Just for the record- I would appreciate it if didn't have to read the growing number of PM's from people asking me to go and look at their work or comment on it etc.


I am grateful for the attention but I would rather find my own way to it-
Thanks all the same- good luck to all of you.

Regards TP.

Ask them to not private message you or just sdd them to your block list.

Its like getting friend requests on My_Space. It can suck, I hear, but theres not a lot you can do about it.

Anyone else besides TP and Alvin getting these?

I've gotten some but I'm happy to be focused a bit on things people want my feedback on. I ignore huge lists of poems however.

This seems like a good community thing to do and am glad to help (even if I'm being randomly spammed). I often find it hard to comment in depth because I'm not sure it's what people want, but if you request a "reading" then you green light an in depth crit (maybe at your peril). I guess if I was a superstar with 200 PM's each day I'd feel different, but I have enough so I can cope easily.

TP I guess that if you just ignore them then folks will soon realise that you aren't interested much in helping them.

ive gotten a few.i dont mind them. but i guess it's all a matter of opinion?

I've gotten a couple. I've treated them like spam.

If someone was seeking me out because they saw me critiquing other poets in the workshop the not should have been a little more personal.

I took as someone trying to get a bunch of views on their work so they could climb some list or something on here.

We had someone once pay for a banner advertisement to get more hits on their poetry. That was interesting.

I get a few a day, almost always from people that I've either engaged in the workshop or commented on in the finished poems section. The last day or two I've gotten a couple less personal. I just ignore them if there's no personal note.

John wrote:

We had someone once pay for a banner advertisement to get more hits on their poetry. That was interesting.

Yes, interesting but did it work?



WRT it being spam or to climb a list. I don't really see it that way. There is a boat load of bad poetry here. Anything that makes it better is worth a little effort on my part. If you want to read better poetry, then helping people improve their writing (even in a small way) is always a good way to go. I don't see the downside myself (although I'm so far from the top of any list that matters, I don't feel competitive about it). But hey, if you don't fancy it for any reason, click that delete button and get on with your day.

BrokenCrust wrote:

John wrote: We had someone once pay for a banner advertisement to get more hits on their poetry. That was interesting. Yes, interesting but did it work?

Yes, it got him a lot more reads and votes.

Well gee... elsewhere on this site there is a recommendation for people to do just that... to pm somebody and ask if they will look at a poem.

I get those. And if I have the time, I will look and comment. What the heck.

I feel free to ask those with whom I have already established a communication to look at something (mine or someone else's) if I want immediate feedback.

There are a couple of folks I am thinking about PMing... for whom I have made several comments on their work and they have not made any on mine... and I'd like to have their perspective.

I say treat those requests like anything else. If it's made with courtesy and seems genuine, treat it at face value. If you are annoyed by it, delete it, or give a pro forma reply.

Everything doesn't have to be that complicated, does it?

I got a couple. I dont think its spam. It's actually nice someone seeks out my opinion. And was able to discover poems I enjoyed too. But I do have a threshold, if ever it becomes a habit, then I'd just pm back to have them post in the forums for more feedback I guess.

John wrote:

Anyone else besides TP and Alvin getting these?

A few. I don't mind it...I also don't get so many requests that it's a burden.

As a side note, when the "banner" thing happened, it was hilariously genius I must admit.

TP, maybe your opinion is just more sought after because of your position on the ranks. Guess popularity comes with a cost.

I only got one, and the part that irked me was they pretended to know me.

(That's how I knew it wasn't a legitimate request. )

I think we're seeing a couple of very different kinds of requests - there have been a couple of rashes over the past couple of months of someone pm-ing LOTS of people on the site with something like

"I think you might like this"

or a pm with links to half a dozen or more poems. It's come up before on the coffee shop. It doesn't happen often, and when it does, I treat it the same as I do myspace friend requests from bands and promoters.

superjill wrote:

I only got one, and the part that irked me was they pretended to know me. (That's how I knew it wasn't a legitimate request. )

SJ: thats most what I get too- from people I haven't been in contact with. Not all.

E4F: From the sound of it I probably get a bit less than others - !! point taken though

BC: Personally don't have time to entertain all deserving causes (old or new)

this never happens to me what happens in most cases is i discover someone new in the finished section and comment on a few pieces which usually leads to a pm from said writer. sometimes they request another read but i don't have any problem doing that if i can. i don't see what the big problem is really. i guess as a curator we read so many poems anyway its not a big a deal to read one thats requesting a read.

so ah, since you all are here how about reading this new poem of mine.... (kidding)

brownbwi wrote:

so ah, since you all are here how about reading this new poem of mine.... (kidding)

LOL

My idea is this-

Use the forums.

TP: As I read the various views here, everything I can think of has already been said. I must say that I agree with Rosie (RZS) on this issue.

It's the poetry equivalent of someone knocking on my door trying to sell me their flavour of god.

It leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

Particularly when they insidiously disguise it by pretending to know me and implying that I commented on one of their poems by saying something along the lines of:

"Here's a couple more of my special, mind blowing, nipple erecting poems you might like..." (actually if they used 'nipple erecting' I'd probably have a look).

But seriously, the fact that you approach me like that is an immediate indicator that I'm not going to like your poetry because I already dislike the way you think.


Grrr... fucking greedy salesman everywhere.

Tekay wrote:

It's the poetry equivalent of someone knocking on my door trying to sell me their flavour of god. It leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. Particularly when they insidiously disguise it by pretending to know me and implying that I commented on one of their poems by saying something along the lines of: "Here's a couple more of my special, mind blowing, nipple erecting poems you might like..." (actually if they used 'nipple erecting' I'd probably have a look). But seriously, the fact that you approach me like that is an immediate indicator that I'm not going to like your poetry because I already dislike the way you think. Grrr... fucking greedy salesman everywhere.

Much as I hate to find parallels with any other human beings - this post is maybe what I wanted to write in the first place. I fully agree with every word of it-

my advice to people is the more you seek the more you need to seek- a way into a hole if you are not careful (not grave) just hole.

Tekay wrote:

"Here's a couple more of my special, mind blowing, nipple erecting poems you might like..." (actually if they used 'nipple erecting' I'd probably have a look).

Hey there big fella... I'll erect your nipples if you'll just take a peek at my latest poem.

Errr... I mean... I'll erect my nipples... or maybe I'll raise your "cane"... or maybe I'll (insert favorite slutty euphamism here) until you can't help yourself.



...or sumpthin.
Ok? Puhleeeeeeeeze look at my pome???

Trouserpress wrote:

My idea is this- Use the forums.

Yes.

superjill wrote:

I only got one, and the part that irked me was they pretended to know me. (That's how I knew it wasn't a legitimate request. )

ditto.

way I see it, it's a losing proposition. people generally don't like spam. so if they get a link to rate your poem in a piece of spam, they probably won't be in the best of moods when or if they do rate your poem.

jonathanchin wrote:

superjill wrote: I only got one, and the part that irked me was they pretended to know me. (That's how I knew it wasn't a legitimate request. ) ditto. way I see it, it's a losing proposition. people generally don't like spam. so if they get a link to rate your poem in a piece of spam, they probably won't be in the best of moods when or if they do rate your poem.

Huge agreement-