Today's Recommended Poet
"While not all of his work is poetry, when it comes to writing about yourself Henry Rollins is about as honest and upfront a writer as you will find."

John Hewitt wrote an article called Five Lessons Poets Can Learn From Henry Rollins that contains some really good advice. So I will be quoting from that piece and exploring a little bit of the poetic side of Henry Rollins. Rollins has been called Rock's Renaissance Man. He is a singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, stand-up comedian, author, actor and publisher. Admit it, in some form or another you have probably heard of this guy.

Henry Rollins' first spoken word album, Short Walk on a Long Pier, was created from live performance done across the country and released in 1985. He started out his early career standing on the stage reading from a notebook. As he progressed he gained confidence in her material and his delivery. This can be most significantly noticed by contrasting Short Walk with his second spoken word album, Big Ugly Mouth. It was released in 1987, just previous to the height of the spoken word movement.

According to Hewitt, these are the 5 things you can learn from Rollins:

1. Write about yourself honestly
2. Be open to change - "I believe that one defines oneself by reinvention. To not be like your parents. To not be like your friends. To be yourself. To cut yourself out of stone." – H.R.
3. Hard work will be rewarded
4. Self publish if you have to
5. Don't be afraid to fail - "Scar tissue is stronger than regular tissue. Realize the strength, move on." – H.R.

Which of these things is the most helpful to you as a writer? Which lesson do you need to learn the most?

Rollins has been writing since high school. He is extremely well read. He is one of the few artists I have ever heard talk so openly about the literature that has moved him and why. In a 2005 interview with The Modern Word, I found another lesson you can learn for Rollins, or maybe just the reiteration that hard work gets rewarded.

"I have really no talent for writing, merely an obsession and some kind of strange duty I feel. Yet I never felt that I’m any good at it. I can’t even say I enjoy writing. I sometimes wish I could stop. Unfortunately I can’t."

But how would a Rollins respond to that? With outrage I am sure. There is a certain pleasure I take in beating myself up against the wall, of getting the words, the order, the everything right. Marcia Garcia Tabor/Teutsch of Ping Pong Magazine would likely disagree with Rollins' above statement too. About Rollins she says,

"His words are like a wrecking ball smashing the ivory tower which has held literature hostage for years. He has set it free. He takes on politics, literature and music with intelligence and eloquence in his spoken word shows. He rants, he shouts, he gets your attention, and he is unrelenting. His words are weapons, his words are wildflowers, his words will smack you down and then help you up again, his words will leave you wanting more, and he will give you more, without expectation, without mandate, but with a definite idea of the possibilities inherent in each of us. Like Walt Whitman, his words will help you to believe that transcendence is possible, that language matters, that the right to freely express yourself matters, and that maybe, just maybe, you too have something to say."

I know that block quote is huge, but you have to read it, and then you have to track down some Henry Rollins and understand why you too can do this, why you too have something to say! What makes Rollins' unique as a poet and artist? And how, besides Hewitt's 5 things, can you apply that unique quality to your writing?

Instead of a list of works online I am going to leave you now with what seems to be Rollins' most popular poem.

I Know You

I know you
you were too short
you had bad skin
you couldn't talk to them very well
words didn't seem to work
they lied when they came out of your mouth
you tried so hard to understand them
you wanted to be part of what was happening
you saw them having fun
and it seemed like such a mystery
almost magic
made you think that there was something wrong with you
you'd look in the mirror trying to find it
you thought that you were ugly
and that everyone was looking at you
so you learned to be invisible
to look down
to avoid conversation
the hours
days
weekends
ah the weekend nights, alone
where were you
in the basement?
in the attic?
in your room?
working some job?
just to have something to do
just to have a place to put yourself
just to have a way to get away from them
a chance to get away from the ones that made you feel so strange and ill-at-ease inside yourself
did you ever get invited to one of their parties
you sat and wondered if you would go or not
for hours you imagined the scenarios that might transpire
they would laugh at you
if you would know what to do
if you would have the right things on
if they would notice that you came from a different planet
did you get all brave in your thoughts
like you were going to be able to go in there and deal with it
and have a great time
did you think that you might be "the life of the party"
that all these people were gonna talk to you
and you would find out that you were wrong
that you had a lot of friends
and you weren't so strange after all?
did you end up going
did they mess with you
did they single you out
did you find out that you were invited
because they thought you were so weird
yeah, I think I know you
you spent a lot of time full of hate
a hate that was pure as sunshine
a hate that saw for miles
a hate that kept you up at night
a hate that filled your every waking moment
a hate that carried you for a long time
yes I think I know you
you couldn't figure out what they saw and the way they lived
home was not home
your room was home
a corner was home
the place they weren't- that was home
I know you
you're sensitive
and you hide it, because you fear getting stepped on one more time
it seems that when you show a part of yourself that is the least bit vulnerable
someone takes advantage of you
one of them steps on you
they mistake kindness for weakness
but you know the difference
you've been the brunt of their weakness for years
and strength is something you know a bit about
because you had to be strong to keep yourself alive
you know yourself very well now
and you don't trust people
you know them too well
you try to find that "special person"
someone you can be with
someone you can touch
someone you can talk to
someone you won't feel so strange around
and you found that they don't really exist
you feel closer to people on movie screens
yeah, I think I know you
you spend a lot of time daydreaming
and people have made comment to that effect
telling you that you're "self-involved" and "self-centered"
but they don't know, do they
about the long nightshifts alone
about the years of keeping yourself company
all the nights you wrapped your arms around yourself
so you could imagine someone holding you
the hours of indecision
self-doubt
the intense depression
the blinding hate
the rage that made you stagger
the devastation of rejection
well
maybe they do know
but if they do
they sure do a good job of hiding it
it astounds you how they can be so smooth
how they seem to pass through life as if life itself was some divine gift
and it infuriates you to watch yourself with your apparent skill,
and finding every way possible to screw it up
for you, life is a long trip
terrifying and wonderful
birds sing to you at night
the rain and the sun
the changing seasons
are true friends
solitude is a hard won ally
faithful and patient
yeah, I think I know you

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Are you a fan of Rollins? Share you insights on why in the comments.save