In accordance with my last post about why you should write poetry, I present you with this post about the how side of things. I don't mean to brag, but people say they like my poetry. So, I'm going to share some of the things I keep in mind while writing poems and maybe it might help you write decent ones as well.
Choose a Topic
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Choosing a topic and sticking to it is really useful when you're just starting to write a poem. A friend of mine shared with me On Beauty by Kahlil Gibran. Pretty obvious, but he's talking about what beauty is. But it isn't that simple. Gibran uses a multitude of metaphors and other literary devices that I can't remember the names for. Overall, it is such a beautiful poem in my opinion.
So what you can do is find a topic and then come up with some ways to add a little flourish to it as you talk about it in your poem. For another example, I write an unhealthy amount of poems related to love. Love would be the topic, but then I find something like the winter season to create a nice little metaphor or whatever it's called.
Almost Anything Goes
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A couple days ago, another one of my friends shared with me E. E. Cummings' Seven Poems. Cummings is supposed to be a famous American poet. So why does this poem look like he had a stroke in the middle of writing it? Or "he got a little too excited with his fancy new typewriter," as another friend of mine put it.
Well, I couldn't tell you. I could probably take a guess, but I won't bore you with my half-baked poetry analysis. Remember that time I said that almost anything goes in poetry? No? Well, let's just say that this is one of the things that go. That peculiar spacing of the "and" and other dramatic line breaks and positioning are there to add emphasis. A little artistic flair. If you end up writing your own poems, you can decide what all those little quirks you add in there mean.
It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect
For writing in general, a good rule to follow is "write first, edit later." You've already completed half the battle by just getting something down on paper. It's okay if it looks like word vomit or gibberish! If it bothers you so much, then you can revise it after you get everything you want to get down. If you're on the lazy side like me, you can pass it off as a stylistic choice.
I must admit, I am a bit guilty of not following this rule to a T, especially in narrative writing. With poetry though, I find myself relaxing a bit more and I make fewer edits to my poems. So, if writing poetry is stressing you out, just remind yourself that it doesn't have to be a "masterpiece" on your first try.
Conclusion
So, lemme summarize:
- Start off by choosing a topic
- Decide if you want to add any quirks or artistic flair to your poem
- Remind yourself that it doesn't need to be perfect
Yeah, I hope this helps you on your poetry writing journey -- if you decide to embark on it, that is. Also, feel free to check out some of my (very edgy) poems on my Wattpad here.
Please leave any comments or questions below, thank you!
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