collaborative |kəˈlabərətiv|
adjective
produced or conducted by two or more parties working together : collaborative research.
DERIVATIVES
collaboratively |kəˈløbərəd1vli| adverb
Welcome to The Collaborative Issue of Poemeleon! As in, all of the works presented herein were produced by two or more parties working together to shape the whole.
Some of these pieces represent years, years, of revision and hard work as the authors passed their poems back and forth, feeding off one another. Some of these were created two words at a time; some were written in series, in a call-and-response technique. Some of them were left, secretively, in sealed envelopes on each others’ doorstep for the other to find and respond to; some were created via e-mail exchanges that crossed continents, even oceans. One poet even, after much revision, traveled across the country to finally be in the same room with her collaborator, only to sit on the opposite side and continue the exchange electronically via separate laptops. Some of these collaborations were produced in longstanding group workshop settings. Some were even produced in recording studios. All of this to say: There is no end to the myriad ways in which collaborators can collaborate.
In this issue you will find a plethora of juicy work. In addition to all of the fine poems, please be sure to check out Marilyn L. Taylor’s essay, “Dare You and Another Poet Collaborate?,” which challenges assumptions about the value of collaborative poetry (and includes a collaborative poem by our very own Tom C. Hunley with Denise Duhamel), Martha Deed’s “From Fluorescent Cocktails to Pure Cement,” an essay that chronicles the author’s fruitful seven-year relationship with her collaborator, and which includes numerous links to an array of multi-media collaborations (like this one), and Tom C. Hunley's collaborative book reviews of the collaborative poetry collections Feelings, Assoc., Bling & Fringe, and Making It Up.
Oh, and of course you can’t miss our exclusive collaborative Ghazal, “Alphabet The I Out,” compiled as part of our Habitual Poet Contributor Interview Series. Plus: The winner of the 4th Mystery Box Contest!
So please: Dip in, enjoy, and come back again for more!
~
Further reference: Interested parties might also want to check out Admit2, qarrtsiluni’s “Mutating the Signature” issue, and We Are Homer, a blog devoted to discussing the collaborative efforts of writers, as well as the anthology, Saints of Hysteria: A Half-Century of Collaborative American Poetry.