So! You want to write Poetry
So! You want to write poetry but you are unsure of where and how to start. Poetry is as complicated as you wish to make it, and as simple as taking an idea and placing it into story word form. Poetry is not a novel, long dialogue or narrative, the fewer the words the better. There are many forms/types all with their own rules/guidelines. Some poetry can be rather lengthy, some shorter than a television program surrounded by commercials.
There are of course rules, pay attention to them but do not let them cramp “your style.” Unlike a novel you can set aside and come back to, poetry requires constant attention and improves greatly if you do one simple thing – write every day.
Please, please at almost any cost avoid using overused clichés. You know them, you have seen and heard them thousands of times “cold hands – warm heart, look at the bright side, broken heart.” If they truly add impact to your message fine, if not, shoot them, bury them, burn them, just do not give in to using them.
You want to write about love and or sadness. Try writing a poem about either but do not use words such as; love, soul, pain, dying, sadness or hurt. This will force you to become a better and more creative wordsmith. This does not mean one should never use those words; it simply means you need to explore and expand your wordsmithing abilities.
How long should a poem be? As long as necessary for you to tell your story and not one word longer. I generally avoid rhyme as it tends to force one into using words for the sake of the rhyme rather than the message and can make you look like a rather poor wordsmith.
What you write will eventually get out there where others will see it. Brace yourself, your baby is beautiful to you but there are those pesky folks that will criticize it harshly. Do not take it to heart, do not go looking for them to “get even” and avoid doing anything beyond thanking them for taking the time to let you know what they see. Avoid telling people what your poetry means. Let the reader be the decider of its meaning.
Horror of Horrors! Yes, you wrote it, now “NAME IT.” A poem with no name is a mortal sin of laziness. If you had a child would you leave it to live a life with no name? Of course not, well, this is your baby, name it.
Roses are Red – Violets are blue >>> are you kidding me – you think that is poetry – it is NOT
Reality, you will write bad poems. Painters paint bad portraits, photographers shoot bad pictures, movies are flops, bad novels exist, we all fail, get over it, failure is growth, no failures = zero growth.
Let’s write some limericks – these are generally speaking 5 lines with an AABBA Rhyme, I know, I said to avoid rhyme, but here it is necessary. In a limerick the last words of lines 1-2-5 will rhyme and the last words of lines 3-4 will also.
Things you should be aware of – a good limerick has meter or metrical foot if you will and can be, if one wishes, found by using this “da da dum.” This is also referred to as an anapest.
Yes, lots of rules for limericks but feel free to ignore them as long as you keep the basic form in order. limericks are intended to be humorous and generally have a “subject” in the first line.
Examples: [1] There was a guy named Mike
Whose Dad never taught him to trike
he fell from the seat
and felt kind of beat
that was the end of the bike
[2] As an author he was prolific
though not very terrific
his verse was terse
he was so perverse
his sales were horrific
[3] you submitted your book
to be read on a nook
now you sit and wait
to discover its fate
hoping it has the right hook
[4] surgery for me
first some tea
slice and dice
for a price
success – we will see