, the most innovative poet I've read. @cherie, who writes such beautiful poetry for worship. @/chi, probably the most prolific poet I've met. @romanticchemist because I mean, have you read her love poetry?