The BEAM Hypothesis
The BEAM is a short poem, 8-20 lines. It isn't necessarily impersonal or personal, but it must transcend mere subjectivity. "I" can't be played straight. The BEAM has its' roots in Surrealist and Objectivist poetics. Things needn't be what they are, but they must somehow be "seen" in a clear light. If you write, "she leapt burning through ashes", for instance, we know this isn't literal but it can be seen nonetheless.
The BEAM should be page-centered (which I DON'T know how to do on this blog, unfortunately....if anyone could let me know...). A BEAM must not be projective, its' predetermined form must act as a conduit to content rather than vice versa. Centering the poem gives it substantiality, while its' imagery lets it float into the stratosphere. It's like a sonnet with more space, greater airiness.
BEAMs should generally be written in couplets or single lines. A BEAM couplet fulfills the role a beam does in architecture-- it builds, structures, supports. Its' central position reinforces the impression of substantiality. Meanwhile, single lines interspersed function as "beams of light". They're pure shots into poetic space, flashes of imagery, insight, gist-phrasing, etc. Light-beams illuminate built-beams, built-beams support and buttress light-beams. Together, they posit the BEAM as a kind of "light-house" or "light-structure". A BEAM should blend concrete w/ ozone, specifics w/ abstractions, substantiality w/ ethereality. It's a form built to be "seen".
So here's two of the better BEAMS I've scribed, "Call" and "Loose Canon":
leaves and pavement fastened to my phone
you cast a salt-harbored spell from Boston
crabbing in a scuttle beneath me
born of phonological effluvia
carressed vowels 'twixt your tongue and teeth
taste of buttered lobster sans bibs
I moseyed, street streaked black, benighted,
tired, decompressed to nothingness...
sullen street-light scintillations
picked meat in your consonants
pavement gave way to gravy
my phone had an orgasm and gave out
That was "Call",BEAM #1, this is "Loose Canon", BEAM #2:
shots ricocheted at borders
coated walls absorbed friction-lit brigades
sensitive machines registered red hits
sleep fell on specifics regardless
universals fried sausages
not much could be spoken of remorse
second skirmish sent forces scattering
shards of green glass littered forest floors
irreplaceable antiques wiped their eyes
on the cuffs of the loosest canon...
I didn't expect immolation to arrive so soon
Alright, my friends this (for better or for worse) is the BEAM. Please let me know if you think I've discovered something worthwhile or if I should go back to free-verse....
The BEAM should be page-centered (which I DON'T know how to do on this blog, unfortunately....if anyone could let me know...). A BEAM must not be projective, its' predetermined form must act as a conduit to content rather than vice versa. Centering the poem gives it substantiality, while its' imagery lets it float into the stratosphere. It's like a sonnet with more space, greater airiness.
BEAMs should generally be written in couplets or single lines. A BEAM couplet fulfills the role a beam does in architecture-- it builds, structures, supports. Its' central position reinforces the impression of substantiality. Meanwhile, single lines interspersed function as "beams of light". They're pure shots into poetic space, flashes of imagery, insight, gist-phrasing, etc. Light-beams illuminate built-beams, built-beams support and buttress light-beams. Together, they posit the BEAM as a kind of "light-house" or "light-structure". A BEAM should blend concrete w/ ozone, specifics w/ abstractions, substantiality w/ ethereality. It's a form built to be "seen".
So here's two of the better BEAMS I've scribed, "Call" and "Loose Canon":
leaves and pavement fastened to my phone
you cast a salt-harbored spell from Boston
crabbing in a scuttle beneath me
born of phonological effluvia
carressed vowels 'twixt your tongue and teeth
taste of buttered lobster sans bibs
I moseyed, street streaked black, benighted,
tired, decompressed to nothingness...
sullen street-light scintillations
picked meat in your consonants
pavement gave way to gravy
my phone had an orgasm and gave out
That was "Call",BEAM #1, this is "Loose Canon", BEAM #2:
shots ricocheted at borders
coated walls absorbed friction-lit brigades
sensitive machines registered red hits
sleep fell on specifics regardless
universals fried sausages
not much could be spoken of remorse
second skirmish sent forces scattering
shards of green glass littered forest floors
irreplaceable antiques wiped their eyes
on the cuffs of the loosest canon...
I didn't expect immolation to arrive so soon
Alright, my friends this (for better or for worse) is the BEAM. Please let me know if you think I've discovered something worthwhile or if I should go back to free-verse....
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