Rob, you can consult any thread of mine for discussions on this, as I'm always being told off for loose metrics.
I normally only write loose when I'm trying to write loose, but the thing that always comes up is that different people READ lines differently. I don't know how much of a problem that is - you can never dictate any given person's take on anything, as you know.
I sort of think of it the other way round to what you said here. I start out in a loose, demotic way and then, if I see a need with the piece, tighten. I really LIKE sloppy, speech-like, loose metrics. Well, it works for the kinds of things I'm writing, for a start. And it's a tone thing, too. AS you say the strict IP can be a bit ponderous. Often when I go into tight iambs I go tet.
Having said which, I don;t know how qualified I am even to be commenting. Have my recent attempts worked? The Milton one, for example, was reworked into a more Blank Verse form, though I may never have posted the final edit.
Hope that helps.
KEB
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