People attempting to write poetry for the first time have many questions about how to do it well. This column answers a variety of common poetry concerns. Each response is rated from 1 to 10 for its relative difficulty (10 being the most difficult).
How do I get started writing poetry?
Simply by asking this question is a good start because it shows interest in the art of poetry. The first thing to do is to get away from your usual routine and setting, and go somewhere refreshing. A simple walk in the park offers plenty of stimulation to inspire a poetic mood. At the most basic level, poetry involves description. Try sitting in the park and simply describing all the things that you see, hear, smell and touch. Wander around a little bit looking for interesting new bits to include in the poem. Difficulty level: 1.
I have no imagination, how can I write poetry?
You must recognize that you do indeed have an imagination. More likely, you haven’t practiced using it. Here’s a simple test: Close your eyes and imagine your mother’s face. Can you see it? Of course, there you are, you do indeed have an imagination. Now, close your eyes and imagine your mother’s face being a different colour; blue, pink, violet. Can you do it? Continue further by changing the shape of her face; first round, then a square, then a triangle. Can you do it? Sure, it’s easy but it does take practice. Practice this simple technique with all the people you know, the places you know, and learn to see things in new ways. Difficulty level: 3.
How do I keep balance between poetry elements?
New writers of poetry often overload their poems with a hundred similes or symbols. Relax; the point of a poem is not to give jobs to unemployed metaphors and rhymes. I encourage the use of poetic elements, but not as an end in itself. A basic rule to follow is to use the elements as feels right to you, without forcing them to work. Don’t allow the elements to take over the poem. Your reader should respond, “I like your poem” rather than, “you have lots of rhyme.” Difficulty level: 6.
I have an idea, but can’t make it rhyme.
First, write down the idea and forget about rhyme. Rhyme is merely one possible characteristic of poetry, while there are numerous other possible ways of making a poem work well. Once you’ve written the whole poem and you are satisfied with your basic meaning and imagery, you can go back and look for ways of improving your word choice. Don’t get hung up on making a perfect rhyme at the end of every line. Feel free to rhyme in the middle of a line if it sounds good and is suitable. Be satisfied with alliteration or near rhyme, without feeling a duty to make every rhyme perfect. See Alliteration Literacy and Is it Time to Rhyme on this website for suggestions. Difficulty level: 7.
I have no ideas to write about. What should I do?
This is such a scary question. First, check your pulse to confirm that you are alive. Second, inspect your lifestyle to be sure that you are alive. Then, get active through reading literature, visiting new places, attempting new challenges. Avoid brainwashing yourself with teenage soap operas and mindless game shows. Yes, get off the sofa, go outside and experience the real world. If it’s too hot, too windy, too rainy, too bright or too dark, you have to accept the reality of the world and embrace it. Difficulty level: 8.
How do I use good vocabulary when writing poetry?
Use strong verbs! That is the key difference between an ordinary line of poetry and a powerful line of poetry. Verbs such as go, work, have, do, and see are very common. Brainstorm various ways of saying these frequent verbs and you discover words such as depart, struggle, possess, accomplish, perceive, etc. Use a thesaurus or the thesaurus function on your computer to discover a lot of unused words. Difficulty level: 5.
How do I finish a poem?