A word of introduction to guild etiquette
In a circle they sit
And admire their wit
Commenting on structure and phrases that sing
While William the Bushy runs the whole thing
Now wait Ed will gasp I don’t believe that quite fits
Your metaphors are mangled and scattered in bits
With action of a clunky and untimely sort
The dialogue is slow and the introduction too short
Dotte might cackle and give praise to your prose
How everything rings like a delicate rose
Before gutting your theme with a slash of her pen
Go home you dumb bastard and try it again
Now Bill is the sort who can’t sport a frown
But with technical detail shoot your piece down
I liked it he’ll say with a shake of his head
But in seventy-six Marshall was dead
And Georgia and Shirley and dear God not Jean
And hope Ken’s not around when you read that blue scene
He’ll despise it so gently never to scoff
But you’ll wonder deep down if he’s really pissed off
Your brow may be sweaty your mouth might be dry
But shuffle the pages and give it a try
The worst that could happen they might hate your stuff
And send you back home all up in a huff
Okay I lied they’re not quite that gruff
And you’ll want to know what’s not up to snuff
To rewrite again what you thought was a hit
To prove once and for all you’re not full of crap