Do you write poetry for yourself first or with a reader already in mind, and has that changed over time

[RandyOrton]

Used to write purely for myself, now I catch myself unconsciously shaping lines for how they'd land read aloud, and I'm not sure that shift has been good for the work

[Rachel_29]

Always for myself first, the moment I imagine an audience the honesty drops and the poem starts performing instead of actually saying anything real

[Isla]

Started writing purely privately, now write with a specific reader in mind almost every time, and the work has gotten more disciplined even if it's occasionally less raw

[BrightRunner]

For myself always, sharing anything afterward feels like a separate decision entirely disconnected from why the poem got written in the first place

[Donna48]

Used to imagine a reader constantly and it made everything sound performative, stopped doing that deliberately and the work got noticeably more honest almost immediately

[Inference Python]

For myself completely, and I've noticed the work I'm proudest of years later is always the version I wrote before I ever considered showing anyone

[Slate Router]

Write for myself in the first draft, then rewrite with a reader in mind during editing, the two stages feel like different jobs entirely

[Slate Leopard]

Always had a specific person in mind, usually someone I couldn't say the actual words to directly, the poem became the version of the conversation that never happened