Poetry is alive.
The art of poetry began speaking to me during a season of life that began in 2018. Everything seemed to be in turmoil. Some relational ties became severed, friendships shifted, beliefs changed, and a new career was upended, leaving me with more questions than I knew how to handle. I found that poetry could cast a light into the areas of life that were shadowed, offering the ability to create meaning around events that seemed to offer none.
In early 2021 I began writing poetry to work through questions that I held. Adding creativity to my life added a color that had faded slowly over many years. This writing has occurred in 30-minute blocks scattered among the other commitments of my life, and through consistency I have found steady growth and development of my poetic voice. With that foundation, I launched this newsletter in the Spring of 2023 to share my written and spoken poetry, accompanied by the process that goes into the creation of a poem.
Within Poetry & Process, we come together to experience how poetry weaves its way into the process of our lives. We read poetry methodically and repetitively to allow poems to metabolize by sitting with each for a week. We then reflect on the creative process that brought the poem into being, the themes that I intended to be in the poem, and what you uncover in the openness of the poem. Finally, I offer the opportunity to memorize poetry as a community, to bring poetry into the deepest parts of ourselves and carry it with us to each place we arrive.
I believe poetry is alive. If you wholeheartedly agree, or hope to experience this in some way, join me!
Brian
Why subscribe? You’ll receive the following:
A Poem: 2-3 original poems per month, meticulously crafted, both written and spoken
A Reflection: 2-3 reflection newsletters per month on how the preceding poem came to be and my take on the poem’s themes
A Memory: One memory newsletter every other Sunday that will contain a stanza from select poets that the Poetry & Process community will memorize together throughout the week, with accompanying discussion in the Chat feature on the Substack app
Gathering: One Zoom gathering per quarter where the Poetry & Process community will meet to speak poems to each other
Archive: Access to all Poems, Reflections, Memories and Drafts in the archive
Most importantly, my sincere appreciation for supporting my creative work and for allowing Poetry & Process to evolve
There are two paid subscription options that will provide access to the full Poetry & Process community, monthly or annual. The subscription costs $6 per month or $50 annually (30% discount for annual). Free subscribers will always receive Poems, Reflections, and the full newsletter archives.
I offer this haven to you, a place to pause and draw life from a poetic deep source. My hope is that you will join this community!
From the archive
About Brian Funke
Brian Funke is a poet living in Missouri. He loves all things outside, enjoys yoga and rucking, and is finding spirituality in meditation. He is married and has three teens. He works full time as an employee benefits consultant and writes poetry as consistently as possible in 30-minute blocks of time.
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