[Janice D. Soderling]

If you have a problem about any of my posts make them to me directly, here or in an email.
I will be happy to argue the toss with you.

If it started as a public debate, i.e. in a public thread, then it should continue as a public debate. It doesn't make sense that one person (you Ross) should have an option to post opinions publicly and then insist that all disagreement (i.e. Roger) takes place--as it were--in some invisible space.

I don't see what the problem is. There are gazillions of places to send work and no one can write new poems to submit to all. Just choose among what you want to keep secret to send to the editors who (if they do) demand google-proof poems.

If someone has to post every single poem for help to make it a fair-to-middling or "good" poem, then that person hasn't yet got to the stage where submitting to editors should be an option. It might very well be that an editor would like to know if the poem in question is really the poet's own work, or if it is a collective effort. I don't think that should be hidden from view.

I'm not talking about small items that fresh experienced eyes will note (a line slightly off-meter, a weak opening/closing to a good poem, an opportunity to weigh the pros and cons from various perspectives.)

NO ONE has the absolutely correct answer about how the poem should be changed--no one except the poet.

This isn't a place to bring OLD poems to present one a week to get an audience. We see often see excuses for crappy postings "oh, this is an old one I took from my stash of fifty million written over the past twenty-five years (and now I have finally got an audience)".

All poems posted should reflect the current level of competence of the poet, i.e. it should be NEWLY WRITTEN and the author seeking, truly seeking, advice about improving not only that particular poem but improve his/her writing ability. After a few months of this, the poet should be able to stand on his own feet. If not, you are in the wrong forum.

We see a lot of pompous and silly comments and chit-chat these days in response to poems posted--rather than not helpful comments based on the prosody toolbox.

This has lowered Eratosphere standards.

That said, there are (thank goodness) still many (both newcomers and oldtimers) who comment in helpful ways, who know what they are talking about when they make a suggestion based on craftsmanship. And they are the ones who make Eratosphere a fine community.

Don't fix it if it ain't broken.