now that what i want in my manuscript is more finalized (or at least i’m not switching around the order, taking 10 poems out putting 10 back in everytime i edit), i’ve been discovering a lot about my writing with each read-through, particularly my writing-crutches…what i lean on to make an ending where i don’t have an ending, words i can’t seem to stay away from, images used in more than one poem. they seem so obvious when i read so much of my work collected together, but i honestly never noticed them before now.
some of my overused words: cicada (not that i use it so much, its just such an unusual word more than one or two occurrences in a book really pop out. kind of like the word “improbable.” i hate that word in poems.). and a bunch of simple words that slip in while i barely notice. also some overused rhythms and sentence patterns…stuff that isn’t necessarily bad in a particular poem, but doesn’t work when there are a lot of those poems together.oh and i write way too much about windows.
i find something new that needs work every time i edit. so, new and probably more realistic publication goal for my manuscript–spring 2021 or 2031 maybe? maybe before babygirl makes it to college? oh my.
Renee Emerson 
thoughts?