POETRY
I’m not generally a fan of it on Tumblr pages.
For one thing, poetry is something to be read slowly, and maybe reread. Each word has to be sounded. This requires a different head space, and a different pace than the main fodder I see in blogs and especially Tumblr logs. Of course I could also mention that most of what is posted by anyone under 25 is crap, but that would be to lose followers and worry friends.
I do think it’s best though if you write poems to lock them away for a couple of years to incubate.
If when you return to them you don’t cringe they may actually be good and worth sharing. Unfortunately, all those wonderful instant publishing tools we have now encourage people to post anything and everything w/o evaluating it.
I have even seen people transfer their half-formed thoughts from mobile phone to blog just because technology makes it possible, and post those with a sense of triumph. Thus we are forced, increasingly, to scroll and skim through screenfuls of inanity to find the odd item that reminds us of why we’re here.
Depending on the day, it can be like panning for gold and finding enough nuggets to make it worthwhile, or rolling Sisyphus’s stone uphill.
