Comments on: Judges, Editors and Poetry Manuscripts: Some Musings http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2007/08/judges-editors-and-poetry-manuscripts-some-musings/ A blog from the Poetry Foundation where contemporary poets debate classic and contemporary poetry from America and around the world. Sun, 21 Mar 2010 22:38:48 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: kwame http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2007/08/judges-editors-and-poetry-manuscripts-some-musings/#comment-780 kwame Sun, 26 Aug 2007 03:57:18 +0000 http://pf/harriet/?p=340#comment-780 You are a good soul. I hope there is a way to let all the entrants know that you read every word. And yes, since Afaa Weaver bestowed that title on me (officially), I have to go by the moniker. One love, Big Daddy KD You are a good soul. I hope there is a way to let all the entrants know that you read every word. And yes, since Afaa Weaver bestowed that title on me (officially), I have to go by the moniker. One love, Big Daddy KD

]]> By: NH http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2007/08/judges-editors-and-poetry-manuscripts-some-musings/#comment-779 NH Sat, 25 Aug 2007 22:41:08 +0000 http://pf/harriet/?p=340#comment-779 Well Kwame... It's funny you should write about this as I'm in the middle of reading sixty-some manuscripts for a first book contest and must whittle it down to 4 or 5 choices in a matter of days. I have felt a responsibility to read each word, and I have succeeded at setting aside projects that are very far from my own aesthetic interests. It's time consuming, but a very relaxing process, and I am learning a lot, and of course hoping this assists with the writing of my own poetry that will one day find me judge and not a reader...smile. Anyway, maybe your post has given me permission to re-think reading 60 pages of rhyming couplets. By the way, do you still go by the name...Big Daddy? Much Love, NH Well Kwame…
It’s funny you should write about this as I’m in the middle of reading sixty-some manuscripts for a first book contest and must whittle it down to 4 or 5 choices in a matter of days. I have felt a responsibility to read each word, and I have succeeded at setting aside projects that are very far from my own aesthetic interests. It’s time consuming, but a very relaxing process, and I am learning a lot, and of course hoping this assists with the writing of my own poetry that will one day find me judge and not a reader…smile. Anyway, maybe your post has given me permission to re-think reading 60 pages of rhyming couplets. By the way, do you still go by the name…Big Daddy?
Much Love,
NH

]]> By: Richard Cox http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2007/08/judges-editors-and-poetry-manuscripts-some-musings/#comment-778 Richard Cox Sat, 25 Aug 2007 15:39:57 +0000 http://pf/harriet/?p=340#comment-778 <p>The Foetry crowd focused quite a bit on suspect relationships between contest judges and contest winners, but the following is a look at one of their concerns: <blockquote>It may well be that other judges are far more conscientious. If they are, it is usually because few of them actually judge the whole contest. Often of the hundred or so submitted, the judge will see fifteen—the other eighty-five would have been eliminated by overworked and quite tired graduate students, sub-editors, interns, etc.</blockquote> <p>Many of these contests are largely judged not by the judges proper but by grad students, interns, and so on who select the finalists. These anonymous worker bees may have their own suspect relationships with the finalists they select, although we don't know because we don't know who these screeners are. <p>More importantly, though, I wonder how many judges chafe against the poor choices or conflicting aesthetics of the screeners.</p></p></p> The Foetry crowd focused quite a bit on suspect relationships between contest judges and contest winners, but the following is a look at one of their concerns:

It may well be that other judges are far more conscientious. If they are, it is usually because few of them actually judge the whole contest. Often of the hundred or so submitted, the judge will see fifteen—the other eighty-five would have been eliminated by overworked and quite tired graduate students, sub-editors, interns, etc.

Many of these contests are largely judged not by the judges proper but by grad students, interns, and so on who select the finalists. These anonymous worker bees may have their own suspect relationships with the finalists they select, although we don’t know because we don’t know who these screeners are.

More importantly, though, I wonder how many judges chafe against the poor choices or conflicting aesthetics of the screeners.

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