Punishable by Poetry

'the wrath of a poet scorned'

What's behind these words,

     blood, sweat, tears

        heart & soul, 

reaching into the vastness

 of perception and tangibility~

            swept away by pen

when you step on my emotions

          it leaves a scar

I surrender unto you my word

      you steal them; it's broken trust

a betrayal punishable by the law of poets

we spew back in poetry with assasination

until the dirty deed comes undone

heed the warnings, they are everywhere

Do not tread lightly 

upon the shadow I have cast

the dark side will eat you alive

Author's Note

seriously captcha - spoofer

Reviews

[Holly Mason]

you tell them girl...I was thinking about this last night...
love that ending I am shaking in my slippers
I am glad you published I was about to mail a whiny note of when..I was unpatiently waiting
thank you for telling them how it is how much it can hurt and the fact that the dark side will eat them alive

[Frieda P]

I haven't stopped thinking about it either, I don't think people realize the magnitude of their actions and the impact this has on a writer, especially a site such as this...we give birth to our words as though they were our children, good, bad or indifferent, I for one am very overprotective of mine. Thanks so much Holly.

[Holly Mason]

over protection is needed...I was told by someone that this site is different because it is automatically considered published work...I looked up all the laws no cash-no sass!!!that is what it is To lose your work is not nice that would hurt so bad

[Frieda P]

Seriously? That's not good...ftw!! Now I'm going to give myself another headache thinking about that....

[Holly Mason]

well another writer just told me the same thing again in a review of night crawl and I like this guy he is intelligent and a nice person...according to my reading without a signed/ money exchange contract they are not considered LEGALLY published but that doesn't mean that is what a publisher thinks...now I have a headache*)

[Frieda P]

Fook! Money makes the world go around alright!

[Ufi Auttorri ~ UfoAuthor]

Hey, y'all. Sorry for butting into this aging thread but If anyone is seriously concerned about copyright and plagiarism of what they offer here then secure a block of ISBN numbers, pile them all together into a book, pay for a couple of print-on-demand copies and send them to the Library of Congress and the Copyright Office with the associated fees. I think most publishers would want "first rights" so if you put it up here, even though it's provably copyrighted, don't be surprised if they reject it. Most will do that as they want material that has not yet been read by or offered to the public in any form or venue.

We should probably just consider the things we put up here as either advertising, soliciting, venting, sketching of ideas for feedback; or all of the preceding.

[Frieda P]

Feel free, and thanks for the info. I think it's more of the fact that it's a huge slap in the face and a betrayal to all poets on this site or anywhere for that matter. To take someone else's work and attach your name to their heartfelt words & experiences is criminal in my mind...also they were supposedly a 'friend' here, it's more of a personal assault on my senses more than anything....

[Ufi Auttorri ~ UfoAuthor]

Yes, Frieda, I agree with you. That sort of behavior certainly draws attention to a difference in mind/spirit as it regards a sense of propriety and the willingness to adhere to certain rules of engagement. Perhaps you may take some satisfaction of a sort in a variant on that old saw about imitation being a sincere form of flattery; in this case plagiarism being a sincere form of recognition that your work has value. ;-)

[Frieda P]

Ha such positivity! It was not my work she plagiarized, but I'm not sure Celine Dion would be as forgiving! ;-)

[Ufi Auttorri ~ UfoAuthor]

Oh! My bad. I thought it was one of yours (or someone here). Well, perhaps they considered it a "cover." You know, "I typed this and revised the formatting/punctuation so it's like my way of saying... don'cha know, huh?" ;-)

[Frieda P]

Nope on all counts....it was a 'friend' here and more than half her catalouge was fraudulent.... a very painful slap in the face.

[Ufi Auttorri ~ UfoAuthor]

Well, I don't know how she/he/it imagined that could turn out well. Obviously it didn't. Thanks for the clarification.

[Barbara Walker]

Your words express the thoughts of writers world-wide. I don't think a copyright is a guarantee against theft, but it helps in a court of law. Do these thieves have a clue that our words may as well be written in our blood and our writings run with rivers of it? I think not! This is an awesome piece!

[Frieda P]

I think not Barbara, they don't value our written word the way we do, or how could anyone even think in those terms? Thanks so much.

[Jack...]

Frieda, you embrace a subject that I think we all think about from time to time. But we are placing ourselves at risk by putting our stuff out for anyone and everyone who happens by. It is unfortunate that people have to resort to things like this, but it is no different than leaving your purse in your car at the mall. Someone is liable to steal it. I am not saying that we are at fault, I am just saying we all stand this chance and we all should be looking out for each other. You have touched a nerve,.

[Frieda P]

I could replace my purse and although it would be annoying, my words come from an entirely different place...thanks for your input Jack.

[Jack...]

Sorry

[Frieda P]

No need for you to be sorry, that's on the plagiarist, who I think is only sorry because they got caught!

[Sheila Kline]

There is one writer who had work stolen and she used it to her advantage by advertising that her writings were so good other people wanted to swipe them.......guess, it worked to her advantage and she has told a lot of works because of it.
I have been reading the comments about being published on this site, and I also thought it was protected by the site, but I guess not by what I interpret. I add the copyright to some of mine, but how far does that go? I am not sure. In this day and age, there are too many who want to profit from the work of others. We do treat our work like our children, but why shouldn't we? It comes from the very soul of us!!
Thanks for bringing this topic to light!!

[Frieda P]

It doesn't usually work out that way...it's mostly because other people are too lazy or insecure or not creative enough to use their own minds. Why bother, and what satisfaction could you possibly get out of it is my query. Still not sure about copyright infringement & the law, seems to be nothing concrete out there to say what our rights as the poet really is. Thanks for your thoughts Shelia.

[Muse]

I've only been copied once "that I know of" I made a public humiliation of them. I was actually told by someone that I went too far, that they were just paying me a compliment. And I thought no way! My name was not on it anywhere. I learned that it was a young girl who loved it so much she wanted to post it to share her feelings during that point in time and she made a public apology. I don't think she will ever do that again. But I did take it personally. When I write..it's from my soul....you want to share my soul...well that's personal property...it's best to ask!

[Frieda P]

Too far? Is there such a thing when someone steals something so dear to us...flattery is nice but still no excuse! I so agree, most of us write the same way from somewhere deep down inside, that someone would be so flippant with our feelings and our words is beyond 'words', it's personal & those can't be replaced like a stolen wallet or such.

[N!LoC]

suddenly the word "taylor swift" comes to mind :-p

[Frieda P]

Exactly what are you trying to say here N!LoC? ;-P

[N!LoC]

hi hi hi... u know.... when something or someone inspires you to write... and u lay it all out there for the world to see... a.k.a "taylor swift"

[Frieda P]

Not a big Taylor Swift fan, all I know is she writes all her past lovers up! ;-)

[Mark]

Love it! Esp. " do not tread lightly on the shadow I I have cast, the dark side will eat you alive"....Now that is the closer! Nice!

[Frieda P]

Ha can you tell I was a little bit annoyed?

[Mark]

Just a tad...Lol!

[Baby Ricochet]

You tell em sister. We do rip a few new ones on here. Great write

[Frieda P]

On occasion if need be, yes...thanks Baby.

[icelandicblue]

Ha! The dark side will most certainly eat you alive and steal your voice. We are here to support and rejoice not steal. It amazes me that some people will do that. Great poem Frieda.

[Frieda P]

Yes shocking but not all that uncommon it seems, thanks!

[Sethnicity]

Well I don't think you will make any just enemies with this one.
I totally feel for you and I have been there before w/ music and writing.
Best thing to do is keep writing and expose the liar. A real writer needs nothing but dust to inspire. Keep sharpening your s that way no one can mistake your truth from the fake followers you will burn up in your trail of fire!

[Frieda P]

I like that 'nothing but dust to inspire' well said, thanks

[kelvin]

Oh yes very nice the poet's code you have reached in the depths of taking a feather dabbing it into flesh and reaching blood using the blood as ink to putting this true read to light for people sometimes truly don't care about the consequences of their silly actions simply they are thieves. Well written I truly like this one Keep it coming and as always keep writing fellow writer.

[Frieda P]

Thanks kelvin, I would have written it in blood if I could...

[kelvin]

You're very welcome