NEW THINKING ON CYBER POEMS

By

Wan Abu Bakar Wan Abas

Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Abstract

The internet is a new but powerful medium to publish one’s poems. It comes with a myriad of facilities that enhanced the presentation and appreciation of poems.  There are also a number of other advantages associated with publishing one’s work on the internet. However, there is a need for a paradigm shift in the way one appreciates and controls the quality of a poem.

1. What is a cyber poem?

Simply, a poem published on a web page.

2. Why publish poems in the internet?

Why not? The internet is another medium available to us today. It is modern and promising. It is the medium of the current generation. And definitely the medium of the future.

3. You publish a poem in the internet. So what?

You generate a “cyber-poem” which is immediately accessible to readers from all over the world.

4. How do you write a cyber-poem?

(a) You do not just “write” a cyber-poem.  You “design” one. A cyber-poem is generally multi-media in nature. It is made up of texts and graphics (still or animated), and audio. It may also be interactive, responding to stimuli from the readers. (b) Of course, you may also type the text like you normally do, and publish it on a web page. However, this generates what I would term a “primitive” cyber poem.

5. What is the difference between an “ordinary” multi-media poem and a cyber-poem?

An ordinary multi-media poem has all its components stored in the hard-disk or floppy disk. If the disk is corrupted, nothing can be retrieved for display. In the case of a cyber poem, the components are normally stored at different locations (servers) all over the world and assembled in real-time via the internet links. If one of the elements cannot be retrieved, the other elements can still be retrieved, assembled, and displayed.

6. These web pages that display poems, are they all the same?

No. As a matter of fact, there are generally two types of web pages that display poems:

(a) The first is “personal” (or “private”) web pages. A personal (or private) web page belongs to an individual or a group of individuals and displays poems belonging to the owner(s).

(b) The second is “public”. A public web page is opened not only to the owner(s) but also to other writers to publish their poems. There area two types of public web page.  (i) The first operates through writers submitting their poems to the owner of the web page.   The owner “evaluates” the submissions and publishes them if they are considered suitable.  (ii) The second is more “democratic” where the writer himself publishes his poems onto the web page.  The poem is evaluated (generally for edition or deletion) by the owner of the web page after it has been published.

7. What about control of quality?

This requires a paradigm shift.  The burden of ensuring the quality of your work rests no longer with the owner of the web page but with the author.

8. Any paradigm shift associated with appreciating the cyber poems?

Yes.  One no longer appreciates the words and arrangement of words only.  One also appreciates all that comes with it, including the graphics, animations, sounds, etc.

9. How far has we advanced in the area of publication of cyber-poems?

Today you can get (1) colours, (b) animated graphics, (c) animated texts, (d) accompanying music and other sound effects, and the latest, (e) voice of the author reading his poems. Of course, one can also show the visual of the author reading his poems.

10. What advantages do one gets by publishing your poems in the internet?

Many. Among them are (a) quick or even immediate publication, (b) cheap, (c) wider audience (geographically), and (d) sophisticated and modern presentation.

11. One only wants to appreciate the words and word arrangements in a poem, so why the trouble of putting in the other elements?

If that is your idea about poetry appreciation, then you may stick to your style.  No qualms about it. Cyber-poems are for people who want to change their style of presenting their poems and the way they appreciate poems.

12. How wide-spread is the activity of publishing the poems on the internet?

In every country, including in Asia, you will generally find a few major public web pages and many personal web pages. (a) In Malaysia, the major public web pages are the esastera.com (publishes by an individual through the company kAPAS Enterprise), pustakamaya.net (belonging to the Writers Association of Johore PPJ), and karyanet.com (run by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, the government agency for literature development and dissemination). The portal melayu.com which publishes a myriad of matters concerning the Malays also has a section on literary works including poetry. These web pages publish Malay poems with the exception of esastera.com which also has a section on Malay Poems In English (labeled “Magpie”) as well as New and Original English Poems (labeled “Neopie”). (b) In Indonesia, the major public web page which accepts submission of literary works including poetry is the cybersastra.net.

13. Translation of poems on the internet?

(a) Yes. This is probably the easiest, fastest, and cheapest way to get your poems read by people who do not understand the language in which the poems are originally written. Internationalisation is the target. Esastera.com has arranged an affiliation with a poetry community in the USA, thus there is a direct opening of the translated Malay poems to poetry lovers in America (and, of course, the rest of the world).

(b) A Malay poem (“Mengkhayali Bulan” by Hasimah Harun) published in esastera.com recently was translated into Russian by Dr. Victor Pogadaev and published in the Russian public literature e-magazine "Russian Pereplet" (http://www.pereplet.ru/).

(c) Esastera.com also has translated Malay poems displayed in English with the voice of the writer in the background reading the original Malay version of the poems.

14. Any other pertinent points about publishing poems in the internet?

There are a few. (a) Some web pages allow the author to continuously access their poems. You may edit and improve them as often as you like. Thus your poems are rather “dynamic”. (b) You can get immediate response from the readers. As a matter of fact, some web pages allow the author to communicate with the readers continuously. (c) You can participate in “fast competitions” like the 24-hour poem “topical” (thematic) writing competitions organised from time to time by esastera.com.

15. What does one need in order to involve oneself with publishing poems in the internet?

One needs a computer with internet connection. Alternatively, one may visit any cyber café (about once a week at least).

16. What happen if one refuses to participate in the activity of publishing one’s writing on the internet?

Nothing will happen to you.  However, if you are a young writer, say below 50, and intend to continue writing for a while yet, you will become obsolete by not publishing in the internet. You will lose many potential readers and fans.

17. How confident can one be that the internet is a good alternative to the conventional medium for publishing poems?

I do not see the internet as an alternative to the conventional medium. It complements the conventional medium, but is very powerful. Both the media should continue to co-exist.

Asian-International Poetry Assembly: Seminar on New Thinking in Asian Poetry, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 15-17 December 2003.