I say there should be punishments for poets who transgress the unwritten rules of Poetry Circle.  Being unable, of course, to give the blighters a darn good thrashing with a stout stick, I propose to the management that we should consider developing a virtual method of retribution.

Persistent cliché users, for example, should be put in a sin bin* like they have in rugby for 3 - 7 days depending on the nauseousness of the cliché.  Members who post more than 10 poems per day should have a tattoo emblazoned on their icon saying Bounder or some such.  Poets who post copiously but do not respond to others' poems should be randomly locked out of the forum at varying times of day so that it really annoys them.

Firmness is fairness!

Thank you for your time

*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penalty_box

Peter, maybe our Rejected board could be renamed Sin Bin. Posters of too many poems are self-blazoned; those only interested in their own writing can be ignored and left in their own select company.

I had to giggle at "nauseousness of the cliché"

But seriously, members should (even newbies) comment on other's poems.  Every comment helps the poet fine tune the poem.

You're talking my language, Peter. The use of clichés is completely beyond the pale. Frankly, it's the thin end of the wedge although, as ever, one must be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Scarlet letterism? I would be very wary of any such approach, as it says as much about the branders as the branded. Setting a positive example and encouraging positive contribution are by far better approaches.

I'll offer this advice (what my husband tells the little league team)

"Lead by example."

M

You've shown how it works from a different angle and I agree with you there, Tom.  Agree with you too, Jay.  Although I was meaning the tagging in a TV game show sort of way, I now see the other side of the coin.

Lavonne and Michelle, I think you could be just the ladies for my proposed Rhyme Prevention Team. Working shifts, ready to pounce at the earliest jangle of an horrific couplet and nip it in the bud.

David, you are quite clearly the man to run a Rapid-Deployment Cliché Squad.  Having had a bit of under-cover experience myself, I will be ready to liaise with you behind the scenes but being able to melt into any background, don't mistake me for a potted plant in The Workshop or a desk in Editor's Picks.

LOL!!