writing poetry tips

How to Write a Poem, Step-by-Step

Sean Glatch  |  May 2, 2024  |  37 Comments

To learn how to write a poem step-by-step, let’s start where all poets start: the basics.

This article is an in-depth introduction to how to write a poem. We first answer the question, “What is poetry?” We then discuss the literary elements of poetry, and showcase some different approaches to the writing process—including our own seven-step process on how to write a poem step by step.

So, how do you write a poem? Let’s start with what poetry is.

How to Write a Poem: Contents

What Poetry Is

• Literary Devices

How to Write a Poem, in 7 Steps

How to write a poem: different approaches and philosophies.

• Okay, I Know How to Write a Good Poem. What Next?

It’s important to know what poetry is—and isn’t—before we discuss how to write a poem. The following quote defines poetry nicely:

“Poetry is language at its most distilled and most powerful.” —Former US Poet Laureate Rita Dove

Poetry Conveys Feeling

People sometimes imagine poetry as stuffy, abstract, and difficult to understand. Some poetry may be this way, but in reality poetry isn’t about being obscure or confusing. Poetry is a lyrical, emotive method of self-expression, using the elements of poetry to highlight feelings and ideas.

A poem should make the reader feel something.

In other words, a poem should make the reader feel something—not by telling them what to feel, but by evoking feeling directly.

Here’s a contemporary poem that, despite its simplicity (or perhaps because of its simplicity), conveys heartfelt emotion.

Poem by Langston Hughes

I loved my friend. He went away from me. There’s nothing more to say. The poem ends, Soft as it began— I loved my friend.

Poetry is Language at its Richest and Most Condensed

Unlike longer prose writing (such as a short story, memoir, or novel), poetry needs to impact the reader in the richest and most condensed way possible. Here’s a famous quote that enforces that distinction:

“Prose: words in their best order; poetry: the best words in the best order.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge

So poetry isn’t the place to be filling in long backstories or doing leisurely scene-setting. In poetry, every single word carries maximum impact.

Poetry Uses Unique Elements

Poetry is not like other kinds of writing: it has its own unique forms, tools, and principles. Together, these elements of poetry help it to powerfully impact the reader in only a few words.

The elements of poetry help it to powerfully impact the reader in only a few words.

Most poetry is written in verse , rather than prose . This means that it uses line breaks, alongside rhythm or meter, to convey something to the reader. Rather than letting the text break at the end of the page (as prose does), verse emphasizes language through line breaks.

Poetry further accentuates its use of language through rhyme and meter. Poetry has a heightened emphasis on the musicality of language itself: its sounds and rhythms, and the feelings they carry.

These devices—rhyme, meter, and line breaks—are just a few of the essential elements of poetry, which we’ll explore in more depth now.

Understanding the Elements of Poetry

As we explore how to write a poem step by step, these three major literary elements of poetry should sit in the back of your mind:

• Rhythm (Sound, Rhyme, and Meter)

1. Elements of Poetry: Rhythm

“Rhythm” refers to the lyrical, sonic qualities of the poem. How does the poem move and breathe; how does it feel on the tongue?

Traditionally, poets relied on rhyme and meter to accomplish a rhythmically sound poem. Free verse poems —which are poems that don’t require a specific length, rhyme scheme, or meter—only became popular in the West in the 20th century, so while rhyme and meter aren’t requirements of modern poetry, they are required of certain poetry forms.

Poetry is capable of evoking certain emotions based solely on the sounds it uses. Words can sound sinister, percussive, fluid, cheerful, dour, or any other noise/emotion in the complex tapestry of human feeling.

Take, for example, this excerpt from the poem “Beat! Beat! Drums!” by Walt Whitman:

Red — “b” sounds

Blue — “th” sounds

Green — “w” and “ew” sounds

Purple — “s” sounds

Orange — “d” and “t” sounds

This poem has a lot of percussive, disruptive sounds that reinforce the beating of the drums. The “b,” “d,” “w,” and “t” sounds resemble these drum beats, while the “th” and “s” sounds are sneakier, penetrating a deeper part of the ear. The cacophony of this excerpt might not sound “lyrical,” but it does manage to command your attention, much like drums beating through a city might sound.

To learn more about consonance and assonance, euphony and cacophony, onomatopoeia , and the other uses of sound, take a look at our article “12 Literary Devices in Poetry.”

https://writers.com/literary-devices-in-poetry

It would be a crime if you weren’t primed on the ins and outs of rhymes. “Rhyme” refers to words that have similar pronunciations, like this set of words: sound, hound, browned, pound, found, around.

Many poets assume that their poetry has to rhyme, and it’s true that some poems require a complex rhyme scheme. However, rhyme isn’t nearly as important to poetry as it used to be. Most traditional poetry forms—sonnets, villanelles , rimes royal, etc.—rely on rhyme, but contemporary poetry has largely strayed from the strict rhyme schemes of yesterday.

There are three types of rhymes:

• Homophony: Homophones are words that are spelled differently but sound the same, like “tail” and “tale.” Homophones often lead to commonly misspelled words .
• Perfect Rhyme: Perfect rhymes are word pairs that are identical in sound except for one minor difference. Examples include “slant and pant,” “great and fate,” and “shower and power.”
• Slant Rhyme: Slant rhymes are word pairs that use the same sounds, but their final vowels have different pronunciations. For example, “abut” and “about” are nearly-identical in sound, but are pronounced differently enough that they don’t completely rhyme. This is also known as an oblique rhyme or imperfect rhyme.

Meter refers to the stress patterns of words. Certain poetry forms require that the words in the poem follow a certain stress pattern, meaning some syllables are stressed and others are unstressed.

What is “stressed” and “unstressed”? A stressed syllable is the sound that you emphasize in a word. The bolded syllables in the following words are stressed, and the unbolded syllables are unstressed:

• Un• stressed
• Plat• i• tud• i•nous
• De •act•i• vate
• Con• sti •tu• tion•al

The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables is important to traditional poetry forms. This chart, copied from our article on form in poetry , summarizes the different stress patterns of poetry.

2. Elements of Poetry: Form

“Form” refers to the structure of the poem. Is the poem a sonnet , a villanelle, a free verse piece, a slam poem, a contrapuntal, a ghazal , a blackout poem , or something new and experimental?

Form also refers to the line breaks and stanza breaks in a poem. Unlike prose, where the end of the page decides the line breaks, poets have control over when one line ends and a new one begins. The words that begin and end each line will emphasize the sounds, images, and ideas that are important to the poet.

To learn more about rhyme, meter, and poetry forms, read our full article on the topic:

https://writers.com/what-is-form-in-poetry

3. Elements of Poetry: Literary Devices

“Poetry: the best words in the best order.” — Samuel Taylor Coleridge

How does poetry express complex ideas in concise, lyrical language? Literary devices—like metaphor, symbolism , juxtaposition , irony , and hyperbole—help make poetry possible. Learn how to write and master these devices here:

https://writers.com/common-literary-devices

To condense the elements of poetry into an actual poem, we’re going to follow a seven-step approach. However, it’s important to know that every poet’s process is different. While the steps presented here are a logical path to get from idea to finished poem, they’re not the only tried-and-true method of poetry writing. Poets can—and should!—modify these steps and generate their own writing process.

Nonetheless, if you’re new to writing poetry or want to explore a different writing process, try your hand at our approach. Here’s how to write a poem step by step!

1. Devise a Topic

The easiest way to start writing a poem is to begin with a topic.

However, devising a topic is often the hardest part. What should your poem be about? And where can you find ideas?

Here are a few places to search for inspiration:

• Other Works of Literature: Poetry doesn’t exist in a vacuum—it’s part of a larger literary tapestry, and can absolutely be influenced by other works. For example, read “The Golden Shovel” by Terrance Hayes , a poem that was inspired by Gwendolyn Brooks’ “We Real Cool.”
• Real-World Events: Poetry, especially contemporary poetry, has the power to convey new and transformative ideas about the world. Take the poem “A Cigarette” by Ilya Kaminsky , which finds community in a warzone like the eye of a hurricane.
• Your Life: What would poetry be if not a form of memoir? Many contemporary poets have documented their lives in verse. Take Sylvia Plath’s poem “Full Fathom Five” —a daring poem for its time, as few writers so boldly criticized their family as Plath did.
• The Everyday and Mundane: Poetry isn’t just about big, earth-shattering events: much can be said about mundane events, too. Take “Ode to Shea Butter” by Angel Nafis , a poem that celebrates the beautiful “everydayness” of moisturizing.
• Nature: The Earth has always been a source of inspiration for poets, both today and in antiquity. Take “Wild Geese” by Mary Oliver , which finds meaning in nature’s quiet rituals.
• Writing Exercises: Prompts and exercises can help spark your creativity, even if the poem you write has nothing to do with the prompt! Here’s 24 writing exercises to get you started.

At this point, you’ve got a topic for your poem. Maybe it’s a topic you’re passionate about, and the words pour from your pen and align themselves into a perfect sonnet! It’s not impossible—most poets have a couple of poems that seemed to write themselves.

However, it’s far more likely you’re searching for the words to talk about this topic. This is where journaling comes in.

Sit in front of a blank piece of paper, with nothing but the topic written on the top. Set a timer for 15-30 minutes and put down all of your thoughts related to the topic. Don’t stop and think for too long, and try not to obsess over finding the right words: what matters here is emotion, the way your subconscious grapples with the topic.

At the end of this journaling session, go back through everything you wrote, and highlight whatever seems important to you: well-written phrases, poignant moments of emotion, even specific words that you want to use in your poem.

Journaling is a low-risk way of exploring your topic without feeling pressured to make it sound poetic. “Sounding poetic” will only leave you with empty language: your journal allows you to speak from the heart. Everything you need for your poem is already inside of you, the journaling process just helps bring it out!

Learn more about keeping a daily journal here:

How to Start Journaling: Practical Advice on How to Journal Daily

3. Think About Form

As one of the elements of poetry, form plays a crucial role in how the poem is both written and read. Have you ever wanted to write a sestina ? How about a contrapuntal, or a double cinquain, or a series of tanka? Your poem can take a multitude of forms, including the beautifully unstructured free verse form; while form can be decided in the editing process, it doesn’t hurt to think about it now.

4. Write the First Line

After a productive journaling session, you’ll be much more acquainted with the state of your heart. You might have a line in your journal that you really want to begin with, or you might want to start fresh and refer back to your journal when you need to! Either way, it’s time to begin.

What should the first line of your poem be? There’s no strict rule here—you don’t have to start your poem with a certain image or literary device. However, here’s a few ways that poets often begin their work:

• Set the Scene: Poetry can tell stories just like prose does. Anne Carson does just this in her poem “Lines,” situating the scene in a conversation with the speaker’s mother.
• Start at the Conflict : Right away, tell the reader where it hurts most. Margaret Atwood does this in “Ghost Cat,” a poem about aging.
• Start With a Contradiction: Juxtaposition and contrast are two powerful tools in the poet’s toolkit. Joan Larkin’s poem “Want” begins and ends with these devices. Carlos Gimenez Smith also begins his poem “Entanglement” with a juxtaposition.
• Start With Your Title: Some poets will use the title as their first line, like Ron Padgett’s poem “Ladies and Gentlemen in Outer Space.”

There are many other ways to begin poems, so play around with different literary devices, and when you’re stuck, turn to other poetry for inspiration.

5. Develop Ideas and Devices

You might not know where your poem is going until you finish writing it. In the meantime, stick to your literary devices. Avoid using too many abstract nouns, develop striking images, use metaphors and similes to strike interesting comparisons, and above all, speak from the heart.

6. Write the Closing Line

Some poems end “full circle,” meaning that the images the poet used in the beginning are reintroduced at the end. Gwendolyn Brooks does this in her poem “my dreams, my work, must wait till after hell.”

Yet, many poets don’t realize what their poems are about until they write the ending line . Poetry is a search for truth, especially the hard truths that aren’t easily explained in casual speech. Your poem, too, might not be finished until it comes across a necessary truth, so write until you strike the heart of what you feel, and the poem will come to its own conclusion.

7. Edit, Edit, Edit!

Do you have a working first draft of your poem? Congratulations! Getting your feelings onto the page is a feat in itself.

Yet, no guide on how to write a poem is complete without a note on editing. If you plan on sharing or publishing your work, or if you simply want to edit your poem to near-perfection, keep these tips in mind.

• Adjectives and Adverbs: Use these parts of speech sparingly. Most imagery shouldn’t rely on adjectives and adverbs, because the image should be striking and vivid on its own, without too much help from excess language.
• Concrete Line Breaks: Line breaks help emphasize important words, making certain images and themes clearer to the reader. As a general rule, most of your lines should start and end with concrete words—nouns and verbs especially.
• Stanza Breaks: Stanzas are like paragraphs to poetry. A stanza can develop a new idea, contrast an existing idea, or signal a transition in the poem’s tone. Make sure each stanza clearly stands for something as a unit of the poem.
• Mixed Metaphors: A mixed metaphor is when two metaphors occupy the same idea, making the poem unnecessarily difficult to understand. Here’s an example of a mixed metaphor: “a watched clock never boils.” The meaning can be discerned, but the image remains unclear. Be wary of mixed metaphors—though some poets (like Shakespeare) make them work, they’re tricky and often disruptive.
• Abstractions: Above all, avoid using excessively abstract language. It’s fine to use the word “love” 2 or 3 times in a poem, but don’t use it twice in every stanza. Let the imagery in your poem express your feelings and ideas, and only use abstractions as brief connective tissue in otherwise-concrete writing.

Lastly, don’t feel pressured to “do something” with your poem. Not all poems need to be shared and edited. Poetry doesn’t have to be “good,” either—it can simply be a statement of emotions by the poet, for the poet. Publishing is an admirable goal, but also, give yourself permission to write bad poems, unedited poems, abstract poems, and poems with an audience of one. Write for yourself—editing is for the other readers.

Poetry is the oldest literary form, pre-dating prose, theater, and the written word itself. As such, there are many different schools of thought when it comes to writing poetry. You might be wondering how to write a poem through different methods and approaches: here’s four philosophies to get you started.

How to Write a Poem: Poetry as Emotion

If you asked a Romantic Poet “what is poetry?”, they would tell you that poetry is the spontaneous emotion of the soul.

The Romantic Era viewed poetry as an extension of human emotion—a way of perceiving the world through unbridled creativity, centered around the human soul. While many Romantic poets used traditional forms in their poetry, the Romantics weren’t afraid to break from tradition, either.

To write like a Romantic, feel—and feel intensely. The words will follow the emotions, as long as a blank page sits in front of you.

How to Write a Poem: Poetry as Stream of Consciousness

If you asked a Modernist poet, “What is poetry?” they would tell you that poetry is the search for complex truths.

Modernist Poets were keen on the use of poetry as a window into the mind. A common technique of the time was “Stream of Consciousness,” which is unfiltered writing that flows directly from the poet’s inner dialogue. By tapping into one’s subconscious, the poet might uncover deeper truths and emotions they were initially unaware of.

Depending on who you are as a writer, Stream of Consciousness can be tricky to master, but this guide covers the basics of how to write using this technique.

How to Write a Poem: Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a practice of documenting the mind, rather than trying to control or edit what it produces. This practice was popularized by the Beat Poets , who in turn were inspired by Eastern philosophies and Buddhist teachings. If you asked a Beat Poet “what is poetry?”, they would tell you that poetry is the human consciousness, unadulterated.

To learn more about the art of leaving your mind alone , take a look at our guide on Mindfulness, from instructor Marc Olmsted.

https://writers.com/mindful-writing

How to Write a Poem: Poem as Camera Lens

Many contemporary poets use poetry as a camera lens, documenting global events and commenting on both politics and injustice. If you find yourself itching to write poetry about the modern day, press your thumb against the pulse of the world and write what you feel.

Additionally, check out these two essays by Electric Literature on the politics of poetry:

• What Can Poetry Do That Politics Can’t?
• Why All Poems Are Political (TL;DR: Poetry is an urgent expression of freedom).

Okay, I Know How to Write a Poem. What Next?

Poetry, like all art forms, takes practice and dedication. You might write a poem you enjoy now, and think it’s awfully written 3 years from now; you might also write some of your best work after reading this guide. Poetry is fickle, but the pen lasts forever, so write poems as long as you can!

Once you understand how to write a poem, and after you’ve drafted some pieces that you’re proud of and ready to share, here are some next steps you can take.

Publish in Literary Journals

Want to see your name in print? These literary journals house some of the best poetry being published today.

https://writers.com/best-places-submit-poetry-online

Assemble and Publish a Manuscript

A poem can tell a story. So can a collection of poems. If you’re interested in publishing a poetry book, learn how to compose and format one here:

https://writers.com/poetry-manuscript-format

How to Write a Poem: Join a Writing Community

Writers.com is an online community of writers, and we’d love it if you shared your poetry with us! Join us on Facebook and check out our upcoming poetry courses .

Poetry doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it exists to educate and uplift society. The world is waiting for your voice, so find a group and share your work!

Sean Glatch

37 comments.

super useful! love these articles 💕

Finally found a helpful guide on Poetry’. For many year, I have written and filed numerous inspired pieces from experiences and moment’s of epiphany. Finally, looking forward to convertinb to ‘poetry format’. THANK YOU, KINDLY. 🙏🏾

Indeed, very helpful, consize. I could not say more than thank you.

I’ve never read a better guide on how to write poetry step by step. Not only does it give great tips, but it also provides helpful links! Thank you so much.

Thank you very much, Hamna! I’m so glad this guide was helpful for you.

Best guide so far

Very inspirational and marvelous tips

Thank you super tips very helpful.

I have never gone through the steps of writing poetry like this, I will take a closer look at your post.

Beautiful! Thank you! I’m really excited to try journaling as a starter step x

[…] How to Write a Poem, Step-by-Step […]

This is really helpful, thanks so much

Extremely thorough! Nice job.

Thank you so much for sharing your awesome tips for beginner writers!

People must reboot this and bookmark it. Your writing and explanation is detailed to the core. Thanks for helping me understand different poetic elements. While reading, actually, I start thinking about how my husband construct his songs and why other artists lack that organization (or desire to be better). Anyway, this gave me clarity.

I’m starting to use poetry as an outlet for my blogs, but I also have to keep in mind I’m transitioning from a blogger to a poetic sweet kitty potato (ha). It’s a unique transition, but I’m so used to writing a lot, it’s strange to see an open blog post with a lot of lines and few paragraphs.

Anyway, thanks again!

I’m happy this article was so helpful, Eternity! Thanks for commenting, and best of luck with your poetry blog.

Yours in verse, Sean

One of the best articles I read on how to write poems. And it is totally step by step process which is easy to read and understand.

Thanks for the step step explanation in how to write poems it’s a very helpful to me and also for everyone one. THANKYOU

Totally detailed and in a simple language told the best way how to write poems. It is a guide that one should read and follow. It gives the detailed guidance about how to write poems. One of the best articles written on how to write poems.

what a guidance thank you so much now i can write a poem thank you again again and again

The most inspirational and informative article I have ever read in the 21st century.It gives the most relevent,practical, comprehensive and effective insights and guides to aspiring writers.

Thank you so much. This is so useful to me a poetry

[…] Write a short story/poem (Here are some tips) […]

It was very helpful and am willing to try it out for my writing Thanks ❤️

Thank you so much. This is so helpful to me, and am willing to try it out for my writing .

Absolutely constructive, direct, and so useful as I’m striving to develop a recent piece. Thank you!

thank you for your explanation……,love it

Really great. Nothing less.

I can’t thank you enough for this, it touched my heart, this was such an encouraging article and I thank you deeply from my heart, I needed to read this.

great teaching Did not know all that in poetry writing

This was very useful! Thank you for writing this.

After reading a Charles Bukowski poem, “My Cats,” I found you piece here after doing a search on poetry writing format. Your article is wonderful as is your side article on journaling. I want to dig into both and give it another go another after writing poetry when I was at university. Thank you!

Thanks for reading, Vicki! Let us know how we can support your writing journey. 🙂

Thank you for the nice and informative post. This article truly offers a lot more details about this topic.

Very useful information. I’m glad to see you discussed rhyming, too. I was in the perhaps mistaken idea that rhyming is frowned upon in contemporary poems.

Thanks alot this highly needed for a starter like me

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Last updated on Nov 23, 2022

How to Write a Poem: Get Tips from a Published Poet

Ever wondered how to write a poem? For writers who want to dig deep, composing verse lets you sift the sand of your experience for new glimmers of insight. And if you’re in it for less lofty reasons, shaping a stanza from start to finish can teach you to have fun with language in totally new ways.

To help demystify the subtle art of writing verse, we chatted with Reedsy editor (and published poet) Lauren Stroh . In 8 simple steps, here's how to write a poem:

1. Brainstorm your starting point

2. free-write in prose first, 3. choose your poem’s form and style, 4. read for inspiration, 5. write for an audience of one — you, 6. read your poem out loud, 7. take a break to refresh your mind, 8. have fun revising your poem.

If you’re struggling to write your poem in order from the first line to the last, a good trick is opening with whichever starting point your brain can latch onto as it learns to think in verse.

Your starting point can be a line or a phrase you want to work into your poem, though it doesn’t have to take the form of language at all. It might be a picture in your head, as particular as the curl of hair over your daughter’s ear as she sleeps, or as capacious as the sea. It can even be a complicated feeling you want to render with precision — or maybe it's a memory you return to again and again. Think of this starting point as the "why" behind your poem, your impetus for writing it in the first place.

If you’re worried your starting point isn’t grand enough to merit an entire poem, stop right there. After all, literary giants have wrung verse out of every topic under the sun, from the disappointments of a post- Odyssey Odysseus to illicitly eaten refrigerated plums .

As Lauren Stroh sees it, your experience is more than worthy of being immortalized in verse.

"I think the most successful poems articulate something true about the human experience and help us look at the everyday world in new and exciting ways."

It may seem counterintuitive but if you struggle to write down lines that resonate, perhaps start with some prose writing first. Take this time to delve into the image, feeling, or theme at the heart of your poem, and learn to pin it down with language. Give yourself a chance to mull things over before actually writing the poem. 

Take 10 minutes and jot down anything that comes to mind when you think of your starting point. You can write in paragraphs, dash off bullet points, or even sketch out a mind map . The purpose of this exercise isn’t to produce an outline: it’s to generate a trove of raw material, a repertoire of loosely connected fragments to draw upon as you draft your poem in earnest.

Silence your inner critic for now

And since this is raw material, the last thing you should do is censor yourself. Catch yourself scoffing at a turn of phrase, overthinking a rhetorical device , or mentally grousing, “This metaphor will never make it into the final draft”? Tell that inner critic to hush for now and jot it down anyway. You just might be able to refine that slapdash, off-the-cuff idea into a sharp and poignant line.

Whether you’ve free-written your way to a beginning or you’ve got a couple of lines jotted down, before you complete a whole first draft of your poem, take some time to think about form and style. 

The form of a poem often carries a lot of meaning beyond the structural "rules" that it offers the writer. The rhyme patterns of sonnets — and the Shakespearean influence over the form — usually lend themselves to passionate pronouncements of love, whether merry or bleak. On the other hand, acrostic poems are often more cheeky because of the secret meaning that it hides in plain sight. 

Even if your material begs for a poem without formal restrictions, you’ll still have to decide on the texture and tone of your language. Free verse, after all, is as diverse a form as the novel, ranging from the breathless maximalism of Walt Whitman to the cool austerity of H.D . Where, on this spectrum, will your poem fall?

Choosing a form and tone for your poem early on can help you work with some kind of structure to imbue more meanings to your lines. And if you’ve used free-writing to generate some raw material for yourself, a structure can give you the guidance you need to organize your notes into a poem. 

A poem isn’t a nonfiction book or a historical novel: you don’t have to accumulate reams of research to write a good one. That said, a little bit of outside reading can stave off writer’s block and keep you inspired throughout the writing process.

Build a short, personalized syllabus around your poem’s form and subject. Say you’re writing a sensorily rich, linguistically spare bit of free verse about a relationship of mutual jealousy between mother and daughter. In that case, you’ll want to read some key Imagist poems , alongside some poems that sketch out complicated visions of parenthood in unsentimental terms.

And if you don’t want to limit yourself to poems similar in form and style to your own, Lauren has you covered with an all-purpose reading list:

• The Dream of a Common Languag e by Adrienne Rich
• Anything you can get your hands on by Mary Oliver
• The poems “ Failures in Infinitives ” and “ Fish & Chips ” by Bernadette Mayer.
• I often gift Lunch Poems by Frank O’Hara to friends who write.
• Everyone should read the interviews from the Paris Review’s archives . It’s just nice to observe how people familiar with language talk when they’re not performing, working, or warming up to write.

Even with preparation, the pressure of actually producing verse can still awaken your inner metrophobe (or poetry-fearer). What if people don’t understand — or even misinterpret — what you’re trying to say? What if they don’t feel drawn to your work? To keep the anxiety at bay, Lauren suggests writing for yourself, not for an external audience.

"I absolutely believe that poets can determine the validity of their own success if they are changed by the work they are producing themselves; if they are challenged by it; or if it calls into question their ethics, their habits, or their relationship to the living world. And personally, my life has certainly been changed by certain lines I’ve had the bravery to think and then write — and those moments are when I’ve felt most like I’ve made it."

You might eventually polish your work if you decide to publish your poetry down the line. (If you do, definitely check out the rest of this guide for tips and a list of magazines to submit to.) But as your first draft comes together, treat it like it’s meant for your eyes only.

A good poem doesn’t have to be pretty: maybe an easy, melodic loveliness isn’t your aim. It should, however, come alive on the page with a consciously crafted rhythm, whether hymn-like or discordant. To achieve that, read your poem out loud — at first, line by line, and then all together, as a complete text.

Trying out every line against your ear can help you weigh out a choice between synonyms — getting you to notice, say, the watery sound of “glacial”, the brittleness of “icy,” the solidity of “cold”.

Reading out loud can also help you troubleshoot line breaks that just don't feel right. Is the line unnaturally long, forcing you to rush through it or pause in the middle for a hurried inhale? If so, do you like that destabilizing effect, or do you want to literally give the reader some room to breathe? Testing these variations aloud is perhaps the only way to answer questions like these. 

While it’s incredibly exciting to complete a draft of your poem, and you might be itching to dive back in and edit it, it’s always advisable to take a break first. You don’t have to turn completely away from writing if you don’t want to. Take a week to chip away at your novel or even muse idly on your next poetic project — so long as you distance yourself from this poem a little while. 

This is because, by this point, you’ve probably read out every line so many times the meaning has leached out of the syllables. With the time away, you let your mind refresh so that you can approach the piece with sharper attention and more ideas to refine it. 

At the end of the day, even if you write in a well-established form, poetry is about experimenting with language, both written and spoken. Lauren emphasizes that revising a poem is thus an open-ended process that requires patience — and a sense of play. 

"Have fun. Play. Be patient. Don’t take it seriously, or do. Though poems may look shorter than what you’re used to writing, they often take years to be what they really are. They change and evolve. The most important thing is to find a quiet place where you can be with yourself and really listen."

Is it time to get other people involved?

Want another pair of eyes on your poem during this process? You have options. You can swap pieces with a beta reader , workshop it with a critique group , or even engage a professional poetry editor like Lauren to refine your work — a strong option if you plan to submit it to a journal or turn it into the foundation for a chapbook .

Want a poetry expert to polish up your verse?

Professional poetry editors are on Reedsy. Sign up for free to meet them!

Learn how Reedsy can help you craft a beautiful book.

The working poet's checklist

If you decide to fly solo, here’s a checklist to work through as you revise:

✅ Hunt for clichés. Did you find yourself reaching for ready-made idioms at any point? Go back to the sentiment you were grappling with and try to capture it in stronger, more vivid terms.

✅ See if your poem begins where it should. Did you take a few lines of throat-clearing to get to the actual point? Try starting your poem further down.

✅ Make sure every line belongs. As you read each line, ask yourself: how does this contribute to the poem as a whole? Does it advance the theme, clarify the imagery, set or subvert the reader’s expectations? If you answer with something like, “It makes the poem sound nice,” consider cutting it.

Once you’ve worked your way through this checklist, feel free to brew yourself a cup of tea and sit quietly for a while, reflecting on your literary triumphs. 

Whether these poetry writing tips have awakened your inner Wordsworth, or sent you happily gamboling back to prose, we hope you enjoyed playing with poetry —  and that you learned something new about your approach to language.

And if you are looking to share your poetry with the world, the next post in this guide can show the ropes regarding how to publish your poems! 

Anna Clarke says:

29/03/2020 – 04:37

I entered a short story competition and though I did not medal, one of the judges told me that some of my prose is very poetic. The following year I entered a poetry competition and won a bronze medal. That was my first attempt at writing poetry. I am more aware of figurative language in writing prose now. I am learning to marry the two. I don't have any poems online.

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Starting from Scratch: A Beginner’s Guide to Writing Poetry

• 3 February 2023

Why poetry?

Where did i start, a path of creative self-expression, forget editing & go with the flow, show, not tell, write for one person, make it relatable, read it aloud, edit and evolve, trust the process.

I’m sure if you are reading this, at least for once you would have written poetry or attempted to write one. Whether a student, teacher, parent, someone from a literary background, homemaker or an uneducated person, everyone makes an effort to write a poem at some point in their lifetime. The simple reason behind this is that poetry is a means of self-expression, to capture emotions, thoughts, and experiences in a creative and imaginative way. Here’s a beginner’s guide to writing poetry from scratch.

Poetry can be used to tell a story, convey a message, evoke a feeling, or simply play with language. Writing poetry can also be a form of therapy, allowing people to work through difficult emotions and explore their inner selves. Additionally, poetry has been a significant part of human culture for thousands of years, passing down stories, beliefs, and traditions from one generation to the next.

So whatever your reason for writing poetry be, know that you are not alone and every expression matters. You don’t need a degree in literature or great writing skills to pen poetry. If you don’t believe me, let me tell you how I started writing one. It is a little embarrassing for me to put it here but then if it could help you see a possibility for your own poetry-writing journey, then why not, right?

When I was around 11 years old (that’s 23 years back) I started writing and my very first fascination was nature and it still remains to be so. My ‘idea’ of poetry at that time was just about lines ending with rhymes. This is how my very first poem, started (don’t laugh at it; it was a kid’s expression then!):

Do you see that? At this age, after years of writing experience, I can see so many things flawed in the above stanza. For one, it has to be God’s ‘creation’ & not ‘creature’ and the whole thing looks like a ‘forced rhyming’ just to call it poetry. Don’t even ask me about the rest of the stanzas. But wait, does it matter that it was flawed? Absolutely no; because I see it as a ‘start’.

Yes, that day, a small kid started her journey towards self-expression and all that mattered to her were words that helped her make sense of what was happening around her and also inside her mind. And my dear friend, that’s all that should matter to you too when you are starting to pen poetry.

Writing poetry is a path of creative self-expression.

Choose a theme that talks to you

Now that you know what really matters, let’s get to the act of writing. All you need is an intention to write one. Firstly, choose a theme that talks to you or tap into an emotion that you are currently experiencing. That way you can easily get into the flow of writing instead of getting about it mechanically. Start somewhere, anywhere but just start. It really doesn’t matter if you write a great starting line or not, trust me!

If you are still stuck wondering where to start, then simply borrow a line/phrase from any book you read or a poem you liked. You can later replace the first line with something of your own; it really works. And yeah, it is not copying, it’s simply taking inspiration.

If you ask any of the writers or poets, they will tell you how most times their first drafts end up nothing but crap. So fret not about perfection and simply add one word after the other. Remember, just one word after the other. Easy, right? For beginners, free verse is the best bet but if you are in the mood for experimentation with different forms like haiku, lyrical poems, etc, then go for it. Just don’t let the structure restrict the flow of your ideas.

How To Write Better Poetry

Poetry is enriched with vivid imagery (descriptions). Showing and not telling is a writing technique used to create vivid and engaging descriptions by allowing readers to experience and interpret events and emotions, rather than just being told about them. All you need to do is to tap a little deeper into your sense of touch, vision, hearing, smell or taste. Here are some examples of showing and not telling:

• Telling: The food was delicious. Showing: The flavors exploded in his mouth as he savored each bite of the perfectly cooked biriyani.
• Telling: She was sad. Showing: Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sat alone, staring blankly out the window.
• Telling: The view was breathtaking. Showing: The sun set over the mountains, painting the sky in shades of pink and orange and taking his breath away.

Every individual has different perspectives and it’s the ability to put our perspectives out loud and clear that matters. So, loosen up, leave your hesitations and write for one person-yourself. Even if you plan to publish, it’s just you and the other person who is reading that is involved in this equation. So write for either yourself or just one reader. That way, the connection between you and the reader is easily established.

Have you noticed that a song lyrics appeals to you so much that it feels it was written just for you? Well, that’s where relatability comes into the picture. Even while you are writing your personal experiences, try and make it relatable to the reader.

To make a poem written from personal experience relatable to the reader, you can focus on universal themes and emotions that are common to many people. This can include topics such as love, loss, joy, fear, hope, etc. Additionally, you can use concrete and specific details that paint a vivid picture of your experiences and help the reader connect with them on an emotional level.

Avoid using jargon or uncommon terminology that may confuse or alienate the reader. Finally, you can use literary devices such as imagery, metaphor, and simile to enhance the emotional impact of the poem.

Reading your poem aloud can help you to identify and correct any issues in your writing, and to gain a better understanding of how the poem will be received by an audience. This is when you will get an idea of how the usage of words complement each other or not, whether is there a rhythmic flow to the poem, is the tone and theme of the poem are conveyed or not, etc.

So, own your poem and read it aloud to help you understand the nuances intuitively. It may sound difficult but try and see. You will get better at it with every poem.

Now that you know how your poetry has turned out and how it sounds while reading, it’s time that you make the edits and polish your poem. Though editing may take time to learn, it’s still your poem to experiment and evolve. Take charge of it and check the tone and mood of the poem. Make sure they match the content and the emotional impact you want to convey.

Read the poem several times, paying attention to each line and stanza. Look for areas that could be improved, such as awkward phrasing or unclear meaning. Consider using synonyms, metaphors, and similes to add depth and impact. Check the structure of the poem. Make sure each stanza and line break serves a purpose, and that the poem has a clear beginning, middle, and end. Finally, have someone else read the poem and provide feedback. This can give you a fresh perspective and help you to identify areas that could be improved.

Poetry is a creative form of self-expression. So, trust the process and evolve with each piece of writing. Also, poetry gives you the liberty to break the rules and simply have fun. So what stops you from writing a poetry, today? Get creative. Get bold. Get writing!

P.S. At the start of this post you read the childish poetry that I started with. To know how my writing has evolved over years, you can check these two poems (click on the below images) that are inspired by my all-time fascination with nature. You will see that with years, the experiences and perspectives have evolved. And, that is all that I wish for you to know, so you honour your expressions and emotions in verses without any hesitation.

How I Fell in Love With Her

If Only You Wake Up To Become the Sunlight

Hope this post helps. If you are just beginning to pen poetry, feel free to post it in the comments or share it on Twitter and tag me @PoetryPromising .

If you are an established poet, do share your very first piece of poetry. Let others be inspired.

Happy Poetrying!

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36 Poetry Writing Tips

by Melissa Donovan | Aug 10, 2023 | Poetry Writing | 72 comments

Poetry writing tips.

Poetry is the most artistic and liberating form of creative writing. You can write in the abstract or the concrete. Images can be vague or subtle, brilliant or dull. Write in form, using patterns, or write freely, letting your conscience (or subconscious) be your guide.

You can do just about anything in a poem. That’s why poetry writing is so wild and free; there are no rules. Poets have complete liberty to build something out of nothing simply by stringing words together.

All of this makes poetry writing alluring to writers who are burning with creativity. A poet’s process is magical and mesmerizing. But all that freedom and creativity can be a little overwhelming. If you can travel in any direction, which way should you go? Where are the guideposts?

Today’s writing tips include various tools and techniques that a poet can use. But these tips aren’t just for poets. All writers benefit from dabbling in poetry. Read a little poetry, write a few poems, study some basic concepts in poetry, and your other writing (fiction, creative nonfiction, even blogging) will soar.

Below, you’ll find thirty-six writing tips that take you on a little journey through the craft of poetry writing. See which ones appeal to you, give them a whirl, and they will lead you on a fantastic adventure.

• Read lots of poetry. In fact, read a lot of anything if you want to produce better writing.
• Write poetry as often as you can.
• Designate a special notebook (or space in your notebook) for poetry writing.
• Try writing in form (sonnets, haiku, etc.).
• Use imagery.
• Embrace metaphors, but stay away from clichés.
• Sign up for a poetry writing workshop.
• Expand your vocabulary.
• Read poems over and over (and aloud). Consider and analyze them.
• Join a poetry forum or poetry writing group online.
• Study musicality in writing (rhythm and meter).
• Use poetry prompts when you’re stuck.
• Be funny. Make a funny poem.
• Notice what makes others’ poetry memorable. Capture it, mix it up, and make it your own.
• Try poetry writing exercises when you’ve got writer’s block.
• Study biographies of famous (or not-so-famous) poets.
• Memorize a poem (or two, or three, or more).
• Revise and rewrite your poems to make them stronger and more compelling.
• Have fun with puns.
• Don’t be afraid to write a bad poem. You can write a better one later.
• Find unusual subject matter — a teapot, a shelf, a wall.
• Use language that people can understand.
• Meditate or listen to inspirational music before writing poetry to clear your mind and gain focus.
• Keep a notebook with you at all times so you can write whenever (and wherever) inspiration strikes.
• Submit your poetry to literary magazines and journals.
• When you submit work, accept rejection and try again and again. You can do it and you will.
• Get a website or blog and publish your own poetry.
• Connect with other poets to share and discuss the craft that is poetry writing.
• Attend a poetry reading or slam poetry event.
• Subscribe to a poetry podcast and listen to poetry.
• Support poets and poetry by buying books and magazines that feature poetry.
• Write with honesty. Don’t back away from your thoughts or feelings. Express them!
• Don’t be afraid to experiment. Mix art and music with your poetry. Perform it and publish it.
• Eliminate all unnecessary words, phrases, and lines. Make every word count.
• Write a poem every single day.
• Read a poem every single day.

Have You Written a Poem Lately?

I believe that poetry is the most exquisite form of writing. And anyone can write a poem if they want to. In today’s world of fast-moving images, poetry has lost much of its appeal to the masses. But there are those of us who thrive on language and who still appreciate a poem and its power to move us emotionally. It’s our job to keep great poetry writing alive. And it’s our job to keep writing poetry.

What are some of your favorite writing tips from today’s list? How can you apply poetry writing techniques to other forms of writing? Do you have any tips to add? Leave a comment!

72 Comments

Interesting article! 🙂 Thank you for writing this, Melissa!

Thank you for reading it, Maria!

I find this very helpful in my search to write poetry with some help. I am finding lots of things on the internet. This is my favorite so far.

Thanks for your kind words, Sandy. I’m glad you found this article helpful!

Nice article~ I started writing poetry on a regular basis back in November. Gave myself permission to write really bad stuff without hitting the delete key 🙂

I’d like to see recommendations for poetry blogs ands sites if you don’t mind sharing.

Hi Connie. In my experience, creative freedom (permission to write bad stuff) is essential in poetry writing. Most of the poetry sites I visit are online literary magazines, but I actually get most of my poetry from books. There are some excellent podcasts too — IndieFeed: Performance Poetry and Poem of the Day come to mind as two favorites.

Poem: Our Promise Kiribaku

You promised You promised me the world You promised You promised me your last name You promised You promised me heaven You promised You promised me Money You promised me freedom But now I am shackled by the pain of our broken promise

I have not written a poem lately. I don’t know why, but I only feel compelled to write poetry when I’m overflowing with emotion of some kind. Anger, passion, remorse, grief, love … the things that are so hard to contain in prose and need the stretchier boundaries of poetry to give them the room they need. Otherwise, I’m a down-to-earth, prose girl, and since, as a rule, I’m pretty even-keeled as emotions go … I don’t do the poetry thing very often. I think about it, though. Does that count?

Do you read a lot of poetry? I too tend to get the urge to write poetry when I’m overflowing with emotion, so I know what you mean. And it’s easy to drift away from poetry writing, especially when you’re blogging and writing copy! I don’t know if thinking about it counts, but I guess if your thoughts eventually lead to a poem, then it does count! Ha!

I really don’t read that much poetry, I like to think of myself as a creative person, but I’m still a prose girl at heart. Also, I have an aversion to things that rhyme (other than song lyrics) because sappy Hallmark cards pretty much ruined that for me when I was in my teens (grin).

Hallmark hasn’t exactly been a positive PR machine for poetry in general, has it? But what about Dr. Seuss-ish rhymes? Nursery rhymes? Rhymes in song lyrics? Can you tell I love rhyming? I know what you mean about sappy rhymes and greeting-card poems. When I’m writing (or reading) I always look for clever and unexpected rhymes. That sort of levels out the cheesiness factor.

Hi Melissa,

Thanks for posting this list!

My illustrious poetry career was cut short around the age of 13, when I became more obsessed with journaling about boys than writing witty epic poems commemorating family members’ birthdays.

I’ve decided that this will be the year that I finally open up to poetry again! I’ll probably start up with writing in my signature “grade 6” style of poetry which is likely to include rhymes like “bee” and “pee” and classic highbrow toilet humour. Hopefully I can grow from there. I’m currently trawling through your previous posts and comments for poetry tips, terms and reading suggestions – the one on meter and musicality looks especially good.

You asked for topic requests in a previous post, so here are a few post suggestions that I’d be interested in reading about:

1. A list of your favourite poets or pieces? (I’m currently asking all my friends for suggested readings as a starting point!) 2. More poetic devices or techniques that you may know about?

Hi zz. I’ll have to think about compiling a list of my favorite poems and poets. Some of my favorites are ee cummings, Maya Angelou, Margaret Atwood, Emily Dickinson, and so many more…

Like you, I started writing poetry when I was 13 years old. Since then, I’ve been in and out of poetry writing over the years. It’s comforting to know that I can always return to it. Good luck this year with your poetry!

All the tips are most useful for anyone who wants to become a poet. But it is not easy to follow each and every step. Concentration and hard work is essential to reach the goal.

True, although it depends on the goal. I’ve known a lot of writers who write poetry solely for personal expression. Their poems are private, much like a journal. You’re right in that it’s not easy to follow every step, and becoming a (published) poet takes concentration and hard work.

I think I never write poems because I don’t know when a poem is a poem and when it’s not. I never figured out any simple criteria for something to be a poem.

Do you ever read poetry? I think that learning through example is the best way to figure out what is a poem, although I have come across a few poems that I would consider prose or fiction — these are often referred to as “prose poems.” If you wanted to try your hand at poetry writing, you could always go the traditional route and compose sonnets or haiku. Those are definitely poems.

Thanks for sharing your insights on poetry.It is a nice article.Surely to improve poetry,one has to keep writing and editing.

That’s true. Improvement comes from practice, so keep on writing.

I made a New Year’s resolution to write a poem a day…so far I have strayed from my resolution hehe…nice post

Aw, but you still shouldn’t give up. You can also double up to catch up. Good luck!

Thank you Melissa, I will catch up by doubling up. The hardest thing to do is to employ various poetical techniques in a hip-hop form and present them to an audience that may be too dense to grab or understand dedication to the craft. I have learned that there is a market for everything though.

Don’t underestimate your audience! One of the reasons I fell in love with hip hop was because of its poetry (Jay-Z in particular). Of course, then there was the dance element!

Hi Melissa! Thanks for this site.It feels nice being with people who loves to write and your tips are really very useful. I am a lover of poems and I have tried writing poems myself. I’ve tried to write poems everyday as suggested and I realized that it is good practice…although most of them are not really even worth sharing, but it gives me time to critic my own work and at the same time improve on them. Oftentimes I dream that someday my poems will entertain others the way some poems entertain me, but many I find my poems very shallow. And much as I would like to say that poetry is just a way of expressing myself and sometimes venting myself of some negative feelings so I have to keep them to myself, most of the time, I have the urge to share it to somebody. Sometimes, the beauty of the poem for me is when you are able to share what it is you want to express and somebody else understands it the way you wanted it to be understood. It may be vain, but I think it is also a great feeling when someone says he/she liked my poem. Is it normal for a writer?

Hi Mary. Yes, I think what you’re experiencing is completely normal for a writer. Often, what seems obvious or ordinary to you is fascinating to someone else. If we, as writers, write what we know, then it’s not necessarily new or exciting, but for someone who hasn’t walked in our shoes or lived inside our heads, our words are fresh and compelling.

Of course it’s a wonderful feeling when someone likes your poem! The trick is to also experience a wonderful feeling when someone likes it enough to offer suggestions for improvements: “I like this poem a lot, but it would be even better if…” That’s a sign that someone believes in your work enough to want to help you grow.

My suggestion is to read tons and tons of poetry. There is plenty of great work online, but be sure to explore the classics and literary journals too. Good luck to you!

i have written a lot of poems. where can one send these for publishing….

Hi Charlan. Your question is really beyond the scope of what I can answer in a blog comment. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of publications that accept submissions. But before you submit to any of them, you should read them. I recommend searching for literary magazines, poetry magazines, literary journals, and poetry journals. That should be a good start.

.35 read a poem every day.

Well, there are lots of great tips here, but I thought I’d share a source of poetry that allows me to read a sacred poem everyday. It’s great–stuff all the way from Rumi to Levertov. And it draws on all spiritual traditions. Here’s the link! http://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/

Thanks for sharing that link, Rose. I’ll have to check it out. Great poetry is a bit hard to find online, so I appreciate your suggestion.

I love poetry. I recently got the word tattooed on my right arm. 🙂 Now that I’ve read this, I’m inspired to write a sonnet! Thank you!

Thank you, Lauren. Good luck with your sonnet.

Though I write youth fiction now, I can’t get away from poetry and end up scribbling poetic lines down in my journal every now and then. I guess that stems from my teen music writing days, where I had notebooks full of songs, poetry, whatever. Poetry is such a free form of writing, kind of like dancing 🙂

I couldn’t agree more, Alex. My focus these days is more on fiction and creative nonfiction, but the poems still show up at will. When they do, I write them in my journal. It’s definitely like dancing (a magical kind of dancing).

Melissa Donovan, I could disagree with everything you said, but that would make me a fool. And I am no fool no sir re, although I act a bit like one from time to time. Yes Notebooks galore are stored in my little pad.

I don’t read a lot as I am creating a lot and posting and maintaining my Blogs and websites along with all their supporting Bookmakers and Indexers. Forums are great and workshops are better. But the thing I find most supportive is pretending to be your own Publisher your own Boss.

This is what I am doing day in and day out or whenever the spirits move me. I talk about mostly creating as I am not educated enough in the forms of other poetry just free verse and prose. I guess I should try others forms and I may at a latter date.

But right not I am trying to make my poetry work for me, as I am Home bound and disabled to a great extent. Well I enjoyed this write it states much truth for Poets and Poetesses a like, God Bless and may you Keep on Keeping On!

Donnie/ Sinbad the Sailor Man

I believe that reading is essential to good writing. Many writers have reasons for not reading, but I think the reasons to read are far more convincing. In fact, I think spending an hour a day reading and twenty minutes writing will improve your writing faster and more thoroughly than spending an hour and twenty minutes a day writing. Keep at it, Donnie.

hi melissa, i am 14 and i wrote my firt poem a month ago. since then my school had registered my name for a competition. i am not really experienced and i am worried since i have to write a poem on a topic given by thejudges, in an hour. any tips?

My first tip would be this: don’t take the competition too seriously. It’s an honor that you were selected. Most poets aren’t constrained by a one-hour time limit, but this is definitely an opportunity to have a little fun with your creativity and challenge yourself. I say, just go with it. If you can, give yourself about ten minutes to jot down words and images once you’ve been given your subject. Then spend about thirty minutes working that material into a poem. Use the remaining twenty minutes to edit and revise. Good luck to you, Ash!

These are really good advise. I love point 23 especially, to meditate before penning down. I’ve always find poetry writing a way to connect with my own spirituality. I have always been smitten by poems of others with their powerful rhyming and rhythm, which I always have difficulty pulling it off. It always seem to me that they have not one word wasted. What would you suggest to make an improvement on ths aspect?

The best suggestion I can offer you is to edit your poems slowly and thoughtfully. Poems can happen very quickly and many beginning poets are inclined to go over the poem once or twice, sweeping it rather than giving it a deep cleaning. Spend time with the poem. Look for alternative words in a thesaurus. If you’re having trouble with rhyme, use a rhyming dictionary. If the rhythm is off, use a metronome or play music (without lyrics) while you write, or study music on the side to get a sense of rhythm and meter.

Wow!!!! Found it just awesome.. Yeah I have written some poems, but haven’t published anywhere, so, how can I do it to publish on this site.. This made me, to devote myself more and more for my dream Thaanxx for the article

Hi Nibedit. This is not a publishing platform for poetry, but you can do a search for “poetry journals” and “literary magazines” to find a host of sites that accept work for publication. I wish you the best of luck with your writing!

Well-written tips Melissa! Reading a lot definitely helps you to produce better poetry. I always have a small book in my bag, so that I could write whenever I feel to 🙂

Thanks, Summer! I carry a tiny notebook too, plus my phone, which I can use if I’ve forgotten my notebook for some reason.

Hey, Melissa! I’ve read through your article, but I’m still stuck on how I’m supposed to write a poem with deeper meaning. It seems like every other poem I’ve ever written have the same words on it and I’m running out of ideas of how to start. I would’ve considered myself to be fairly good as a learning poet but now i think I’m doubting myself because i used to know more vocabularies and now i can’t seem to think of any witty writings. I would appreciate any suggestions you may offer.

My best suggestion is to read some poetry and read some books on the craft of poetry. I always found those to the best ways to break through a plateau. You can check my Writing Resources page, where I have listed some of my favorite poetry resources.

I’m 13 and I’m trying to put together a poetry book. It’s about being gay and losing friends because of it, people not liking me back, etc. So far the poems I have written are very good (in my opinion), although depressing. I sent one in to a literary agent asking if it was professional material and he said he would gladly help me publish it.

So, what I wanted to say is that I barely ever read poetry and I can still write well. My ideas, rhythm patterns, rhyme schemes, etc. are original, and I like that about them. I’m not going for perfect or a masterpiece. I just want to get my messages and emotions across, so I don’t read the poetry of others. I can see why other poets would, but I just don’t. I just let myself write, and then I edit and revise whatever I come up with. Just stop when it sounds good.

Also, I want to add that you shouldn’t be afraid to write dark or depressing poetry. Just write with the emotions that you feel inside. Almost all of my poems are depressing, but it doesn’t mean that I cut myself or anything. So don’t be afraid to do that. (Writing depressing poetry, not cutting yourself. Lol)

Good luck to all of you aspiring poets out there!

Thanks, Thomas

Thomas, I think it’s wonderful that you’re writing poetry at age thirteen (coincidentally, that’s the age I started writing it, too) and that you’re using poetry to express yourself and address important social issues. I applaud you!

However, I cannot get on board with the notion that one can write great poetry without reading it. You say you write good poems, but how could you possibly know whether your poems are good if you don’t read any other poetry? What, exactly, are you comparing your poems to? You may very well be a born talent, but I can assure you that if you study your craft, your poems will be a thousand times better.

You say “I just want to get my messages and emotions across, so I don’t read the poetry of others.” It sounds to me like you want the world to listen to you but you don’t want to listen to anyone else, which is too bad. I hope that in time, you’ll change your mind and decide to embrace poetry in full, which means reading it as well as writing it.

I do enjoy reading a poem everyday. I subscribed to Academy of American Poets Poem A Day. That way I’m sure to read a different poem each day delivered to my email. The last time I wrote a poem was a week ago. I need to get back into a better routine with writing poetry. I enjoy it very much and I do try to find different journals and contests to submit my poetry to at least a few times a year. Thanks for the motivation with this article.

I’ve always viewed poetry as the most artistic (and sometimes magical!) form of writing. I just wish more people would embrace it.

hi. i’ve been so empty lately. the thought of making poems is that it interests me, at my good times and bad times. i dont know if it is talent or something. they dont even know, my friends and my family. im a little shy and ashame about it. they would say poetry sucks, its not for you, they would never understand the feeling. this is what i really love to do . i want to play with words. they found me. help me understand it. thanks.bye

If you want to make poems, then make poems. Other people don’t get to decide how you spend your free time. Why on earth would you be ashamed about wanting to write poetry? There are always people who want to shame and bully people because they are different. Don’t let them control you. Can you imagine shaming someone because they like soccer or knitting?

Ms Melissa, Also “steal” techniques and then perfect them to your purpose.

Thank you so much for this article Melissa! I wanted to write a book on my life for so many years but decided it would hurt too many people, even though they never thought about their actions. I woke up one morning and wrote poems(literally) based on the way i felt which I felt was less hurtful but more direct and expressive! My poems are free form and I’ve been reading up on writing good poetry. Although I find it difficult to fit to the guidelines. This article really helps! Cheers!

Hi Gayle! I’m so glad you liked this article. I once had an idea for a book based on real life, but like you, it wasn’t worth it to risk upsetting people, and I had plenty of other things that I wanted to write. Actually, it was a good way to eliminate an idea at a time when I had too many of them! And I agree that poetry is the most expressive and cathartic form of writing. Thank you for your comment.

Thank you so much for this fantastic article Melissa. I have just published my first book and working on my next one. I’m always on the outlook for crafted information to help me as a writer. I have developed my own style when writing poetry but it’s always nice to dapple using different ideas and constraints. Thanks…

You’re welcome, David. Congratulations on finishing your first book. May there be many more to follow!

This is encouraging. I’ve written a couple of poems but didn’t think they were good enough. Now I know there are really no limits. Thanks!

I’m glad you found this encouraging, Grace. As long as you stick with it, there are no limits. Keep writing.

Thanks beloved friend & Poetess I appreciate all your tips Everyone is On point, Phenomenal brilliant Food for a, poetry writer & speaker To use.

Lovely! Thanks, Jeffrey.

I’ve been writing poetry for years and have a collection of books on Amazon. When it comes to critique from your audience, it may surprise you! You might find teachers, other poets, writers and artists love your work. However, you will get feedback from people who hate your words. They will be harsh and leave you with a terrible review. This doesn’t mean you should stop and feel terrible, it just means you didn’t resonate with that person. Every type of creative work is open to good and bad feedback. It’s all part of the process. Just keep doing what you love.

This is so true. All art is subjective. I’ve had some interesting debates with people who don’t care for the poetry of ee cummings. Personally, I love his work. Unfortunately, reviewers often lack objectivity. For example, a trained and experienced reviewer can probably acknowledge the merit of a work while expressing their dislike (“it’s good work but not to my taste”). Some say you haven’t really “made it” until you get your first negative review. Writers can use feedback to grow and improve, but we should not let negative reviews impede our progress or determination. Thanks for your comment!

I lost my muse trying to find it again. So I wrote this

consciously asleep

Yellow is the sun Blue is the sky Hot is the desert Blank is the heart

Filled is the store Hungry do we wake

Many are they None is there

Alive we are Dead are we walking

Happy is the face Sad is the heart

Many are friends Lonely is he

Beauty is the body Ugly is the being

Island do we dwell Thirst are we

Kings are we born Shackles around neck

Love do they preach Hate do we see

Blessed are we born Cursed are we

Perfect is the earth made Chaos do we see

Mercy sowth the creator Vengeance ignited the creation

Noises do we hear Yet deaf are we.

Thank you for sharing your poem with us. Lovely.

This list is awesome. The one item on the list that renosontes with me would be supporting your favorite poets, your local poets, and read their marietial. I recently had a poem accepted by Spillwords called “Running with Scissors.” I’d like to attend a poetry slam in the future.

Thanks, Donetta! I too would love to attend a poetry slam. They look so fun!

You have some wonderful tips here. 🤍🌺 I’ve learned so much!

Thanks, Kymber! I love how you use the Sims to illustrate your stories! That’s awesome.

Thanks for this wonderful post. In December last year I committed myself to write one poem a day for a year. So far, I’m on track, but am running out of inspiration. Some of my poems are traditional rhyming poetry, one or two are free verse. I’ve written some Haiku, a few limericks, one or two narrative poems and some on things I feel deeply about, like what we are doing to our lovely planet. I hope to publish in two volumes–January to June and July to December. People will then be able to read one poem each day for a year.

What a fun challenge. I always mean to write a poem a day in April for National Poetry Month, but I keep forgetting! That seems to be a busy time of year for me.

I write a lot of poetry and have published a couple of collections. But with no rules, I wonder if there are more things I should know. I do/have done most of your list, but there are some good additions here. Thanks

You’re welcome!

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9 Essential Poetry Writing Techniques For Beginners: A Complete Guide

Poetry writing techniques.

Diving into poetry can feel like wandering through a beautiful, mysterious forest—exciting but a bit intimidating.

Our guide is your trusty map, showing you how to wield these techniques and  craft verses  that resonate and captivate. Get ready—your  poetic journey  awaits!

Key Takeaways

Table of contents, the importance of poetic techniques.

They turn simple phrases into rich experiences and help readers feel emotions and see images in their minds.

Poets use tools like  alliteration, assonance, and rhyme  to make their work memorable.

These techniques give poems a rhythm that can make you feel like you’re dancing through the verses.

Metaphors take this further by saying something is something else entirely, deepening the meaning.

By  mastering poetic devices , writers create worlds that readers can get lost in. They learn how to say more with less and connect deeply with those who read their creations.

Essential Poetic Techniques for Beginners

To craft verses that resonate and captivate, mastering a few essential poetic techniques is critical – these are the tools that will shape your raw thoughts into structured elegance and expressive power.

Rhyming creates a musical rhythm in poetry, making it more memorable and enjoyable to read or listen to.

Think about popular nursery rhymes you heard as a child; they stick with us because of their simple yet effective rhyming patterns.

To master musicality in your poems, mix up your rhyme scheme.

The key is to create flow without sounding forced. Rhyming isn’t just for classic forms like sonnets or ballads— modern free verse  can play with partial rhymes to add subtle harmony.

Moving from rhyming to repetition, we dive into another  powerful tool  in poetry. Repetition hammers home a point or theme.

A  repeated word or phrase  can echo throughout a poem, tying ideas together and making the message stick.

For beginners, mastering repetition is about knowing why and where it’s effective. Use it to  emphasize an emotion ,  create rhythm , or build tension.

Think of  William Shakespeare and his knack  for repeating lines that resonate long after you’ve read them – that’s the poetic power of careful repetition at work!

Onomatopoeia

Repetition captures attention, while  onomatopoeia brings sounds to life . Imagine reading a poem and hearing the actual noise of what’s happening.

These words  create an echo of real-life noises  in your mind. Onomatopoeia doesn’t just tell you about the sound; it makes you experience it.

When poets pick these particular words , they  paint a vivid picture with audio effects .

Alliteration

Alliteration grabs your attention with the repetition of  initial consonant sounds . Think of tongue twisters, like “She sells seashells by the seashore.”

In poetry, it’s a  powerful sound device  that poets use to add a  musical rhythm  and make their words memorable.

Using  alliteration , poets can create an atmosphere or emphasize essential themes in their poetry.

It goes beyond just being catchy; it  enhances mood  and helps paint  vivid pictures  in your mind.

Now, let’s explore how assonance also contributes to poetic effect.

Think about how songs stick in your head; that’s what assonance can do in poems. It  pulls you into the rhythm and sound .

Picture yourself reading these lines out loud: “The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain.” Hear that?

Next up is simile – let’s see how it paints pictures with words!

The simile uses “like” or “as” to  compare two different things . This shows how they are similar. A good simile  helps readers picture the scene  or  feel the emotion .

Beginners can start using similes by thinking of everyday items and what they represent.

The night sky could be “like a blanket of stars,” or someone’s smile might be “like sunshine.” Similes add spice to writing , making it more vivid and expressive!

For example, calling someone “the light of my life” means they’re more than just necessary – they brighten up your world like actual sunlight.

Poets use metaphors to make their writing  powerful and vivid . They help you see  ordinary things in new ways . Imagine saying, “Life is a rollercoaster.”

Just like a metaphor can colour your poetry with vivid comparisons,  hyperbole  takes it up a notch by adding  strong exaggeration .

Hyperboles are bold statements that stretch the truth for effect.

It’s like saying your heart shattered into a million pieces when you’re sad—everyone knows you mean really heart broken , not an actual broken heart.

Poets like Sylvia Plath and T.S. Eliot packed their works with symbols to add depth to their poems.

A symbol can be an object, a person, a situation, or an action that suggests more than its literal meaning.

Mastering symbolism takes time and practice, but it’s worth the effort.

Not only does it enrich your writing with  multiple layers of meaning , but it also engages readers as they uncover more profound significance behind your verses.

Understanding the Effects of Poetic Techniques

Delving into the world of poetic devices isn’t just about fancy words or complex ideas.

It’s about grasping how these techniques breathe life into verses, giving them a pulse that resonates with readers and listeners alike—let’s explore how they do just that!

Enriching the Imagery

For example, instead of saying “the sunset,” describe how the sky blazed with streaks of orange and purple as the day faded into twilight.

This technique draws readers into your poem and lets them see what you see.

It might also represent something more complex, like the fleeting nature of time.

By weaving symbols throughout your work, you invite readers to look beyond the surface and find  deeper meaning  in your words.

Enhancing the Sound

Sounds can flow smoothly or jar against each other—both effects serve a purpose. Euphony creates gentle and pleasing rhythms that can soothe the reader.

Alliteration uses repeated starting consonant sounds, like “slippery slope,” to make lines stick in your head.

Think about how cacophonous words might make you feel anxious or excited.

Skilled poets mix these elements carefully. They know just when to calm with sweet  assonance  or startle with a crack of consonants!

Deep Dive into Specific Techniques

Anaphora  grabs attention and adds emphasis by  repeating the same word or phrase  at the beginning of multiple lines or sentences.

Think of  Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream”  speech, where he used anaphora to hammer home his vision.

But that’s not all – anaphora works wonders in  setting the rhythm in poetry , much like a drumbeat that gets listeners nodding along.

It helps build up anticipation   leading readers through a series of thoughts , each starting with those  familiar repeated words .

Metonymy & Synecdoche

Metonymy and synecdoche are like secret codes in poetry. They pack a punch, squeezing big ideas into just a few words.

With metonymy, poets  swap out a word with something closely related  to it—think “The White House said” instead of “The President said.” It’s all about association.

When a sailor shouts, “All hands on deck!” he doesn’t mean just hands; he means whole sailors!

These techniques aren’t just showy tricks; they  deepen meaning and connect readers  to the poem’s heart.

Enjambment & End-Stopped Lines

Enjambment pulls you along. Imagine reading a poem when suddenly, a line jumps to the next without stopping.

That’s  enjambment  for you – it  creates excitement  and an  urge to see what comes next .

End-stopped lines do the opposite. They  make you pause  and think about what you just read because they finish with punctuation, like a period or comma.

Each end-stopped line is like taking a breath before diving into the next thought or image in the poem.

Zeugma  is a  fun tool  in your poetry kit. Imagine one-word pulling  double duty  in a sentence,  linking two thoughts together .

It’s like using “open” to talk about both a door and a heart at the same time! With zeugma, you  make your poem sharper  and  give your readers something clever to think about .

That’s Zeugma doing its magic. It  makes poems more potent with fewer words . Use it wisely, and watch your verses come alive!

Internal & End RhymeInternal rhyme  spices up a poem by using words that rhyme within the same line.

End rhyme  happens at the ends of lines, giving poems a  structured sound . It’s what you hear in classics like Shakespeare’s sonnets—rhymes closing each line bring it all together.

Imagine reading, “Twinkle, twinkle, little star; How I wonder what you are.”

Both internal and End rhymes make poetry  memorable and enjoyable . They give life to verses and help poets craft works that readers love to echo time after time.

Consonance & Assonance

Just like internal and End rhymes add spice to poems,  consonance, and assonance  enrich the sound, too.

It often comes at the End of lines but can pop up anywhere.

Now, let’s talk about assonance—the  repeated vowel sounds  in neighbouring words.

Use these tools wisely, and you’ll craft verses that stick with readers long after they’ve finished reading.

Euphony & Cacophony

Moving on from the smooth and repetitive patterns of consonance and assonance, let’s explore  euphony and cacophony .

Use euphony to craft lines that flow like a  musical stream , guiding readers through your poem with sounds that please the ear. Think of words that whisper, hum, or sing.

In contrast, bring in cacophony when you want to shake things up. Harsh-sounding words crash together, creating  tension and dissonance .

This technique works well to convey chaos or discomfort within your poem’s narrative— loud whispers  in a quiet room demanding attention.

Choose each word carefully for its sound; it can change how someone feels about your poetry just by hearing it aloud!

Meter gives poetry a rhythm, much like a heartbeat within a line. Think of it as the poem’s underlying music that guides the reader’s voice.

Classic poems often use  iambic pentameter  – that means five iambs per line, where one iamb is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one.

Even modern poets play with a meter to give their words pulse and pace; they might need to avoid mixing up  metrical feet  or craft lines without any apparent pattern on purpose for effect.

Meter isn’t just old-school – it evolves but always brings  order and tempo to verses  across ages.

Using Poetry Techniques in Comparisons and Analysis

Take  similes and metaphors ; they don’t just say one thing is like another; they make us see the connection.

A poet might write “time is a wave” to show how moments rush at us and then slip away.

Look closely at  Robert Frost’s poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” . Notice his use of  iambic tetrameter , which gives a calm, steady rhythm—it’s like the quietness of falling snow!

They reveal how  skilled poets  guide our thoughts and feelings through verse—like conductors with words instead of batons.

Concluding Thoughts on Poetry Writing Techniques

Ready to dive into poetry? Grab your pen and let these nine techniques be your guide. Play with sounds, shape your verses, and paint with words.

1. What are some basic poetry writing techniques for beginners?

2. how can i make my poetry sound more pleasing to the ear.

Use euphonious devices like alliteration—the repetition of consonant sounds at the start of words—or similar vowel sounds within lines for a musical effect.

3. Can you explain what blank verse is in poetry?

4. why should i use poetic forms like haikus or villanelles, 5. is rhyme necessary in modern poetry.

Not at all! While rhyming couplets add charm, modern poets often write free verse without rhyme schemes or regular meter—it’s all about your style and message.

6. What if I’m struggling with how to begin writing my poem?

R. a. bentinck, you may also like..., how to write a poem for a girl: make her melt with words, master the art of creating powerful poetic lines, leave a comment cancel reply.

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5 Tips for Poetry Writing: How to Get Started Writing Poems

Hannah Yang

Poetry is a daunting art form to break into.

There are technically no rules for how to write a poem , but despite that—or perhaps because of it—learning how to write a successful poem might feel more difficult than learning how to write a successful essay or story.

There are many reasons to try your hand at poetry, even if you’re primarily a prose writer. Here are just a few:

• Practice writing stronger descriptions and imagery
• Unlock a new side of your creative writing practice
• Learn how to wield language in a more nuanced way

Learning how to write poetry may seem intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be.

In this article, we’ll cover five of our favorite tips to get started writing poetry.

How Do You Start Writing Poetry?

How do you write a poem from a new perspective, how do you write a meaningful poem, how do you write a poem about a theme, what are some different types of poetry, tip 1: focus on concrete imagery.

One of the best ways to start writing poetry is to use concrete images that appeal to the five senses.

The idea of starting with the specific might feel counterintuitive, because many people think of poetry as a way to describe abstract ideas, such as death, joy, or sorrow.

It certainly can be. But each of these concepts has been written about extensively before. Try sitting down and writing an original poem about joy—it’s hard to find something new to say about it.

If you write about a specific experience you’ve had that made you feel joy, that will almost certainly be unique, because nobody has lived the same experiences you have.

That’s what makes concrete imagery so powerful in poetry.

A concrete image is a detail that has a basis in something real or tangible. It could be the texture of your daughter’s hair as you braid it in the morning, or the smell of a food that reminds you of home.

The more specific the image is, the more vivid and effective the poem will become.

Concrete imagery: Example

Harlem by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore— And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over— like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Notice how Langston Hughes doesn’t directly write about dreams, except for the very first line. After the first line, he uses concrete images that are very specific and appeal to the five senses: “dry up like a raisin in the sun,” “stink like rotten meat,” “sags like a heavy load.”

He conveys a deeper message about an abstract concept—dreams—using these specific, tangible images.

Concrete Imagery: Exercise

Examine your surroundings. Describe what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell.

Through these concrete images, try to evoke a specific feeling (e.g., nostalgia, boredom, happiness) without ever naming that feeling in the poem.

Once you've finished writing, you can use ProWritingAid’s Sensory Check to see which of the five senses you've used the most in your imagery. Most writers favor one or two senses, like in the example below, which can resonate with some readers but alienate others.

Sign up for a free ProWritingAid account to try the Sensory Check.

Bonus Tip: Start with a free verse poem, which is a poem with no set format or rhyme scheme. You can punctuate it the same way you would punctuate normal prose. Free verse is a great option for beginners, because it lets you write freely without limitations.

Tip 2: Play with Perspective

A persona poem is a poem told in the first-person POV (point of view) from the perspective of anything or anyone. This could include a famous person, a figure from mythology, or even an inanimate object.

The word persona comes from the Latin word for mask . When you write a persona poem, it’s like you’re putting on a mask to see the world through a new lens.

If you’re a new poet and you haven’t found your own voice yet, a persona poem is a great way to experiment with a unique style.

Some persona poems are narrative poems, which tell a story from a specific point of view. Others are lyric poems, which focus more on the style and sound of the poem instead of telling a story.

You can write from the perspective of a pop star, a politician, or a figure from fable or myth. You can try to imagine what it feels like to be a pair of jeans or a lawn mower or a fountain pen. There are no limits except your own creativity.

Play with Perspective: Example

Anne Hathaway by Carol Ann Duffy

Item I gyve unto my wief my second best bed … (from Shakespeare’s will)

The bed we loved in was a spinning world of forests, castles, torchlight, cliff-tops, seas where he would dive for pearls. My lover’s words were shooting stars which fell to earth as kisses on these lips; my body now a softer rhyme to his, now echo, assonance; his touch a verb dancing in the centre of a noun. Some nights I dreamed he’d written me, the bed a page beneath his writer’s hands. Romance and drama played by touch, by scent, by taste. In the other bed, the best, our guests dozed on, dribbling their prose. My living laughing love— I hold him in the casket of my widow’s head as he held me upon that next best bed.

In this poem, Carol Ann Duffy writes from the perspective of Anne Hathaway, the wife of William Shakespeare.

She imagines what the wife of this famous literary figure might think and feel, with lines like “Some nights I dreamed he’d written me.”

The poem isn’t written in Shakespearean English, but it uses diction and vocabulary that’s more old-fashioned than the English we speak today, to evoke the feeling of Shakespeare’s time period.

Play with Perspective: Exercise

Write a persona poem from the perspective of a fictional character out of a book or movie. You can tell an important story from their life, or simply try to capture the feeling of being in their head for a moment.

If this character lives in a different time period or speaks in a specific dialect, try to capture that in the poem’s voice.

Tip 3: Write from Life

The best poems are the ones that feel authentic and come from a place of truth.

Brainstorm your own personal experiences. Are there any stories from your life that evoke strong feelings for you? How can you tell that story through a poem?

Try to avoid clichés here. If you want to write about a universal experience or feeling, try to find an entry point into that feeling that’s unique to your life.

Maybe your first hobby was associated with a specific pair of shoes. Maybe your first encounter with shame came from breaking a specific promise to your grandfather. Any of these details could be the launching point for a poem.

Write from Life: Example

Discord in Childhood By D.H. Lawrence

Outside the house an ash-tree hung its terrible whips, And at night when the wind arose, the lash of the tree Shrieked and slashed the wind, as a ship’s Weird rigging in a storm shrieks hideously.

Within the house two voices arose in anger, a slender lash Whistling delirious rage, and the dreadful sound Of a thick lash booming and bruising, until it drowned The other voice in a silence of blood, ’neath the noise of the ash.

Here, D.H. Lawrence writes about the suffering he endured as a child listening to his parents arguing. He channels his own memories and experiences to create a profoundly relatable piece.

Write from Life: Exercise

Go to your phone’s camera roll, or a physical photo album, and find a photo from your life that speaks to you. Write a poem inspired by that photo.

What does that part of your life mean to you? What were your thoughts and feelings at that point in your life?

Tip 4: Save the Theme for the End

In a poem, the last line is often the most important. These are the words that echo in your reader’s head after they’re done reading.

Many poems will tell a story or depict a series of images, allowing you to draw your own conclusions about what it’s trying to say, and then conclude with the takeaway at the very end. Think of it like a fable you might tell a child—often, the moral of the story comes at the end.

In sonnets it’s a common trend for the final couplet to summarize the theme of the whole poem.

Save the Theme: Example

Resumé by Dorothy Parker

Razors pain you; Rivers are damp; Acids stain you; And drugs cause cramp. Guns aren’t lawful; Nooses give; Gas smells awful; You might as well live.

Here, Dorothy Parker doesn’t make the poem’s meaning clear until the very last line: “You might as well live.” The poem feels fun, almost like a song, and its true meaning doesn’t become obvious until after you’ve finished reading the poem.

Save the Theme: Exercise

Pick your favorite proverb or adage, such as “Actions speak louder than words.” Write a poem that uses that proverb or adage as the closing line.

Until the closing line, don’t comment on the deeper meaning in the rest of the poem—instead, tell a story that builds up to that theme.

Tip 5: Try a Poetic Form

Up until now, we’ve been writing in blank verse because it’s the most freeing. Sometimes, though, adding limitations can spark creativity too.

You can use a traditional poetic form to create the structure and shape of your poem.

If you have a limited number of lines to use, you’ll concentrate more on being concise and focused. Great poetry is minimalistic—no word is unnecessary. Using a form is a way to practice paring back to the words you absolutely need, and to start thinking about sound and rhyme.

The rules of a poetic form are never set in stone. It’s okay to experiment, and to pick and choose which rules you want to follow. If you want to use a form’s rhyme scheme but ignore its syllable count, for example, that’s perfectly fine.

Let’s look at some examples of poetic forms you can try, and the benefits of each one.

The haiku is a form of Japanese poetry made of three short, unrhymed lines. Traditionally, the first line contains 5 syllables, the second line contains 7 syllables, and the last contains 5 syllables.

Because each haiku must be incredibly concise, this form is a great way to practice economy of language and to learn how to convey a lot with a little. Even more so than with most other poetic forms, you have to think about each word and whether or not it pulls its weight in the poem as a whole.

The Old Pond by Matsuo Bashō

An old silent pond A frog jumps into the pond— Splash! Silence again.

The limerick is a 5-line poem with a sing-songy rhyme scheme and syllable count.

Limericks tend to be humorous and witty, so if you’re usually a comedic writer, they can be a great form for learning how to write poetry. You can treat the poem as a joke that builds up to a punchline.

Untitled Limerick by Edward Lear

There was an Old Man with a beard Who said, "It is just as I feared! Two Owls and a Hen, Four Larks and a Wren, Have all built their nests in my beard!"

The sonnet is a 14-line poetic form, invented in Italy in the 13th century.

There are multiple types of sonnet. One of the most well-known forms is the Shakespearean sonnet, which is divided into three quatrains (4-line stanzas) and one couplet (2-line stanza).

Almost every professional poet has tried a sonnet at some point, from classical poets such as William Shakespeare , John Milton , and John Donne , as well as contemporary poets such as Kim Addonizio , R.S. Gwynn , and Cathy Park Hong .

Sonnets are great for practicing more advanced poetry. Their form forces you to think about rhyme and meter.

Sonnet 116 by William Shakespeare

Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove. O no, it is an ever fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wand’ring barque, Whose worth’s unknown although his height be taken. Love’s not time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks Within his bending sickle’s compass come; Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

The villanelle is a 19-line poem with two lines that recur over and over throughout the poem.

The word “villanelle” comes from the Italian villanella , meaning rustic song or dance, because the two lines that are repeated resemble the chorus of a folk song. Using this form helps you to think about the sound and musicality of your writing.

Mad Girl’s Love Song by Sylvia Plath

I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead; I lift my lids and all is born again. (I think I made you up inside my head.)

The stars go waltzing out in blue and red, And arbitrary blackness gallops in: I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.

I dreamed that you bewitched me into bed And sung me moon-struck, kissed me quite insane. (I think I made you up inside my head.)

God topples from the sky, hell’s fires fade: Exit seraphim and Satan’s men: I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead.

I fancied you’d return the way you said, But I grow old and I forget your name. (I think I made you up inside my head.)

I should have loved a thunderbird instead; At least when spring comes they roar back again. I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead. (I think I made you up inside my head.)

Try a Poetic Form: Exercise

Pick your favorite poetic form (sonnet, limerick, haiku, or villanelle) and try writing a poem in that structure.

Remember that you don’t have to follow all the rules—pick the ones that spark your imagination, and ignore the ones that don’t.

These are our five favorite tips to get started writing poems. Feel free to try each of them, or to mix and match them to create something entirely new.

Have you tried any of these poetry methods before? Which ones are your favorites? Let us know in the comments.

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Hannah Yang is a speculative fiction writer who writes about all things strange and surreal. Her work has appeared in Analog Science Fiction, Apex Magazine, The Dark, and elsewhere, and two of her stories have been finalists for the Locus Award. Her favorite hobbies include watercolor painting, playing guitar, and rock climbing. You can follow her work on hannahyang.com, or subscribe to her newsletter for publication updates.

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Poetry Writing

Tips for improving your poetry writing skills.

The section “Poetry Writing Skills” in our guide provides tips and techniques for improving your poetry writing skills. It covers a variety of ways to improve your poetry writing including:

Reading widely: Reading poetry written by other poets can help to expose you to different styles, forms, and techniques, and can inspire you to develop your own unique voice and style.

Experimenting with different forms and structures: Poets can try their hand at different forms of poetry, such as sonnets, haikus, and free verse, and explore different structures and techniques to find the one that works best for them.

Using descriptive language and imagery: Using descriptive language and imagery can help to bring your poetry to life and create a more vivid and engaging experience for your readers.

Paying attention to rhythm and sound: Paying attention to the rhythm and sound of your poetry can help to create a more musical and engaging experience for your readers.

Revising and editing your work: Revising and editing your work can help to improve its structure, imagery, and overall impact on readers.

Overall, the section “Poetry Writing Skills” provides tips and techniques for poets to improve their poetry writing skills. It covers the different ways to improve their skills by reading widely, experimenting with different forms, using descriptive language and imagery, paying attention to rhythm and sound, and revising and editing their work. It is designed to help poets to become more confident and proficient in their writing and to develop their own unique voice and style.

Ideas For Poems: Finding Inspiration

Our section on “Ideas for Poems” is designed to help poets find inspiration for their work and develop their own unique voice and style. It covers different ways to get inspired, from observing the world around to exploring different themes, structures, and techniques. It provides prompts, ideas and tips to help poets to generate new and exciting ideas for their poems.

Why Write Poetry?

Fostering a deeper appreciation for literature and the written word.

Encouraging critical thinking and reflection.

Enhancing creativity and imagination.

Improving language skills and vocabulary.

Poetry writing can be a highly beneficial and rewarding activity for many people. It is a powerful way to express emotions, thoughts, and ideas, and can help to improve writing skills, creativity, and self-expression. Some of the key benefits of poetry writing include:

Emotional catharsis: Poetry allows individuals to explore their emotions and feelings in a safe and creative way, helping to release pent-up emotions and reduce stress and anxiety.

Improved writing skills: Poetry often requires a high level of focus on language, structure, and imagery, which can help to improve writing skills, vocabulary, grammar and learning poetic elements.

Increased creativity: Poetry provides a unique form of creative expression, where individuals can experiment with different styles, forms, and techniques, and push their own creative boundaries.

Self-expression: Poetry can be a powerful tool for self-expression, allowing individuals to explore their thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and to communicate them to others.

Empathy and understanding: Poetry can be a powerful way to connect with others, by providing a window into the emotions and experiences of others.

Self-discovery: Writing poetry can help people to better understand themselves, their emotions and experiences, and can help them to uncover new insights and perspectives.

Overall, poetry writing can be a valuable and fulfilling activity that can help to improve emotional well-being, writing skills, and creativity, while also providing a powerful means of self-expression and connection with others.

Poetry Writing Exercises & Prompts

Our guide to “Poetry Writing Exercises & Writing Prompts” provides a variety of exercises and prompts to help poets generate new creative writing ideas and improve their poetry writing skills. It covers different exercises such as free-writing, theme-based, form-based, imagery-based and rhythm-based, to help poets to find new inspiration, explore different emotions and perspectives, experiment with different forms and structures, and to create more vivid and engaging poetry.

An Overview of Our Guide to Poetry Writing

Our guide to poetry writing is divided into three main sub-topics to help aspiring poets develop their skills and find inspiration for their work. There are other options to help with writing poems such as literary devices. While they are useful, we have many other choices available also.

Poetry Writing Skills: This section of the guide covers the basic skills needed to write poetry in a poetic form, including understanding poetic forms and devices, learning to use imagery and metaphor effectively, and developing a strong sense of voice and style. It also covers tips for editing and revising poems, as well as advice for getting published.

Ideas for Poems: This section of the guide provides inspiration and prompts for generating ideas for poems, including tips for observing and writing about the world around you, using personal experiences and emotions as inspiration, and exploring different themes and subjects. Additionally, it covers how to use real-life experiences to inspire poetry, encouraging readers to draw on their own emotions and observations to create powerful and relatable work.

Poetry Writing Exercises and Prompts: This section of the guide includes a variety of exercises and writing prompts to help poets practice their craft and develop their skills, such as writing in different forms, experimenting with different structures and techniques, and using specific words, phrases, or images as inspiration. The prompts will help to push the poets creative boundaries and to explore new ways of writing different kinds of poetry such as free verse poetry.  The guide covers the various forms of poetry, from traditional sonnets to modern free verse, and provides examples and exercises to help poets experiment with different forms and find the one that suits them best.

Overall, our guide to the poetry writing process is designed to help poets of all levels improve their skills, find inspiration, and develop their own unique voice and style. It includes a section on how to get published, providing advice on how to submit poetry to literary journals and magazines, as well as tips for building a strong online presence and networking with other poets. Additionally, it covers how to write poetry that is accessible to the readers and how to make it relatable, with practical advice on how to convey complex ideas and emotions in a clear and concise way.

Our guide to writing poems in an excitingly wonderful way mixes well with Grammarly’s post about How to Write a Poem . It is a great guide if you’re ready to begin your own poem writing adventure. We have explored with concrete words and brought to the surface great ideas for anyone to get started writing epic poetry.

Remember to use figurative language, a rhyme scheme and some helpful ideas to get your creative juices flowing! Great poetry always begins with an idea.

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How to Write a Poem: In 7 Practical Steps with Examples

Learn how to write a poem through seven easy to follow steps that will guide you through writing completed poem. Ignite a passion for poetry!

This article is a practical guide for writing a poem, and the purpose is to help you  write a poem!  By completing the seven steps below, you will create the first draft of a simple poem. You can go on to refine your poetry in any way you like. The important thing is that you’ve got a poem under your belt. 

At the bottom of the post, I’ll provide more resources on writing poetry. I encourage you to explore different forms and structures and continue writing poetry on your own. Hopefully, writing a poem will spark, in you, a passion for creative writing and language. 

Let’s get started with writing a poem in seven simple steps: 

• Brainstorm & Free-write
• Develop a theme
• Create an extended metaphor
• Add figurative language
• Plan your structure
• Write your first draft
• Read, re-read & edit

Now we’ll go into each step in-depth. And, if your feeling up to it, you can plan and write your poem as we go.

Step 1: Brainstorm and Free-write 

Find what you want to write about 

Before you begin writing, you need to choose a subject to write about. For our purposes, you’ll want to select a specific topic. Later, you’ll be drawing a comparison between this subject and something else. 

When choosing a subject, you’ll want to write about something you feel passionately about. Your topic can be something you love, like a person, place, or thing. A subject can also be something you struggle with . Don’t get bogged down by all the options; pick something. Poets have written about topics like: 

And of course…  cats   

 Once you have your subject in mind, you’re going to begin freewriting about that subject. Let’s say you picked your pet iguana as your subject. Get out a sheet of paper or open a word processor. Start writing everything that comes to mind about that subject. You could write about your iguana’s name, the color of their skin, the texture of their scales, how they make you feel, a metaphor that comes to mind. Nothing is off-limits. 

Write anything that comes to mind about your subject. Keep writing until you’ve entirely exhausted everything you have to say about the subject. Or, set a timer for several minutes and write until it goes off. Don’t worry about things like spelling, grammar, form, or structure. For now, you want to get all your thoughts down on paper. 

ACTION STEPS: 

• Grab a scratch paper, or open a word processor 
• Pick a subject- something you’re passionate about
• Write everything that comes to mind about your topic without editing or structuring your writing 
• Make sure this free-writing is uninterrupted
• Optional-  set a timer and write continuously for 5 or 10 minutes about your subject 

Step 2: Develop a Theme 

What lesson do you want to teach? 

Poetry often has a theme or a message the poet would like to convey to the reader. Developing a theme will give your writing purpose and focus your effort. Look back at your freewriting and see if a theme, or lesson, has developed naturally, one that you can refine. 

Maybe, in writing about your iguana, you noticed that you talked about your love for animals and the need to preserve the environment. Or, perhaps you talk about how to care for a reptile pet. Your theme does not need to be groundbreaking. A theme only needs to be a message that you would like to convey. 

Now, what is your theme? Finish the following statement: 

The lesson I want to teach my readers about  (your subject)  is ______

Ex. I want to teach my readers that spring days are lovely and best enjoyed with loving companions or family. 

• Read over the product of your free-writing exercise.  
• Brainstorm a lesson you would like to teach readers about your subject. 
• Decide on one thing that is essential for your reader to know about your topic.
• Finish the sentence stem above. 

Step 3: Create an (extended) Metaphor 

Compare your subject to another, unlike thing. 

To write this poem, you will compare your subject to something it, seemingly, has nothing in common with. When you directly compare two, unlike things, you’re using a form of figurative language called a metaphor. But, we’re going to take this metaphor and extend it over one or two stanzas- Stanzas are like paragraphs, a block of text in a poem- Doing this will create an extended metaphor. 

Using a metaphor will reinforce your theme by making your poem memorable for your reader. Keep that in mind when you’re choosing the thing you’d like to compare your subject to. Suppose your topic is pet iguanas, and your theme is that they make fantastic pets. In that case, you’ll want to compare iguanas to something positive. Maybe you compare them to sunshine or a calm lake. This metaphor does the work or conveying your poem’s central message. 

• Identify something that is, seemingly, unlike your subject that you’ll use to compare.
• On a piece of paper, make two lists or a Venn diagram. 
• Write down all the ways that you’re subject and the thing you’ll compare it to are alike. 
• Also, write down all the ways they are unalike.
• Try and make both lists as comprehensive as possible.  

Step 4: Add more Figurative Language 

Make your writing sound poetic. 

Figurative language is a blanket term that describes several techniques used to impart meaning through words. Figurative language is usually colorful and evocative. We’ve talked about one form of figurative language already- metaphor and extended metaphor. But, here are a few others you can choose from.

This list is, by no means, a comprehensive one. There are many other forms of figurative language for you to research. I’ll link a resource at the bottom of this page. 

Five types of figurative language:

• Ex. Frank was as giddy as a schoolgirl to find a twenty-dollar bill in his pocket. 
• Frank’s car engine whined with exhaustion as he drove up the hill.  
• Frank was so hungry he could eat an entire horse. 
• Nearing the age of eighty-five, Frank felt as old as Methuselah.  
• Frank fretted as he frantically searched his forlorn apartment for a missing Ficus tree. 

There are many other types of figurative language, but those are a few common ones. Pick two of the five I’ve listed to include in your poem. Use more if you like, but you only need two for your current poem.   

• Choose two of the types of figurative language listed above 
• Brainstorm ways they can fit into a poem 
• Create example sentences for the two forms of figurative language you chose

Step 5: Plan your Structure 

How do you want your poem to sound and look? 

If you want to start quickly, then you can choose to write a free-verse poem. Free verse poems are poems that have no rhyme scheme, meter, or structure. In a free verse poem, you’re free to write unrestricted. If you’d like to explore free verse poetry, you can read my article on how to write a prose poem, which is a type of free verse poem. 

Read more about prose poetry here.  

However, some people enjoy the support of structure and rules. So, let’s talk about a few of the tools you can use to add a form to your poem. 

Tools to create poetic structure:

Rhyme Scheme – rhyme scheme refers to the pattern of rhymes used in a poem. The sound at the end of each line determines the rhyme scheme. Writers label words with letters to signify rhyming terms, and this is how rhyme schemes are defined. 

If you had a four-line poem that followed an ABAB scheme, then lines 1 and 3 would rhyme, and lines 2 and 4 would rhyme. Here’s an example of an ABAB rhyme scheme from an excerpt of Robert Frost’s poem,  Neither Out Far Nor In Deep: 

‘The people along the sand (A)

All turn and look one way. (B) 

They turn their back on the land. (A) 

They look at the sea all day. (B) 

Check out the Rhyme Zone.com if you need help coming up with a rhyme!

Read more about the ins and outs of rhyme scheme here.

Meter – a little more advanced than rhyme scheme, meter deals with a poem’s rhythm expressed through stressed and unstressed syllables. Meter can get pretty complicated ,

Check out this article if you’d like to learn more about it.

Stanza – a stanza is a group of lines placed together as a single unit in a poem. A stanza is to a poem what a paragraph is to prose writing. Stanzas don’t have to be the same number of lines throughout a poem, either. They can vary as paragraphs do. 

Line Breaks – these are the breaks between stanzas in a poem. They help to create rhythm and set stanzas apart from one another. 

• Decide if you want to write a structured poem or use free verse
• Brainstorm rhyming words that could fit into a simple scheme 
• Plan out your stanzas and line breaks (small stanzas help emphasize important lines in your poem) 

Step 6: Write Your Poem 

Combine your figurative language, extended metaphor, and structure.

Poetry is always unique to the writer. And, when it comes to poetry, the “rules” are flexible. In 1965 a young poet named Aram Saroyan wrote a poem called  lighght.  It goes like this- 

That’s it. Saroyan was paid $750 for his poem. You may or may not believe that’s poetry, but a lot of people accept it as just that. My point is, write the poem that comes to you. I won’t give you a strict set of guidelines to follow when creating your poetry. But, here are a few things to consider that might help guide you:

• Compare your subject to something else by creating an extended metaphor 
• Try to relate a theme or a simple lesson for your reader
• Use at least two of the figurative language techniques from above 
• Create a meter or rhyme scheme (if you’re up to it) 
• Write at least two stanzas and use a line break 

Still, need some help? Here are two well-known poems that are classic examples of an extended metaphor. Read over them, determine what two, unlike things, are being compared, and for what purpose? What theme is the poet trying to convey? What techniques can you steal? (it’s the sincerest form of flattery) 

“Hope” is a thing with feathers  by Emily Dickenson.

“The Rose that Grew From Concrete”  by Tupac Shakur. 

• Write the first draft of your poem.
• Don’t stress. Just get the poem on paper. 

Step 7: Read, Re-read, Edit 

Read your poem, and edit for clarity and focus .

When you’re finished, read over your poem. Do this out loud to get a feel for the poem’s rhythm. Have a friend or peer read your poem, edit for grammar and spelling. You can also stretch grammar rules, but do it with a purpose. 

You can also ask your editor what they think the theme is to determine if you’ve communicated it well enough. 

Now you can rewrite your poem. And, remember, all writing is rewriting. This editing process will longer than it did to write your first draft. 

• Re-read your poem out loud. 
• Find a trusted friend to read over your poem.
• Be open to critique, new ideas, and unique perspectives. 
• Edit for mistakes or style.

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Continued reading on Poetry

A Poetry Handbook

“With passion, wit, and good common sense, the celebrated poet Mary Oliver tells of the basic ways a poem is built—meter and rhyme, form and diction, sound and sense. She talks of iambs and trochees, couplets and sonnets, and how  and why  this should matter to anyone writing or reading poetry.”

Masterclass.com- Poetry 101: What is Meter?

Poetry Foundation- You Call That Poetry?!

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The Ultimate Guide to Writing Poetry for Beginners

By Rofida Khairalla

Poetry is not everyone’s cup of tea. But if you’ve always had a passion for the sonnets of Shakespeare, the verses of Petrarch, or even the works of Edgar Allan Poe, then you might just be gifted with an inner lyricists.

Poetry is one of the genres of writing that is both different and similar to other forms of creative writing. How can this be?

Well, poetry is a much tighter type of writing compared to a novel or even a short story, but it’s also highly descriptive.

Wait a second, you’re thinking, how do you explain works like the Divine Comedy then?

Here’s the rub:

Although there are types of poetry that are considered unrestricted, like free form, poetry is still very much a genre that has rules, just like fiction and non-fiction.

One of the most important rules to know right off the bat: there are forms of poetry, like epics, that are considered relatively outdated. Can you break the rules? Sure. But you better have a really good reason as to why.

So now that you’re more acquainted with modern poetry, it’s time to get a handle on the basics. But with so many different types of poetry out there, and an abundance of theories about what makes a good poem, where do you even start?

Well, it starts with getting to know the types of poetry and identifying which forms pull you. That’s where this ultimate guide to writing poetry for beginners comes in.

Use this article as a beginner’s guidebook. Whether you’re an aspiring artist or a college student that feels way out of their depth, this is a guide that can help you get a little more comfortable with poetry.

Curious to try your hand at a couple of verses? Let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

Part One: Finding Your Form

Read lots of poetry, find the right genre for you, emulate a poet you admire, know which themes/genres are popular today, part two: crafting a good poem, imagery, imagery, imagery, keep images simple, no to clichés, brush up on the poet’s toolbox, keep a journal, be observant, write regularly, challenge yourself, think once, twice, and thrice before you rhyme, part three: revise, often, read your work aloud, poetry workshops.

The first part of any endeavor is finding your niche. That’s especially the case for poetry. Every poem takes on a certain form, or structure, that helps define the shape, rhythm, and even the subject of that poem.

There are an abundance of forms to choose from and each form comes with its own set of rules. For example, a lyrical poem, like those of Robert Frost, have a very different structure than some of the narrative poems written by Joyce Carole Oats.

Here’s the beauty of poetry:

You don’t have to stick to one kind of form. Pick up any book of modern poetry and you’ll find that most poets write in five, six, or even ten different forms. You can become a master of multiple forms, but its starts with experimentation and getting really good at one or two forms.

Where should you start? Well, it starts with becoming a connoisseur of poetry. Here a few starting points.

If you’re a writer you probably already know this rule. The more you read of any style, genre, or subject, the better you’ll get at writing it. Same goes for poetry.  Read as much as you can as often as you can. Ideally, you want to be reading not only different poets like these ones on Twitter , but also from different time periods.

The reason you should read from varying time periods, and not limit yourself to modern poetry, is that reading older works, like those of Shakespeare or even the romance period, can give you a historical and philosophical background for your writing. This can be especially important as you progress in your writing, allowing you to tackle bigger and bigger subjects.

Like fiction, there are lots of different genres of poetry. You might find that in some genres you excel more than others.

Narrative poetry is one of the oldest forms of poetry around. If you happen to be a fiction writer, or someone who just loves a good story, this may be one of the best places to start when it comes to poetry because a narrative poem is one that tells a story.

Just like a novel, or short story, narrative poems usually have a narrator (or speaker) and follow a sequence of events.

However, the big difference between narrative poetry and fiction writing is that the language is much more condensed. Remember, as a poet you have a limited amount of space to develop the story along with any critical imagery, metaphors, similes, etc.

The thing that sets narrative poetry apart from other forms of storytelling is that the language is much “cleaner,” meaning that there are no unnecessary details or fluff.

Ideally, you don’t want to spend stanza after stanza describing a scene in a narrative poem. However, you can and should focus on one or two key details, like smell, taste, or something visual to highlight.

Keep in mind, narrative poems can be written like a typical narrative or they can feature lyrical elements like rhyme, rhythm, etc.

Another type of narrative poem is the lyrical poem. As mentioned above, these types of poems typically feature musical elements, including meter and rhyme.

Unlike the broad category of narrative poems, lyrical poems usually have a set structure, which defines them by the number of lines in a stanza or even the number of lines in total.

There are several types of lyrical poems. They include the ode, the ballad, the villanelle, and the sonnet.

An ode is a form of poetry that praises a particular person, concept or place. One of the best examples of ode poetry is the work of John Keats , with works like “Ode to a Grecian Urn” and “Ode to an Nightingale.”

When it comes to ballads, you may be more familiar with the term under pop culture contexts, such as the love ballads written by famous musicians including Journey. So what is a ballad? It’s a narrative poem written in four line stanzas that features a refrain, which repeats. In pop culture, that refrain is known as a chorus.

A villanelle, which became a popular form of poetry near the 19 th century, has six stanzas and nineteen lines. The first five stanzas are comprised of three lines (known as tercets) and are followed up by a four-line stanza (known as a quatrain).  It also features two refrains and two rhymes that repeat. Although topics can vary, villanelles are typically used to address darker themes like obsession.

Sonnets are a very peculiar type of lyrical poetry because they come in two forms: the Spenserian (named after poet Edmund Spencer), or more popularly known as Shakespearean, and the Italian, or Petrarchan, sonnet. Both sonnets are typically fourteen lines and begin by establishing a concept, setting, or scenario, and end by responding to the situation or shifting perspective—known as the “turn” or “Vola” for Petrarchan sonnets.

They are also both written in iambic pentameter. However, they differ in their rhyme scheme. Petrarchan sonnets follow an “ABBAABBA” rhyme scheme, while Shakespearean sonnets follow an alternating rhyme scheme of “ABABCDCDEFEFGG,” which ends with a rhyming couplet that usually adds to or refutes the main concept presented.

Typically speaking, language poetry is one of the harder forms of poetry to master both as a reader and a writer. It’s a much more modern form of poetry that can be traced back to the 1970s.

Language poetry focuses on deriving meaning from language rather than traditional imagery. A really good example of language poetry is the work of Charles Bernstein.

If you’ve ever read the Odyssey or the Iliad , then you’re very familiar with epic poetry. Epics are some of the oldest forms of poetry, and can be traced all the way back to the ancient Greeks.

An epic is a type of narrative poem that usually focuses on the concept of heroism or a major social-cultural event (think the battle of Troy in the Illiad ). These tend to be longer works that can span hundreds of pages and that tell a very detailed story.

Over the centuries there have been many types of epics that have been published, including Virgil’s The Aeneid, Beowulf, Divine Comedy, and Paradise Lost .

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that epic poetry is something that people don’t often read anymore. For that reason, you may want to rethink writing the next groundbreaking epic.

You may be familiar with the elegy if you’ve ever attended a funeral. Simply put, an elegy is a poem that reflects upon and laments the death of a particular person.

However, an elegy can also reflect upon other serious topics such as regret or sorrow. Elegies usually focus on three major topics throughout the poem: lament, grief, and praise for the dead.

One of the cool things about elegies is that they’re not restricted to a particular form. Although they have evolved over the years from the traditional hexameter of the ancient Greeks, they can also be written in free verse or iambic pentameter.

• Meditative:

Meditative poetry can have two meanings. The first is in a religious context that focuses on spirituality and prayer. The second follows the idea of meditating, or reflecting, upon a particular subject.

Think of meditative poems as an exploration of a topic or theme. It can be religious, but it can also be social, political, or personal. There’s no exact structure for how a meditative poem should be written and most are written in free verse.

One of the best writers of meditative poetry is Ann Carson . Her work The Beauty of a Husband strictly focuses on meditating upon the idea of fidelity.

Although Haikus are popularly associated with children’s poems, they are far from easy to master. The Japanese form is comprised of seventeen syllables that are broke up into three lines of five syllables, seven syllables, and then five syllables. Traditionally the subject of these poems is nature.

This doesn’t mean you have to become a communist like Pablo Neruda or commit to the life of a seamstress like Emily Dickenson. But you can try to emulate their style. Try using dashes in your poetry or experiment with musicality.

One of the best exercises to do is to pick a poet you’ve been reading and try emulating their writing technique. These types of exercises are so important because you can learn so much about the craft of poetry by doing them.

Like to try your hand at a poetry exercise?

Here’s one: pick a poem you’ve read recently and try to emulate its form and even rhythm as much as possible. Do your best to restrict yourself to crafting a poem that’s similar in language and style, but not in subject.

Let’s be honest, Chaucer is beautiful—but if you try to write a poem in Middle English no one will understand you. Similarly, while the poetry of the romantics is considered some of the best, currently, it’s considered one of the most out dated forms of written poetry. While you don’t want to put a limit on your creativity, it’s a good idea to get familiar with the school of contemporary poetry—especially if you hope to get published.

Now that you have a good grasp on the kinds of poetic form you’d like to explore, it’s time to get your hands dirty with a few verses. But before we begin, there are a few things you should note about the process of crafting a poem.

One of the biggest mistakes first-time poets make is that they often get caught up in exploring a particular idea or subject without grounding the exploration in “tangible” images. Of course, while not all poems have to be grounded in imagery, such as language poetry. You really have to think through your purposes for writing a poem in a certain way or even selecting a particular form.

For example, you don’t want to write a poem about death in the form of a sonnet unless you’re choosing to be satirical about the death (which depending on the context maybe inappropriate) because the musicality of the poem will be off.

Another mistake you want to steer clear of is choosing images that are too abstract. For instance, using a “river of love” as an image is much harder to picture for your audience than a river that caresses the bank as the water ebbs and flows. One is much easier to picture than the other. Ideally, you want to select these types of concrete details as you write over abstract concepts.

If you’re truly serious about writing poetry think of the following tips as your poet’s toolbox that will help you construct a great poem.

Unless you’re writing a language poem, don’t underestimate the power of imagery in your work. Just like fiction is dependent on solid descriptions, so is poetry. One of the best things to do when writing a poem is to select a specific image and expand upon it.

For example, let’s say you’re writing a nostalgic poem about your childhood. Choose a place, smell, or sound that reminds you of your childhood and expand upon it. A great example of this Marge Piercy’s “Barbie Doll.”

On another note, keep in mind that the space in which you are writing is typically limited to a few stanzas. The last thing you want to do is overdo the detail.

In most cases, imagery is where readers will draw meaning from your poem, so be very selective about the images you chose to include. Only chose a few scenes to describe and be thorough, but precise in your descriptions.

Avoid Clichés like the plague. This is another instance where understanding the rules of modern poetry will be critical. Unless you’re being satirical or humorous, clichés will bore your reader because they’re already familiar with the imagery or idea.

Additionally, using clichés has a tendency of introducing drama, or melodrama, into your poem. That’s another thing you want to steer clear of. Rather than dripping your poem in emotion, try using images that will evoke emotion.

Poems are really one of those forms of art where you have to depend on your tools in order to convey meaning.

Symbols are especially important within poetry because they can help you to explore abstract ideas in a concrete way. A symbol can be anything from a place, word, action, or object. However, commonly it’s an object or word.

Once again, the key thing to keep in mind about symbols and imagery is that you don’t want to overdo it. When it comes to symbols and the meaning associated with them, less is more.

• Metaphor/Simile:

Metaphor and similes are forms of comparisons. Similes use “like” or “as” to make the comparison, whereas within a metaphor the comparison is innate. For instance, the saying “easy as pie” is a simile, while the saying “love is a battlefield” is a metaphor. The meaning pulled from it isn’t literal, but rather symbolic.

Within poetry you can also run into another kind of metaphor, called an extended metaphor. These are comparisons that go on for an extended period, which can be anywhere from a few lines to several stanzas depending on the poem.

Within poetry, rhythm is the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables that make the musicality of a poem. Usually when we discuss the rhythm of a poem we are referring to its meter.

If you’ve read the works of Shakespeare than you’ve probably come across one of the more popular types of meter, which is iambic pentameter. Meter is the sequence of stressed and unstressed syllables in a poem. In some cases, such as Shakespeare, meter is very pronounced and you can quickly identify it. In other cases, a meter can be much more subtle and hard to catch unless you’re listening carefully.

There are several types of meter in poetry. They include:

There’s an abundance of meters to choose from, but the ones on this list happen to be the most popular in the English language. Although you might not run into a whole lot of meter in modern poetry, some writers still use it, and it’s definitely the mark of a master poet.

If you want to try your hand at a few metered poems, one of the best things to do is begin by studying works that use metered verse. As you go along, mark each syllable as stressed or unstressed.

The more you do this, the better your ear will get at identifying which syllables ought to be stressed or unstressed depending on the meter. Over time, this will make writing in a particular meter much easier.

Often, when people think of rhyme they might think of Dr. Seuss. However, poetic rhyme has been around since ancient times and still continues until today. There are two main types of rhyme to keep in mind:

• End rhyme : This is the most popular type of rhyme, where the last word of a line rhymes with last word of a following or preceding line. Examples of this include Shakespeare’s sonnets and Dr. Seuss.
• Internal rhyme: Internal rhyme is a much more complex and difficult type of rhyme to manage because it requires that two—or more— words within the same line rhyme. One of the masters of this type of rhyme actually happens to be rapper and musician, Eminem. Many of his lyrics feature this type of internal rhyme throughout, such as the song “low down dirty” when he says: “It was predicted by a medic I’d grow to be an addicted diabetic, living off liquid Triaminic pathetic.
• Caesura vs. Line Break:

One of the key elements of any poem are pauses; not only do pauses allow the reader to take a breath before beginning the next line or word, but—if done right—they can also add meaning to your poem.

For example, take Emily Dickenson’s dashes. In a lot of cases those dashes can serve as an implication or even a sort of pregnant pause that adds another layer of meaning to her poems.

Two of the most important types of pauses within poetry are the Caesura and the line break. A caesura is basically the use of punctuation in the middle of a line. This can be a comma, a dash, semicolon, or even a period. The other type of break is the line break, which is basically where one line ends and another begins.

As a poet, there are a few choices you have to think about while you’re writing. The first choice is if, when, and where you plan on using a caesura. Sometimes you might just add a caesura because it makes the poem flow better. In other circumstances, you may add a caesura for the sake of creating a choppy rhythm.

It all just depends on how YOU chose to handle a particular subject in your poetry. The other choice you’ll have to make is in regards to where your lines breaks will take place. Ideally, you want to keep your lines about the same size, but sometimes an irregular break can serve a purpose.

• Enjambment:

Enjambment is somewhat of the opposite of a caesura or a line break. An enjambment is when one line continues into the next line without a pause.  The use of a enjambment forces the reader to speed up, which can also add a layer of meaning, especially if you write a poem that uses regular line breaks but features one or two enjambments.

Assonance is the repetition of a vowel sound close enough together that it almost seems to create an echo. This is one of those tools that’s not always easy to use and, for readers, it can sometimes be hard to pick up on depending on the vowel or diphthong used.

The key to becoming a pro at assonance is to practice pairing words together that have the same vowel sounds. One of the best examples of this literary device: Pink Floyd. Just take a look at this line: “Fleet feet sweep by sleeping geese.”

• Repetition/ Refrain:

Repetition is another one of those literary devices that can be especially important in a poem because it adds emphasis. There are several types of repetition that you can choose from as a poet, but the two most popular tend to be:

• Anaphora: repeating the same word at the start of a stanza.
• Anadiplosis: repeating the last word in a line or stanza.

Another key aspect of repetition is the refrain, which is a repeating line that reappears multiple times throughout the poem.

• Alliteration:

The key thing about alliteration is that it can add a layer of musicality to your poem as well as meaning. Alliteration is the repetition of a particular letter or sound that comes at the beginning of words that are close in proximity. For example, take this famous tongue twister:

Peter Piper picked a bag of pickled peppers

Here, the alliteration is the repetition of “p” sounds throughout the sentence.

• Structure/Layout of a Poem:

Another critical element of any poem is its structure. This not only includes the poem’s form, such as literary, narrative, etc., but also the actual physical appearance of the poem. Most poems you’ll run across will be linear, which means that they appear as one or multiple stanzas that follow each other in consecutive order.

However, that doesn’t always have to be the case. You can get playful with the way your poem is laid out, depending on your subject. A good example of this: concrete poetry, which is a poem that’s been written to take a specific shape, like that of a tree, an apple, or even a pyramid.

Another one of the key parts of any poem is a stanza. Traditionally stanzas are broken up into a set of lines, which are listed as follows:

• Couplets: two lines that typically rhyme.
• Tercets: three lines.
• Quatrains: four lines.
• Sestets: six lines.
• Octave: Eight lines.

In free verse, you may not be restricted in the exact amount of lines in each poem. As a beginner, however, you may want to try limiting yourself to a particular stanza structure in order to maximize your use of language.

Remember, sometimes less is more, and especially as a beginner you can learn so much by placing certain restrictions upon yourself.

• Ending your Lines:

Something that plenty of beginning poets and even teachers can overlook is how a poet chooses to break up their lines.  When it comes to line breaks, try challenging yourself to end each line on a noun or verb, rather than a preposition.

The reason for this is twofold: ending on a preposition can actually add a choppiness to your poem that you may not intend, while ending on a verb or noun adds an additional layer or significance because it’s the last word your audience will read before moving on to the next line.

That’s not to say that you can’t ever end a line on preposition, but definitely think hard about the purpose behind the action before you do it.

Any writer should do this, but poets stand the most to benefit from keeping a journal. The reason? You can refer back to the images you see or the ideas you write down later on in your poetry.

As we noted earlier, poetry is all about imagery . The more observant you become of the world around you, the more unique and “eye-catching” your imagery will become.

The more you write and the more time you dedicate to the craft, the better a poet you will become.

You may be a really great free verse poet, but have you ever tried to write a lyrical poem? What about a Haiku? Try writing different types of poetry. Sometimes, restriction brings out the best in us creatively speaking.

This is another instance where being familiar with the school of contemporary fiction will help. Rhyming is another one of those things that’s typically considered outdated, unless you’re really really really good.

Just like any type of writing, poetry can benefit from going through the stages of drafting and revising. Don’t forget, poetry is all about trying to create a meaning within a limited amount of space and words, so the more you revise the better your poem can get.

But after you’ve taken the time to write a poem, where to begin when it comes to revision? Here are a few tips to help you identify those weaker areas of your poem.

Poems sound different when read aloud. Because of their structure, language, and meter, they tend to come alive. Whether you’re reading your own work, that of a colleague or friend, or a poem written by an 18th century master, make sure you take the time to read it aloud.

When it comes to revision, reading aloud will make any areas that feel choppy or awkward really pop out.

With fiction, workshops tend to be hit or miss. However, when it comes to poetry, you should definitely attend a workshop. Especially as a beginner you need the input of your peers. Since poems are meant to be read aloud, you also need a forum where you can do comfortably.

There’s a lot you stand to gain by revising your poetry. Typically, the more you revise the better your poem will become. Think of it this way: a poem is written in layers. The first layer is just the idea. The next layer you might add more refined imagery. The third time around you may work on the musicality. Typically speaking, poems can go through many drafts, just like a novel or short story.

Even if you have no intention of becoming a legendary poet, there’s still a lot that any writer can benefit from practicing poetry.

Remember, poetry teaches you to embrace concrete images over abstractions and to use precise and tight wording to explore an idea. That kind of restriction can be a benefit to your overall creativity, as well as the overall quality of your writing.

But it starts with having the courage to pick up a pen and dabble a few lines of verse.

Looking for advice on writing fiction? Be sure to take a look at our Beginner’s Guide to Writing a Novel.

The Ultimate Guide to Writing Poetry for Beginners is an article from Writing Tips Oasis . Copyright © 2014-2017 Writing Tips Oasis All Rights Reserved

As a graduate from the University of Arizona in English and Creative Writing, Rofida Khairalla’s love for classical literature and post-modern fiction extends beyond the realm of books. She has provided her services independently as a freelance writer, and wrote on the news desk for the student-run newspaper, The Daily Wildcat. As an aspiring children’s book author, she’s refined her craft amongst the grand saguaros of the Southwest, and enjoys playing with her German Shepherd on the slopes of Mount Lemmon.

How to Write Poetry: Writing Poetry for Beginners

Too often, new writers associate poetry with some of the most complicated and foreign poetic movements. No longer is poetry just Whitman, Blake, or Keats. Poetry has evolved in many ways, making it more accessible than ever to beginners.

As a small literary magazine who publishes new writers often, we are committed to sharing just how easy it is to start writing poetry. This is writing poetry for beginners.

Common Types of Poetry

There are various types of poetry, but that doesn’t mean you have to only write one or that you must follow all of the “rules.” Here are a few different types of poetry that you should become familiar with, especially when you’re a beginner.

Prose Poetry

Prose poetry has steadily been rising in popularity, and is perhaps one of the most accessible forms for beginner poets. This type of poetry is written in prose sentences, but can adopt many of the common attributes of poetry. For example, prose poems might focus on sound, tone, symbolism, metaphor , or a specific theme.

List of Famous Hats , by James Tate is an excellent example of a prose poem.

Napoleon’s hat is an obvious choice I guess to list as a famous hat, but that’s not the hat I have in mind. That was his hat for show. I am thinking of his private bathing cap, which in all honesty wasn’t much different than the one any jerk might buy at a corner drugstore now, except for two minor eccentricities. The first one isn’t even funny: Simply it was a white rubber bathing cap, but too small. Napoleon led such a hectic life ever since his childhood, even farther back than that, that he never had a chance to buy a new bathing cap and still as a grown-up–well, he didn’t really grow that much, but his head did: He was a pinhead at birth, and he used, until his death really, the same little tiny bathing cap that he was born in, and this meant that later it was very painful to him and gave him many headaches, as if he needed more. So, he had to vaseline his skull like crazy to even get the thing on. The second eccentricity was that it was a tricorn bathing cap. Scholars like to make a lot out of this, and it would be easy to do. My theory is simple-minded to be sure: that beneath his public head there was another head and it was a pyramid or something.

Narrative Poetry

If you read poetry, you’ve definitely read narrative poetry. This type of poetry, generally has an arch, a strong narrative voice, and a plot regardless of the length.

These poems can range in form and length. While they may “sound” like more complicated forms of poetry, they tend to be easier to follow.

Ever heard of William Shakespeare? Well, he’s the King of Sonnets. This type of poetry follows a specific form. Made up of 14 lines, iambic meter , and a ending rhyme scheme, sonnets are a more traditional type of poetry.

Enjoy Sonnet XXII , by Shakespeare

My glass shall not persuade me I am old, So long as youth and thou are of one date; But when in thee time’s furrows I behold, Then look I death my days should expiate. For all that beauty that doth cover thee Is but the seemly raiment of my heart, Which in thy breast doth live, as thine in me: How can I then be elder than thou art? O, therefore, love, be of thyself so wary As I, not for myself, but for thee will; Bearing thy heart, which I will keep so chary As tender nurse her babe from faring ill. Presume not on thy heart when mine is slain; Thou gavest me thine, not to give back again.

Epic Poetry

The hero’s journey is encapsulated in epic poetry . Epic poems are longer, and follow the trials and tribulations of a heroine. Many epics are rooted in mythology – this is why you may be familiar with some of them.

Homer’s The Odyssey is an example of an epic poem.

Free Verse Poetry

Ready to throw rules out the window? Free verse poetry follows no particular format, rhyme scheme, tone, or pattern. As a beginner, free verse is a fun way to start writing poetry because it does not place any limitations on the writer.

How to Write Poetry

Being a poet requires more than writing (yes, it’s true). By adopting some of these rules into your routine, you can ensure that your poetry grows and develops.

1. Read Poetry

While this sounds obvious, you’d be surprised to learn that few poets READ a lot of poetry. If you want to become a famous poet, you need to read the poets who can come before you.

Reading poetry can also help you identify which styles of poetry you’re interested in writing. Plus, it’s a great way to get inspired when writer’s block inevitably creeps out its head.

If you’re having trouble finding a great poetry book, or don’t want to commit to a collection of only one author, we highly recommend exploring poetry anthologies (our editor’s favorite is the The Penguin Anthology of Twentieth-Century American Poets).

2. Don’t Overcomplicate It

We understand that this may be easier said then done, however, starting small is a great way to start doing anything new.

For example, don’t try to start writing poetry by writing a 1,000 line epic poem . Instead, start with something shorter, like a 3 line haiku or minimalist poem .

Starting small will help you to grow your skills, and eventually help you grow your confidence to try harder forms of poetry.

3. Attend or Watch Local Poetry Slams / Groups

Creative spaces help to cultivate and hone your poetic style. We highly recommend you get involved in your local creative scene. This means attending poetry readings, joining a local writers or readers group, and maybe even sharing and editing your work in a workshop.

If you’re unable to connect with local poets, there are numerous spaces online to do so. Instagram, Twitter, and Medium are welcoming spaces for new poets and writers. From prompts, to resources and encouragement, you can find fellow poets online that can help keep you focused and driven in your pursuit to be a poet. You can follow us on Twitter or Instagram as well!

Pro Tip: There are some Instagram accounts that do awesome live poetry readings! Also, learn more about growing your poetry account on Instagram here.

This practice benefits poets in two ways. First, it encourages you to write due to the accountability factor. Second, it makes writing more community-driven versus you, being in a room, banging your head on the desk because you’re not feeling inspired.

How to Start A Poem

Many people want to write poetry, but they don’t know where to start. Luckily, it’s pretty easy to start a poem.

Do you write in other genres ? If so, what themes and topics do you usually explore?

For example, if you tend to write fantasy, use fantastical elements, like hidden forests, magic spells, and an evil-doer to inspire your poetry.

Start writing poetry using what you already know. Using this technique makes it much easier to start a poem. Additionally, examine and be present in your surroundings. Describe what you see, feel, smell. Use your senses to brainstorm possible poetry topics and to add poetic imagery to your writing.

If you need further inspiration, check out our Glossary of Poetic Terms . It may help nudge if you get stuck.

5 Poetry Writing Exercises

Still scratching your head when it comes to writing poetry? Try one or all of these poetry writing exercises. Writing exercises are a great way to get your creative juices flowing.

1.) Look at an old photo. Write about everything not in the picture. Feel free to move to and from reality.

2.) Describe a place you’ve never been to. Be as realistic as possible. The catch? It has to be a single word list.

3.) What’s the last dream you remember? Use colors and smells to describe it.

4.) Finish the sentence and continue the story… “When my head hits the pillow…”

5.) In 13 words, describe your oasis.

These poetry writing exercises can be recycled. Get creative, and exploratory. Write what comes to mind. These prompts are meant to help you begin your poetry writing journey. There are no right or wrong ways to approach them. And remember, revision always comes later on.

What Makes a Good Poem?

This is an age-old question, and one that writers now and into the future will keep asking.

But, honestly, what makes a good poem?

If someone reads your poem, and feels something – anything – then you’ve written a good poem. There are many people that will argue with this, but at the end of the day, it’s about how the writing makes you feel, not anyone else.

Yes, some of the common types of poetry follow a set of “rules,” but you’re the writer, and when you’re the writer, you get to write whatever kind of poetry you want.

No matter which forms you find yourself writing, all poetry elicits a response in readers. As a beginner, if you can stick to that rule of thumb, chances are you’re moving in the right poetic direction.

Want more tips? Read our 10 tips to improve your poetry .

How to Write Poetry FAQs

How can I teach myself poetry?

To teach yourself poetry, we recommend reading poetry and writing it. Reading more poetry will help you learn the various styles of poems. Once you learn about the varying types of poetry, consider trying to write a few lines about a topic that resonates with you.

What is the easiest poem to make?

Free verse poems are the easiest poems to make because they don’t have any rules. This allows you to be creative!

What is the best type of poetry?

The best type of poetry is a poem that leaves readers feeling inspired. This is very subjective; a poem you love might not be another person’s top choice – this is what makes poetry so amazing because it can cater to many audiences with different preferences.

Ready to Start Writing Poetry?

Poetry isn’t an inaccessible form of writing, but it can come across that way when you’re a beginner. Instead, writing poetry for beginners is pretty simple. Hopefully, this brief guide has made poetry feel more approachable. Now, it’s time to write poetry!

Be sure to check out our submissions page – we’d love to read what you’ve been working on!

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Jerz's Literacy Weblog (est. 1999)

Poetry writing tips: 10 helpful hacks for how to write a poem.

Jerz > Writing > General Creative Writing Tips [  Poetry  | Fiction  ]

If you are writing a poem because you want to capture a feeling that you experienced , then you don’t need these tips. Just write whatever feels right. Only you experienced the feeling that you want to express, so only you will know whether your poem succeeds.

If, however, your goal is to communicate with a reader — drawing on the established conventions of a literary genre (conventions that will be familiar to the experienced reader) to generate an emotional response in your reader — then simply writing what feels right to you won’t be enough.  (See also “ Poetry is for the Ear ” and “ When Backwards Newbie Poets Write .”)

These tips will help you make an important transition:

• away from writing poetry to celebrate, commemorate, or capture your own feelings (in which case you, the poet, are the center of the poem’s universe)
• towards writing poetry in order to generate feelings in your reader (in which case the poem exists entirely to serve the reader).

• Avoid Clichés
• Avoid Sentimentality
• Use Metaphor and Simile
• Use Concrete Words Instead of Abstract Words
• Communicate Theme
• Subvert the Ordinary
• Rhyme with Extreme Caution
• Revise, Revise, Revise

Tip #1 Know Your Goal.

If you don’t know where you’re going, how can you get there?

You need to know what you are trying to accomplish before you begin any project. Writing a poem is no exception.

Before you begin, ask yourself what you want your poem to “do.” Do you want your poem to explore a personal experience, protest a social injustice, describe the beauty of nature, or play with language in a certain way? Once your know the goal of your poem, you can conform your writing to that goal. Take each main element in your poem and make it serve the main purpose of the poem.

Tip #2 Avoid Clichés

Stephen Minot defines a  cliché as: “A metaphor or simile that has become so familiar from overuse that the vehicle … no longer contributes any meaning whatever to the tenor. It provides neither the vividness of a fresh metaphor nor the strength of a single unmodified word….The word is also used to describe overused but nonmetaphorical expressions such as ‘tried and true’ and ‘each and every'” ( Three Genres: The Writing of Poetry, Fiction and Drama , 405).

Cliché also describes other overused literary elements. “Familiar plot patterns and stock characters are clichés on a big scale” (Minot 148). Clichés can be overused themes, character types, or plots. For example, the “Lone Ranger” cowboy is a cliché because it has been used so many times that people no longer find it original.

A work full of clichés is like a plate of old food: unappetizing.

More creative writing tips.

Clichés work against original communication. People value creative talent. They want to see work that rises above the norm. When they see a work without clichés, they know the writer has worked his or her tail off, doing whatever it takes to be original. When they see a work full to the brim with clichés, they feel that the writer is not showing them anything above the ordinary. (In case you hadn’t noticed, this paragraph is chock full of clichés… I’ll bet you were bored to tears.)

Clichés dull meaning. Because clichéd writing sounds so familiar, people can finish whole lines without even reading them. If they don’t bother to read your poem, they certainly won’t stop to think about it. If they do not stop to think about your poem, they will never encounter the deeper meanings that mark the work of an accomplished poet.

Examples of Clichés:

How to Improve a Cliché

I will take the cliché “as busy as a bee” and show how you can express the same idea without cliché.

• Determine what the clichéd phrase is trying to say. In this case, I can see that “busy as a bee” is a way to describe the state of being busy.
• Think of an original way to describe what the cliché is trying to describe. For this cliché, I started by thinking about busyness. I asked myself the question, “What things are associated with being busy?” I came up with: college, my friend Jessica, corporation bosses, old ladies making quilts and canning goods, and a computer, fiddlers fiddling. From this list, I selected a thing that is not as often used in association with busyness: violins.
• Create a phrase using the non-clichéd way of description. I took my object associated with busyness and turned it into a phrase: “I feel like a bow fiddling an Irish reel.” This phrase communicates the idea of “busyness” much better than the worn-out, familiar cliché. The reader’s mind can picture the insane fury of the bow on the violin, and know that the poet is talking about a very frenzied sort of busyness. In fact, those readers who know what an Irish reel sounds like may even get a laugh out of this fresh way to describe “busyness.”

Try it! Take a cliché and use these steps to improve it. You may even end up with a line you feel is good enough to put in a poem!

Tip #3 Avoid Sentimentality.

Sentimentality is “dominated by a blunt appeal to the emotions of pity and love …. Popular subjects are puppies, grandparents, and young lovers” (Minot 416). “When readers have the feeling that emotions like rage or indignation have been pushed artificially for their own sake, they will not take the poem seriously” (132).

Minot says that the problem with sentimentality is that it detracts from the literary quality of your work (416). If your poetry is mushy or teary-eyed, your readers may openly rebel against your effort to invoke emotional response in them. If that happens, they will stop thinking about the issues you want to raise, and will instead spend their energy trying to control their own gag reflex.

Tip #4 Use Images.

“BE A PAINTER IN WORDS,” says UWEC English professor emerita, poet, and songwriter Peg Lauber. She says poetry should stimulate six senses:

• kinesiology (motion)
• “Sunlight varnishes magnolia branches crimson” (sight)
• “Vacuum cleaner’s whir and hum startles my ferret” (hearing)
• “Penguins lumber to their nests” (kinesiology)

Lauber advises her students to produce fresh, striking images (“imaginative”). Be a camera.  Make the reader  be there with the poet/speaker/narrator. (See also: “ Show, Don’t (Just) Tell “)

Tip #5 Use Metaphor and Simile.

Use metaphor and simile to bring imagery and concrete words into your writing.

A metaphor is a statement that pretends one thing is really something else: Example: “The lead singer is an elusive salamander.” This phrase does not mean that the lead singer is literally a salamander. Rather, it takes an abstract characteristic of a salamander (elusiveness) and projects it onto the person. By using metaphor to describe the lead singer, the poet creates a much more vivid picture of him/her than if the poet had simply said “The lead singer’s voice is hard to pick out.”

A simile is a statement where you say one object is similar to another object. Similes use the words “like” or “as.” Example: “He was curious as a caterpillar” or “He was curious, like a caterpillar” This phrase takes one quality of a caterpillar and projects it onto a person. It is an easy way to attach concrete images to feelings and character traits that might usually be described with abstract words.

Note: A simile is not automatically any more or less “poetic” than a metaphor. You don’t suddenly produce better poems if you replace all your similes with metaphors, or vice versa. The point to remember is that comparison, inference, and suggestion are all important tools of poetry; similes and metaphors are tools that will help in those areas.

Tip #6 Use Concrete Words Instead of Abstract Words.

Concrete words describe things that people experience with their senses.

A person can see orange, feel warm, or hear a cat.

A poet’s concrete words help the reader get a “picture” of what the poem is talking about. When the reader has a “picture” of what the poem is talking about, he/she can better understand what the poet is talking about.

Abstract words refer to concepts or feelings.

“Liberty” is a concept, “happy” is a feeling, and no one can agree on whether “love” is a feeling, a concept or an action.

A person can’t see, touch, or taste any of these things. As a result, when used in poetry, these words might simply fly over the reader’s head, without triggering any sensory response. Further, “liberty,” “happy,” and “love” can mean different things to different people. Therefore, if the poet uses such a word, the reader may take a different meaning from it than the poet intended.

Change Abstract Words Into Concrete Words

To avoid problems caused by using abstract words, use concrete words.

Example: “She felt happy.”

This line uses the abstract word “happy.” To improve this line, change the abstract word to a concrete image. One way to achieve this is to think of an object or a scene that evokes feelings of happiness to represent the happy feeling.

Improvement: “Her smile spread like red tint on ripening tomatoes.”

This line uses two concrete images: a smile and a ripening tomato. Describing the smile shows the reader something about happiness, rather than simply coming right out and naming the emotion. Also, the symbolism of the tomato further reinforces the happy feelings. Red is frequently associated with love; ripening is a positive natrual process; food is further associated with being satisfied.

Tip #7 Communicate Theme.

Poetry always has a theme. Theme is not just a topic, but an idea with an opinion.

Theme = Idea + Opinion

Topic: “The Vietnam War”

This is not a theme. It is only a subject. It is just an event. There are no ideas, opinions, or statements about life or of wisdom contained in this sentence

Theme: “History shows that despite our claims to be peace-loving, unfortunately each person secretly dreams of gaining glory through conflict.”

This is a theme. It is not just an event, but a statement about an event. It shows what the poet  thinks about the event. The poet strives to show the reader his/her theme during the entire poem, making use of literary techniques.

Tip #8 Subvert the Ordinary.

Poets’ strength is the  ability to see what other people see everyday in a new way . You don’t have to be special or a literary genius to write good poems–all you have to do is take an ordinary object, place, person, or idea, and come up with a new perception of it.

Example: People ride the bus everyday.

Poets’ Interpretation: A poet looks at the people on the bus and imagines scenes from their lives. A poet sees a sixty-year old woman and imagines a grandmother who runs marathons. A poet sees a two-year old boy and imagines him painting with ruby nail polish on the toilet seat, and his mother struggling to not respond in anger.

Take the ordinary and turn it on its head. (The word “subvert” literally means “turn upside down”.)

Tip #9 Rhyme with Extreme Caution.

Rhyme and meter (the pattern of stressed and unstressed words) can be dangerous if used the wrong way. Remember sing-song nursery rhymes? If you choose a rhyme scheme that makes your poem sound sing-song, it will detract from the quality of your poem.

I recommend that  beginning poets stick to free verse . It is hard enough to compose a poem without dealing with the intricacies of rhyme and meter. (Note: see Jerz’s response to this point, in “ Poetry Is For the Ear .”)

If you feel ready to create a rhymed poem, refer to chapters 6-10 of Stephen Minot’s book Three Genres: The Writing of Poetry, Fiction, and Drama . 6 th ed., for more help.

Tip #10 Revise, Revise, Revise.

The first completed draft of your poem is only the beginning. Poets often go through several drafts of a poem before considering the work “done.”

• Put your poem away for a few days, and then come back to it. When you re-read it, does anything seem confusing? Hard to follow? Do you see anything that needs improvement that you overlooked the first time? Often, when you are in the act of writing, you may leave out important details because you are so familiar with the topic. Re-reading a poem helps you to see it from the “outsider’s perspective” of a reader.
• Show your poem to others and ask for criticism. Don’t be content with a response like, “That’s a nice poem.” You won’t learn anything from that kind of response. Instead, find people who will tell you specific things you need to improve in your poem.

26 May 2000 — originally submitted by Kara Ziehl, as an assignment for Prof. Jerz’s technical writing class 01 Aug 2000 — modified and posted by Jerz 30 Nov 2001 — minor edits by Jerz 21 July 2011 — minor refresh 22 May 2013 — added intro before the tips. 24 Dec 2017 — minor formatting tweaks 09 Apr 2019 — corrected a 1000-year error caused by a typo in the above line

Handouts >  Creative Writing >  Poetry Tips

Poetry is for the Ear  — Whatever poetry you write or read, learn to listen with the ears of your audience. Pay attention to the sounds the words make, even if you write in free verse.

Short Poems: Little Exquisite Vessels of Thought   –A few good lines of verse can pack as much emotional content as a whole paragraph of ordinary prose. Just because a poem is short does not mean writing it is easy.

Getting College Credit for your High School Poems  –Poems that perfectly record how you felt about events in your life probably won’t work as submissions for college writing classes. Most professors will expect you to revise in-progress poems.

305 thoughts on “ Poetry Writing Tips: 10 Helpful Hacks for How to Write a Poem ”

It’s an interesting one

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I jumped from the introduction to the cliché section and kept reading until the end of the rhyming advice. This is powerful to post for someone to use as a subtle guideline during the writing process. Going through one of my poems on my blog, I rewrote it several times, making sure it hits the spot. Now, I feel once I post all 30 of my blogs, I’m going to go through each one and continue making modifications until it is perfect and sounds correct.

I am much impressed by the site,,it has motivated me as a poetry beginner In 1 year time I believe I shall be a great poet,thank you.

Poetry is a genre of literature, a genre of art, and a genre of life. It is a form of literary artwork due to its matchless beauty and magnitude of emotion.

I love poems

the above mentioned tips are amazing. i have got an outline on how this work of writing poems is done. soon i’m going to come up with my writings..thanks

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Hey sir, I want you to offer me some suggestions regarding my writing, I’m just a newbie. I don’t know where am I heading. Here is my piece of work down below. Have a look, please. Thank you.

My love has bruised my naive heart. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

She ran off, after approaching, where did she go? Her gestures had driven me crazy from the start. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

I had started out pursuing her path carelessly. waiting for her, turned me into ashes under the pot. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

I wish you to pass by my needy door someday. My faded eyes are being waited for you on spot. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

If you please remove this veil, my remiss love? As I’m burning in your remembrance, Oh my mascot. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

I have rubbed ashes on my body, don’t you go far. Would you keep pride to my pleas or not. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

Your vows have kept me alive to this day. Thereby, I offer my chest to every coming arrow shot. All of my senses went jerked a lot.

Ehmad there is nothing to pick on except don’t repeat the last line every time

You have poem for school childrens

Very informative article on how to write poetry thanks For sharing.

The tips for writing poem are really amazing! I really love to write poems. All the best to poem lovers!

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This will be an additional knowledge to me when I create my 2nd poetry book. Great tips!

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I can’t simply go without leaving a comment. This post is a great read.

I hope you can take the time to read my post as well: A Guide to Writing Exceptional Poetry

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Please what type of image can I give to Covid 19 as a poet

My first attempt As I gazed at the sky,I saw the beauty of Earth which is to be compared with yours It seems am an ant scavenging for crumbs of bread to behold the sight of a sheen, I could feel the warm,calm breeze touching my skin,just as I see the sun scorching like your eyes Your aura is like the sweet aroma of a banana, Your smile spread like the wings of a dove gliding over the deep blue ocean The sound of your voice could be linked to that of a mermaid….

My first attempt Please I’d like criticism

I see an engaging list of sensory details. What I’m looking for is some evidence of a revelation, an insight that changes the way the speaker (the “I” in the poem) thinks about the “you” who is the subject of the poem. Not all poems need to have that kind of a twist or revelation, but I’m looking for some kind of resolution. What new insight does the speaker gain, after gazing at the sky and doing all the comparisons listed in the poem? “Her big brown eyes were like pools that I could fall into and swim away from all my troubles.” That’s kind of silly (I claim no special talent as a poet) but it’s an example that goes beyond listing how X is like Y.

I’m not really an expert on these poem thing. But this is really a nice try of yours! Sounds very magical to me. But i kinda don’t understand some part of what you are trying to tell..it’s okay maybe because of some typos. Love it btw!

i love your first line

Ive been writing poems for a while now. My fathers death brought out feelings I could best express through poems. I’m curious if they are pretty good or need work.

Here’s one of my poems.

Baby blue eyes

When I saw you last, I looked in your eyes. You couldn’t speak, or even cry. You looked so lost and full of fear. All I could do, was wipe my tears.

I knew it was over, you felt so alone. I did what I could for your journey home. I stayed by your side, all through the night. Never leaving you, holding you tight.

My memories of you, are close to my heart. You’ll always be with me, we’ll never part. I’ll never forget how much I cried, I’ll never forget those baby blue eyes.

Dan, I would say that poems people write in order to express their feelings and to honor and commemorate a specific event in their life fall into the category of doing whatever feels right to you.

If you are interested in technical hints on becoming a better poet, I suggest you start with a poem that you feel is not “finished” — something you are still working on.

I have noticed that students who brought their “finished” high school poems into a college writing workshop are often so emotionally attached to their work that it was hard for them to cut out lines or whole stanzas or change whole organizational principles that weren’t working. This handout is focused specifically on high school poetry, but the general idea addresses using very personal poems in a writing workshop.

https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/creative1/poetry-writing-are-your-finished-high-school-poems-okay-for-a-college-writing-workshop/

If what you’d like to do is polish this poem, then I’d say the line breaks in this submission are confusing (I’d expect line breaks after “eyes.” and “cry,” and “fear.”) Having said that, point 9 on this page cautions against rhyming for beginning poets, though I also wrote this handout that emphasizes the power of sounds in poems: https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/creative1/poetry-is-for-the-ear/

The lines “You looked so lost and full of fear” and “I’ll never forget how much I cried” TELL me what you felt, but poetry works best when, instead of listing the emotions the poet felt, the poem instead generates feelings in the reader.

I didn’t know your father, so when I read about you looking into his eyes, I don’t have the memory of decades of looking at your father’s smirk when he gets in a zinger during a dinnertime debate about politics, or seeing the scar on his right brow from the car accident you caused when he was teaching you to drive, etc. (Of course I made up those details, and so they don’t accurately reflect who your father is. What details WOULD accurately convey your father’s personality?)

Rather than TELLING me that your memories are close to your heart, can you instead spend time bringing me along with you as you relive just one really significant event? Think of how a movie really comes to life when the camera zooms in on a person talking about a memory, and then suddenly we see a younger version of that character living through the events they remembered. Sometimes movies might have the older version of the character right there in the scene, commenting, like Scrooge does during the flashbacks the Ghost of Christmas Past shows him. That’s what movies do — they dramatize for the camera. Poems do something different — they use very specific sensory details in order to conjure up emotions in the reader. But listing the emotions you felt is not the same thing as giving your reader a reason to feel something.

This handout on Showing vs. Telling focuses on short stories, but it’s the same principle. TELLING me what you feel is different from SHOWING me something and generating a feeling in me.

https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/creative1/showing/

The professional writing advice “murder your darlings” emphasizes that even though we might be excited by and attached to what we wrote in a burst of inspired creative emotions, the process of editing and revision only works if we are objective and willing to trade off the emotional integrity of the experience we had WRITING a draft, with the technical requirements of what experienced readers will expect when READING a poem, and what they will find that’s original and effective, and what will seem predictable and overdone. https://medium.com/mindset-matters/who-said-murder-your-darlings-6a769e3f205e

This site has a collection of poems about grief.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/137079/poems-of-sorrow-and-grieving

If you were a student in my class, and you said you wanted to write a poem about grief, I’d ask you to read a dozen or so classic and modern poems about loss, and I’d ask you to explore how those poets use sensory experiences, memory, juxtaposition, contrast and other literary techniques in order to accomplish something that moved you; and then I’d ask you to try using some of those same strategies in your own work.

How many modern works use rhyming couplets? Was your baby-blue-eyed father a 300-pound professional wrestler? Were his eyes important to his profession, or to do something he loved to do, or something he did selflessly and reliably for the family?

When I was a kid, I found where my dad kept his “to do” list, and I decided I’d spend about 30 minutes a week doing something on that list, without being asked, and without telling him. Vacuuming the stairs, watering the lawn, that sort of thing. Sometimes when he saw me doing the task, or when he went to do it and found it had been done, he would be in such a good mood that he’d invite me out for ice cream.

If I wanted to put that detail into a poem, I wouldn’t say “here’s a thing that used to happen all the time. I would do a thing on my father’s to-do list, and he’d be so happy he’d invite me out for ice cream.”

Instead, I’d introduce my father as a barrel-chested former weight-lifter, who was not a hugger, who commuted for decades to an office job that he hated, and but hummed happily when he was sanding boards and chopping wood. On one day he was grumpy after doing his taxes, and I saw him making a cup of coffee and putting on his work clothes, so I turned off my video game and dashed out the back door, so that he’d see me uncoiling the garden hose and setting up the lawn sprinkler. Instead of just TELLING you that I noticed the tension leave his body; I’d SHOW that as he took in what he saw, his hands slowly unclenched, and he went back inside. When I came in a little later, he was humming to himself while flipping through the sports page, and he asked if I wanted to go out for ice cream.

I wouldn’t add a line about how “I’ll never forget how it felt when he reached across the back of the car seat to give my neck an affectionate squeeze”. Instead, I’d come up with a simile to describe the weight of his hand on my neck, and then I’d flash back to my very first memory, which is of my father holding me above his head, telling me to straighten out like a board and pressing my nose against the ceiling; and then I’d flash forward to a few months ago when I visited him, now well into his 80s; he had some trouble getting out of a chair, and without interrupting his story about a play the Bears made, he just casually reached out his hand so I could help him stand.

My poem would be full of references to hands and touching, but I probably wouldn’t title it “The Touch of My Father’s Hand” and I wouldn’t insult the reader by announcing the poem’s theme. I would just pick these specific memories of physical contact with my father, and I would try to make each one of them meaningful sensory experiences to the reader. I wouldn’t insert commentary listing my own feelings, and I wouldn’t try to tell the reader how they were supposed to react.

What are some other ways that your father’s eyes have been meaningful to you? Let your reader get to know your father’s eyes in happier times, so that we can feel the contrast for ourselves.

Thank you for your input Dennis. This is why I put it out there. I wanted to know how and what I can improve on. I’ll look at all you examples and hopefully learn from them. Again, thank you!

Sir may I ask permission if I can cite your tips in the module that I am writing for the Senior High School? I just found your tips practical for the high school students.

Yes, you may cite these tips.

your comment is longer then the article

What an eloquently phrased and well-supported response. So persuasive, too!

That is good but I think you should work on organizing it to specific lines

I really like this poem. My own father passed recently and I totally could relate. Thank you for sharing it. I just came across it today. Sorry for your loss.

you are freaking amazing.

I am learning

I happened to write few poems without knowing how to write.. Thank you for all d informations .. I shall follow the instructions and see how my poetry writing skill changes over the months🙏Ranbir laishram

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One may secure 9/9 band in IELTS but writing poetry in English is it self a new subject. It is very well written article and if followed the correct steps as described above. It can help improve the poetry writing skills a lot. One should pay attention to the following questions.

“What should I write poems about?” “How should I decide the right form for my poem?” “What are common mistakes that new poets make, and how can I avoid them?” “How do I write free verse/blank verse/sonnets/haikus etc.?”

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I think a good poet is very good at observing their surroundings. They are able to push these elements of life into creative writing, which can be in the form of poetry. I liked the poem by Sean Francisco in the comments. Poem Spark – Beautiful title.

Wow,wonderful explanations and recommendations of poetry.I am a poet too.You can find my poetry blog here https://shreyaspoetry.blogspot.com It is a must visit for poetry lovers.

I really enjoyed your explanation, thanks a million and God bless you with more wisdom.

In the 3rd book in my Butterflies series, I am writing a 3rd section on poem structure. Now I have my own idea about how a poem is written and I just had to run a Google search for comparison.

I just wrote this poem in maybe 30 minutes, good or bad, you all call it. I like it pretty good, I think. I’m definitely adding it to my next book.

No offense, This is my Poem Spark.

An ancient Jeraboam, would want you to know, there is but one poem, it’s of our soul.

Its wine warmed in the heart, God given to man. There is just one start, with all the world at your hand.

Don’t be afraid! Yes, sing us your song. It’s your history made. You can do no wrong.

After your gold, gleams light on the dark please always be so bold, you make a Poem Spark.

Sean Francisco

thanks for the great job Dan

THANKS FOR THIS ADVICE I REALKY DASIRE THEM

My father wrote this poem; I don’t know if you can consider this as a poem coz i don’t know what figure of speech or style he employed here. Would appreciate your expertise here c: Thank you in advance!

A PEOPLE BETRAYED

My People My poor people My suffering people My forsaken people Fooled and deceived Dazzled and misled Silenced and blinded Lulled and deluded Swindled and cheated Plundered and looted Burdened and tormented Trapped and exploited Captured and manipulated Trampled and invaded Swamped and dominated Starved and enslaved Denied and deserted Blamed and derided Ignored and dismayed Shamed and prostituted Mortgaged and conveyed Condemned and uprooted Terrorized and bullied Paralyzed and BETRAYED

By ruthless self-proclaimed leaders And by scheming alien invaders Who in reality are deceivers Who in truth are exploiters Who in fact are slavers Who in short are BETRAYERS Of my poor and endangered people A PEOPLE BETRAYED

A people full of sorrows A people full of sufferings A people full of burden A people full of pain A people full of despair A people full of confusion A people full of shame A people full of difficulties A people full of tragedies A people full of nightmares

Fooled and deceived Dazzled and misled Silenced and blinded Lulled and deluded Swindled and cheated Plundered and looted Burdened and tormented Trapped and exploited Captured and manipulated Trampled and invaded Swamped and dominated Starved and enslaved Denied and deserted Blamed and derided Ignored and dismayed Shamed and prostituted Mortgaged and conveyed Condemned and uprooted Terrorized and bullied Paralyzed and BETRAYED

A nation full of fools A nation full of slaves A nation full of beggars A nation full of captives

A nation full of cowards A nation full of idiots A nation full of sycophants A nation full of robots

A nation full of liars A nation full of hypocrites A nation full of clowns A nation full of puppets

A nation full of rascals A nation full of maniacs A nation full of crooks A nation full of monkeys

A nation full of deserters A nation full of bystanders A nation full of profiteers A nation full of racketeers

A nation full of pretenders A nation full of blusterers A nation full of squanderers A nation full of blunderers

A nation full of deceivers A nation full of invaders A nation full of conspirators A nation full of saboteurs

A nation full of slanderers A nation full of distorters A nation full of captors A nation full of tormentors

A nation full of exploiters A nation full of plunderers A nation full of oppressors A nation full of traitors

My people My poor people My suffering people My forsaken people My starving people My condemned people A people deceived A people misled A people exploited A people dominated A people enslaved A PEOPLE BETRAYED!

that’s not a poem, just a list of words. it literally does the opposite of all the tips given above, i.e. not a single concrete image to help the reader see in their own head. “my poor people” gives the reader zero visually, emotionally. who are the people? if concrete details were described — their unique clothes, or land, or actions — the reader would see them. right now, they are invisible.

a tip not given above: Compress! make the poem as short as possible to convey the idea. who wants to read or hear the phrase “a nation” 36 times, or “people” 30 times?.

I can certainly imagine an in-person recitation of this composition being very personal, very passionate, and very meaningful. Spoken-word performances are very different creatures from the kind of literary poetry that this page covers. This text states that a certain list of adjectives apply “in reality,” “in truth” and “in fact” to a certain group, but as “J z” mentioned a list of words doesn’t work on the reader’s emotions in the way that literary poetry does. We’d need to depend up seeing your father’s face, hearing his voice, and knowing about your relationship to your father, in order for these words to have the kind of effect on us that they may have on you.

What do these words mean to your father? What does he mean to you? How can you make us, the reader, feel those relationships?

No the above tips are useful only bro 😉😉😉

Just a list of words, where the author tries too hard to make it relevant that they know an average amount of vocabulary. There is no story, no continuity, no rhythm.

Do you have any constructive criticism to offer? It’s okay if this poem doesn’t use the techniques you prefer.

I don’t know exactly it is a poem or not. I can feel it because now in my country, Myanmar (formerly Burma), our People are suffering the same the author writes about.

YES! This is a poem.. Superb

My first attempt:

Her red lipstick covered lips raised like the oceans blue waves.

Her happiness is like the silver stared night sky.

The night sky is like a calm breeze brushing against her skin on a warm summer night.

The breeze is like her inner breath. Breathing comes to her like a diligent and vibrant brush stroke.

Her happiness is like the sweet aroma of the calming ocean saltwater.

Her happiness relies on others like stain colored glass relies on the very sand beneath her fingertips.

What do you guys think!! I need constructive criticism!

Very well, thought out

This is totally the best I’ve seen. It’s also an inspiration.

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, the best 5 tips for writing poetry.

General Education

A poem is defined as “a composition in verse.” You’ve probably read poetry in school, like famous sonnets or even Romantic odes . 

Reading poetry can be tough, which means writing poetry can me even more intimidating! But guess what? It doesn’t have to be. That’s why we’ve put together this expert guide on how to write good poetry. In this article, we’re going to cover: 

• The definition of a poem 
• What makes writing poetry different than writing prose 
• The 5 tips for writing poetry that you need to know
• The best resources for writing poems of your own

So whether you’re an aspiring poet or just writing a poem as part of an assignment, we’ve got you covered with these poetry tips.

What Is a Poem?

You probably know a poem when you see one, but you might not have thought about what makes a poem a poem. 

There is no single definition of what makes a piece of writing qualify as a poem, but there are a few qualities that most poems share. 

For instance, most poems rely heavily on symbolic language and imagery to help the reader understand the poet’s meaning. Poets use comparisons like metaphors and similes to help readers make connections between the poem’s topic and its meaning, and they often paint vivid pictures with words. 

Furthermore, many poems have both rhythm and rhyme . That’s not terribly surprising since songs and poems are closely related! 

When poets write a poem, they often think about how words combine to create rhymes and beats that help the poem move at a certain pace. If you’ve ever studied iambic pentameter , then you’ve studied a poem’s rhythm. ( Sonnets are a great place to learn more about how a poem’s rhyme scheme, too.) 

Keep in mind that not all poems use these tools, and they certainly don’t use them all in the same way. But if you’re looking at a piece of writing that uses a combination of symbolism/imagery, rhythm, and/or rhyme, you might have a poem on your hands.  

What Makes Writing Poetry Different From Writing Prose?

You’ve probably written a lot more prose than poetry in your life. Prose is defined as writing that has no metrical or rhythmic structure. That’s just a fancy way of saying that prose is writing that is structured in similarly to how we speak. 

You’re really familiar with prose writing, even if you’re not aware of it. Your textbooks, your science reports, your history essays, the Harry Potter books, and your diary are all examples of prose writing. While there are lots of styles of prose writing, the thing they all have in common is that they use grammar rules to make the writing read similarly to spoken language.

This means you’ve probably written a lot more prose than poetry over your lifetime. That doesn’t mean you can’t write great poetry! You’ll just have to get used to a different style of writing.  

The process of writing good poetry can be pretty different from the process you’d use to write prose like an essay or term paper. Think of it this way: you’re not really trying to explain all of the ins and outs of a topic in a poem. Instead, when you’re writing a poem, you’re trying to get your readers to experience certain emotions . Poets use images and feelings--rather than logical arguments--to help convey their meaning.

Writing good poetry can be tough, but understanding poetic devices can make the process a lot easier!

The 3 Poetic Devices You Need to Write Good Poetry

One of the best ways to get a handle on writing poetry is to understand some of the major devices, or tools, that you can use to put your poem together. While there are literally dozens of poetic devices that poets use to write poetry, here are the three you need to know to get started.

Poetic Device 1: Metaphors 

In poetry, metaphors are one of the primary ways that poets use to create imagery, evoke tone, and even convey the poem’s themes and meanings. 

But what is a metaphor, exactly? Merriam Webster defines a metaphor as “a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them.” In other words, a metaphor compares two seemingly unlike objects in order to create meaning. 

Here are three examples of metaphors to give you a better idea about how they work: 

• The assignment was a breeze. This metaphor compares a class assignment to a breeze, which is a gentle wind. While an assignment isn’t literally a gust of air, this comparison shows that the assignment was easy.  
• Linda’s temper was a wildfire. This example compares Linda to a wildfire in order to show how dangerous her temper can be. 
• Her eyes were a window to her soul. Of course, eyes can’t be a literal window. But they can give you insight into how a person is feeling and what they’re thinking. This metaphor uses the comparison between “eyes” and “a window” to show readers how observing a person can help us better understand who they are.

So why are metaphors an important aspect of how to write good poetry? 

Metaphors work by helping us create associations between two things in a figurative, or imaginative, way. Let’s take the example above that covers Linda’s temper. The poet could write, “Linda had a strong temper.” But that doesn’t quite explain how strong Linda’s temper is. Does she get mad, but then get over it quickly? Or is she the type that throws plates when she’s upset? 

By comparing Linda’s temper to a “wildfire,” the poet is able to give us a more specific--and more vivid!--picture of Linda when she’s upset. A wildfire is a fire that rages out of control, so we can definitely imagine what Linda is like once she gets mad. 

By using a metaphor, the poet makes it pretty clear that we wouldn’t like Linda when she’s angry. 

Poetic Device 2: Voice

Do you have a favorite comedian who just always makes you laugh because she comes up with a surprising way pointing things out? Or do you have a friend who says things in a really unique way that sticks with you? 

If you’ve experienced one of these things--or something similar!--then you’ve come in contact with someone who has a unique voice. 

The idea of voice is an important concept in poetry, too. Voice can be described as all the unique word choices and associations that make a piece of writing identifiable as being from a specific author or having a specific perspective . Poets spend a lot of time creating their voice so that their work stands out from the crowd. They can also use their voice to help shape the topics they write about. 

For instance, if a poet has a sarcastic voice, you know right away that they’re going to be tackling topics from a tongue-in-cheek perspective. And their poetry is probably going to be pretty substantially different than someone who has a more romantic voice. But even a sarcastic author may want to write a happy poem every once in a while. And that’s okay: they can just change their voice a little to fit the poem and its subject matter. 

Creating a voice for either yourself or a specific poem has a lot to do with the words you choose and the feelings you’re trying to convey . For example, if you want to write with a sad, melancholy voice, you’re probably going to say things like “the clouds wept on the sea” rather than “the sun shone on the daisies”! 

Poetic Device 3: Form

When it comes to advice for writing poetry, one of the best tips is to think about your poem’s form. The form of a poem is essentially how a poem looks on the page. 

For instance, many poems include line breaks as part of their form , meaning the poem’s lines end before they hit the right margin of the page or the end of a sentence. So instead of reading like a paragraph (like this one), the poem looks something like this: 

O’er the ocean billows, heaping      Mountains on the sloping sands,  There are ever wildly sweeping      Shapeless and invisible hands. 

— Excerpted from ”Music” by Alice Cary 

Ultimately, form can involve several things: how many lines per stanza and how many stanzas a poem has, which lines in a poem (if any) rhyme, whether or not lines are indented from the margin, and whether or not lines repeat. 

Things like line breaks and stanzas are part of formal poetic structures. Some poets decide not to use any of these things at all and write in free verse instead. Free verse just means the poem does not follow the rules of any traditional form . The poet is free to invent whatever overall structure she thinks is appropriate for the poem being written. Sometimes these can be individual words on different lines, or poems written in paragraph format. 

So how does form affect a poem? With traditional forms, readers have a clear idea of how the poem is structured . It’s a familiar format, which means your biggest task is to fill out the poem’s skeleton with the words and metaphors you come up with. Traditional forms also give readers a general idea of what the poem is going to be about. A sonnet, for example, is usually about love or relationships. 

Free verse, on the other hand, can feel a lot more open and unrestrained than a traditional poem that has line breaks and a rhyme scheme. Because free verse can seem like an unusual way to write a poem, it’s a good form for unique, untraditional, or unusual topics. 

If you’re just starting out in poetry, you may find it easier to write in a more traditional form . But in the end, the form of a poem is totally up to you! 

The 5 Best Tips for Writing Poetry

Now that we’ve discussed what a poem is and how it’s different from prose, how do you go about making one that will work? 

The thing about poetry is that there isn’t a single way to make a great poem. However, if you follow the expert tips for writing poetry below, you’ll be well on your way to writing poetry you’re proud of. 

Poetry Tip 1: Decide Where to Start

Because poems are often split into chunks--at least, if you’re using a more traditional form!-- you might find it helpful to start writing somewhere other than the beginning. 

For example, say you have a really pretty image of a sunset that you want to include in your poem. But you’re pretty sure you want to talk about the sunset at the end of the poem, not the beginning. That’s okay! Start writing your poem where the inspiration strikes you . You can always rearrange lines and stanzas later. 

You may also choose to start writing a poem by deciding on the poem’s theme or message rather than its content. Maybe you want to write about the joy you experience while running. Instead of worrying about saying the right thing the right way, you can start writing lines and thoughts that help you capture the feeling of running. Then you can start stitching those snippets into a longer poem. 

Poetry Tip 2: Pick a Form

Are you going to wing it, and let a structure form on its own? Or are you going to use a traditional form, like a Shakespearean sonnet , that has a very specific structure? 

The form you choose will have a pretty significant effect on your poem. For instance, sonnets (which traditionally include a little surprising shift in direction about halfway through called a volta ) work really well in telling short stories or conveying memories. But a free verse poem may be better suited for telling a more involved story. 

Keep in mind that these are just a few of the poetic forms you can use. If you want to explore different poetic forms, be sure to check out t he Academy of American Poets’s web page which has information on many of the most common poetic forms. 

Your poems come from your imagination, so don't be afraid to invite readers into your imaginary world. 

Poetry Tip 3: Create a Tiny World

When you’re writing poetry, your job is to engage the reader’s senses. You paint pictures for their imagination, encourage them to feel certain emotions, and can even engage their other senses like smell or taste through your descriptions. 

Put another way, your poem gives the reader a window into a tiny world you’re creating.

When you’re building your poem-world, think about how all the different elements work together. Are they playing nice or are they creating tension because they don’t belong together? How these elements interact can help create the tone of your poem. For example, if your poem features two dogs sleeping happily together in front of a fireplace, there’s a good chance your reader will feel happy and comfortable (rather than scared, angry, or sad).

You can also think about whether you’re giving the reader all the details they need to imagine your world correctly. For instance, if the scene you’re painting is damp and dark, you’ll want to include descriptive words that help your reader imagine the image you have in your head. The same is true if you have people in your poem. What are they doing? Where are they going? How are they feeling? Including these details can really help your poem come to life. 

Poetry Tip 4: Try Out Weird Ideas

One of the reasons poets like to write poetry is that you have the freedom to take risks in a way you don’t in any other written art form . 

When it comes to prose writing, the rules of grammar, logic, and structure often dictate what you can do. Take a historian who’s writing a book on George Washington’s life. Can you imagine what would happen if the writer said, “You know what? I’m going to stop writing about George Washington and talk about Elon Musk?” That wouldn’t be a very accurate history book!

Poets, on the other hand, have the freedom to explore ideas and situations that seem random or contradictory. Oftentimes, playing with the bounds of reality can make a poem even better. When you’re writing poetry, don’t be afraid to take risks in terms of your content, ideas, and form. Those risks often pay out! 

Poetry Tip 5: Revise

Poems are rarely written in a single sitting . Yes, we know poems are short, so they seem like they’re easy to write. But in actuality, poets spend hours thinking about which words to choose and how to make readers feel different emotions. That’s actually pretty painstaking work. In fact, many poems are revised dozens of times before they’re published. 

When you start writing poetry, make sure you give yourself enough time to come back to your poem and make tweaks. It’s usually best to come back to a poem after a few days so you can see it with fresh eyes. Keep all your drafts so you can compare them later, and don’t be afraid to try wildly new approaches when revising. 

Don’t think of revising as fixing all the grammatical mistakes you made; rather think about all the ways you can change your poem that can accomplish new things . Try rewriting it in a different form so you can see how effective the forms are for what you’re trying to get across. Try changing the metaphors, try rephrasing some of the lines that feel off to you. Try cutting it so that it’s shorter, or adding stanzas to make it longer. 

Poetry is about experimentation, so don’t be afraid to make changes to your poem to see what happens. 

Additional Resources for Writing Poetry

When it comes to advice on writing poetry, one of the best poetry tips we have is to encourage you to dive into helpful resources. We’ve put together a list of books, websites, and even email subscriptions that can help you learn more about poetry so you can become an even better poet.

Writing Poems by Robert Wallace and Michelle Boisseau

One excellent textbook that will give you an easy-to-understand list of poetic terms, tons of writing prompts, and tips for writing poetry Robert Wallace and Michelle Boisseau’s Writing Poems . They also include examples of poems that can help inspire your own writing. If you’re just getting started out writing poetry, this book is an invaluable resource. 

The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms by Eavan Boland

If you want to learn more about the various poetic forms, The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms is the book for you. It has in-depth examples of many common (and not-so-common) poetic forms, and it explains the construction of each one. If you’re looking to experiment with the form of your writing, this book is a great pick. 

The Best American Poetry

If you want to start following the current trends of contemporary poetry, you can pick up the most recent copy of The Best American Poetry . This is an annual anthology that contains several notable poems published in that year for you to read. Like most things, poetry goes through trends and phases, so flipping through a few of these anthologies will give you an idea of what type of poetry is popular at the moment.

T he Poetry Foundation 

The Poetry Foundation is an organization dedicated to helping make poetry more accessible for everyone. To help with that, they publish hundreds of poems—both contemporary and classic—on their website every year. They also have biographies of famous poets, audio recordings of poems that you can listen to, and expert guides that help readers analyze famous poetry. Whether you’re learning about poetry or trying to write your own, The Poetry Foundation is a fantastic resource for you. 

Daily Poetry Emails

One of the best ways to understand poetry is by reading tons and tons of poems. You don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on poetry books and anthologies, though. There are plenty of organizations that will send poems to your email box for free every day! We’re big fans of the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-A-Day , but there are dozens of services you can sign up for. If you keep reading poetry, your own writing will get better, too. 

What's Next?

When you’re learning to write poetry, the best thing you can do is read lots of poems. Why not check out this list of the world’s most famous sonnets to get you started?

In this article, we talked about a few of the basic poetic devices you’ll need to write good poetry. But there are actually a lot of poetic devices out there ! This article explains the 20 must-know poetic devices that can help you in writing good poetry and in analyzing poems that are already written.

Speaking of poetry tips: reading a poem and figuring out its meaning can be pretty tricky sometimes. We’ve put together a step-by-step analysis of Dylan Thomas’ “Do not go gentle into that good night” that can help you better understand how poetry analysis works. Our experts walk you through the poem line by line and show you how to figure out a poem’s meaning on your own.

These recommendations are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links, PrepScholar may receive a commission.

Ashley Sufflé Robinson has a Ph.D. in 19th Century English Literature. As a content writer for PrepScholar, Ashley is passionate about giving college-bound students the in-depth information they need to get into the school of their dreams.

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Poetry Writing Tips for Beginners

Poetry is one of the oldest and most respected literary forms. It is also one of the most deceptively difficult to write because it takes a certain style and skill with words to create a coherent work of poetry. You will also need to be as observant as possible, and be constantly open to inspiration.

You can technically use anything as a subject for your poems. The main challenge of learning how to write poetry is putting all your observations and imagery into written form. So if you are going to take up poetry, you should know how to write poetry.

Here are 8 easy to follow tips on writing poetry:

• Read great poems

If you are writing a poem, you should get the right references first. Don’t just jump into the poetry writing process without anything to base your work on. How are you supposed to write quality poetry if you haven’t read any?

So before you hunker down and start the writing process, you should make sure that you read as many great poems as possible. Take a gander at the works of Neruda, Keats, Whitman, and Dickinson to name a few of the greats. 

Overall, the more great poems you read, the more nuanced and polished your poetry will be. This does not mean that you should copy their work of course. Think of them as references that will expand your horizons as a poet.

• Stay away from tropes or clichés

Although you should take the time to read great examples of poetry, you should also be wary of using clichés. Poetry has been around for a very long time, and throughout the years, there have been techniques and phrases in poetry writing that have been overused.

They were overused because they were extremely popular at some point, but lost their relevance or popularity in recent times. If you use clichés in your work, your audience will notice them right away and may consider your poetry as subpar and original.

So if you are going to take up poetry, you should be aware of these clichés and avoid them as much as possible.

• Choose a specific theme

Like any other type of literary work, your poem will need a specific theme. You can’t write a poem effectively if you don’t have a set theme. A theme will give your work both focus and a set goal. Your theme can be practically anything under the sun. It could be about loss, love, hate, greed, etc.

Your theme could also be about a very specific event in your life, such as your first love or a broken relationship. Your theme could be anything that you can think of, what matters is that it can resonate with your audience. When choosing a theme, you should never rush the process.

• Free Your Mind

When it comes to writing poetry, it is important that you go into the writing process without any preconceived notions. Remember that you are going to write a poem out of scratch, and it is best that you free your mind from unnecessary thoughts.

While it is a good idea that you know the right format and rules for poetry writing, it is also important that your writing is as free-flowing as possible. Just choose a topic to write about, and write whatever comes to you. It is during these flow states that you will be able to create your best work.

• Choose a poetic style 

Poetry is one of the oldest forms of literature, and it has evolved through the centuries. This means that you have a veritable collection of poetry styles to choose from.

You can choose the very lengthy Epics or the more versatile free verse styles, or if you want a more straightforward yet profound style, you can choose to write haikus. The choice is up to you. Just remember though, that you should use only one style per poem.

Don’t try to mix or match two styles together, because they will just end up sounding awkward. Choose one that you are really comfortable with and get started on writing great quality poetry.

• Read it aloud

During the writing process, it is important that you check how your poetry sounds. It may seem perfect when you’re reading it. However, it may sound awkward or lacking once you read it aloud.

Seeing as most poems are supposed to be read aloud, you should make sure that the poem’s wordplay and flow are up to scratch. So take the time to read your work aloud. Read them aloud after each stanza. Check them for any inconsistencies or sloppy wordplay.

If you want to be more thorough, you could read it aloud to family and friends. They should keep their ears open for any instances of clunky wordplay. That way, once you have your work critiqued by a veteran poet, your work will be in the best condition possible.

• Have your poem critiqued

Once you finish writing a poem and check them for errors, now is the time to have your work critiqued. It can be a bit daunting to have your work critiqued at first, but it is necessary if you want to improve as a poet. 

If it is possible, you should have other more established poets look at your work. They will be able to provide a more detailed review of your work, and show you how to write poetry properly

There is no guarantee that they will like your work, and most of these critics will not pull their punches when they give their reviews. So it is important that know how to handle their criticism. Think of their criticism as a way to improve your skills and become even more enmeshed in the art of poetry.

• Polish it up

After you have your poem critiqued, now is the time to polish it up. Take their advice and make any changes to the wordplay or word usage. If you see any clunky wordplay in your work, try to smoothen them out. Remember that poetry should have a flow, an almost lyrical feel to them.

Go through your work, and check for any clichés or repeated phrases that need to be taken out. You should also make sure that your grammar and spelling are up to scratch.

Learning how to write poetry can be slow going at first. However, once you put these poetry tips for beginners into practice, you’ll be able to create quality poetry in no time.

Although the poetry writing process can be difficult, it is still a very satisfying feeling to create great works of poetry. So just keep at it, and enjoy every bit of the experience.

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Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

You’ve written, re-written, and fine-tuned your poetry collection. Now it’s time to get it published. The next step you need to consider is formatting.

In poetry, where every word carries weight and every line bears significance, the way a poem is presented on the page can profoundly impact its reception. Proper poetry formatting is not just about aesthetics; it’s about enhancing readability, complementing the poem’s rhythm, and enriching the overall artistic experience for the reader.

In this article, we delve into the intricacies of formatting poetry books. We’ll explore essential considerations and offer practical guidance for you in your quest to publish your poems.

Table of Contents: • How to format your poetry book • Preparing for poetry book publication

How to format your poetry book

One thing to keep in mind is that there isn’t one specific way to format a poetry collection. For example, the poems of E.E. Cummings wouldn’t work if they were formatted the same way the poems of Walt Whitman were, and vice versa. Here are some essential formatting concepts to consider.

Spacing and shaping your poetry

White space is as much a part of poetry as the words themselves. Proper spacing and stanza structure can enhance the visual impact of a poem, guiding the reader’s eye and emphasizing key moments.

If you want help with interior text formatting for your poems (to ensure that they look the way you want them to in both print and in eBook), be sure to hire a professional.

BookBaby’s book formatting solutions ensure that each poem’s layout is optimized for maximum impact, with careful attention to line breaks and spacing to preserve the integrity of the poet’s craft.

Font selection

Your choice of font and text formatting can significantly influence the tone and style of poetry. Whether sleek and modern or elegant and timeless, the right font sets the stage for the reader’s journey through your words.

Here are some essential tips for choosing the right typeface:

• Ultimately, you want people to look at your poems and start reading them — not to look at your poems and notice the font. Therefore, be sure to avoid anything that calls too much attention to itself. This will simply snatch attention away from your work.
• To follow on that last point: Avoid novelty fonts at all costs. They’ll just make your work appear amateurish.
• Pick fonts like Times New Roman that are easy to read both in print and on eReaders .
• Generally speaking, you want to stick to the classics, or at least modern fonts that have been modeled after the classics.

Some fonts to consider:

Times New Roman is the classic choice. On the plus side, every single word processor and every eReader has it, so once you set it, you know exactly how your text is going to look. On the downside, it’s a bit boring. Then again, because it’s so universal and boring, that can be a strength. By not calling attention to itself, it will allow your poems to speak for themselves.

If you want something that feels just as timeless as Times New Roman but has a bit more personality, go with something like:

• Baskerville for a clean and classic look
• Century for something more old-school
• Palatino that is highly readable

If you want to go the sans-serif route, choose something timeless and unobtrusive like Helvetica or Arial, or if you want something with a bit more personality that’s still readable, go with Gill Sans, Century Gothic, Optima, or Montserrat.

Choosing a title

A good title should intrigue and compel your readers to check out your book. It should also nicely sum up or hint at the overarching theme of your poetry collection, or if you had poems published elsewhere, be named after your best-known poem in the collection.

The table of contents

Don’t forget your book table of contents ! You want your readers to be able to easily find their favorite poems of yours.

Page numbering and margins

Adhere to standard practices for page numbering and margin settings to ensure consistency and readability throughout the book.

Incorporating visual elements

Visual elements such as illustrations or photographs can complement and enhance your poetry, adding depth and dimension to the reading experience. Be sure to hire professional photographers or illustrators, as you don’t want your photos to look amateurish.

Special formatting considerations for poetry

Some poems may require special formatting considerations, such as concrete poetry book layout or intricate visual patterns. If you are doing your own formatting, be sure to test your poems on as many eReaders as possible to ensure consistency, but honestly, if you are writing concrete poetry, where the typographical effect of your poetry book layout is integral to the piece, your best bet is to hire a professional, like the pros at BookBaby, for formatting and book design .

How many poems are in a poetry book?

The typical range of poems included in a poetry book can vary widely depending on factors such as length and style of each poem, as well as the collection’s thematic coherence. While some poetry collections may contain a handful of longer, more elaborate poems, others may comprise dozens of shorter pieces. Ultimately, the number of poems in a poetry book is determined by your artistic vision and the theme of your collection.

Choosing the right trim size

The book trim size determines the dimensions of the book and plays a crucial role in its overall look and feel. While most novels are set in US Trade (6” x 9”) trim size, poetry books tend to be smaller, like Digest size (5.5” x 8.5”).

Of course, you can choose a non-traditional size for your poetry collection, too. Consider a Pocket Book (4.25” x 6.87”) if your poems are short, or maybe even a Landscape (12” x 9”) if you want to include photographs or illustrations.

BookBaby offers a range of trim size options, allowing you to tailor your book’s dimensions to suit your poetic vision, whether you prefer a compact volume for intimate reading or a larger format for expansive verse. See our comparison chart about various trim sizes and bonding options .

Preparing for poetry book publication

Now that you’ve formatted your book, you have a few more steps and considerations before you can send it off for publication.

Proofreading and editing

Professional editing and proofreading are essential steps in preparing any poetry manuscript. It’s important to have your book edited after you have formatted it because any time you are manipulating the text, mistakes can creep in. BookBaby’s book editing services ensure that each poem is polished and error-free, maintaining the integrity of the poet’s voice while enhancing clarity and coherence.

These days, poets have a range of publishing options available, from traditional publishing houses to self-publishing platforms. If you are looking to self-publish your poetry book, be sure to check out BookBaby’s self-publishing packages , as they include everything you need to publish and sell your poems all around the world.

Marketing your poetry book

Effective marketing is key to reaching a wider audience and maximizing the impact of a poetry book. BookBaby offers a suite of book marketing services to help give you the boost you need to promote and sell your book.

Bringing your poetry to life

In summary, proper poetry formatting is essential for enhancing the readability, aesthetics, and impact of a poetry book. With BookBaby’s expertise in printing, editing, and formatting services, poets can transform their manuscripts into professionally published works of art, ready to captivate readers and inspire audiences around the world.

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