Poetry Lessons

WHAT ARE YOU MISSING?

So much of the magic in poetry is in the image created for the reader. To be able to paint vivid word pictures, it is important to be mindful of the details around you. Think about your every day experiences. As you go about your daily routine, what are you missing--what are you failing to notice? The color of the sky? The smell in the air? The sounds around you? The way cold water feels? The way supper tastes? All those things make great ingredients for poems.

In fact, a good exercise is to write a detailed description of an actual scene using lots of sensory language. Make the reader feel as if they are there with you. Now think what that scene reminds you of -- There's your idea for a poem! End your poem by returning to your original image in some new way. Read your poem out loud. Now share it with a friend!

In your everyday life, what sensory experiences are you missing? Take time to notice details. Be in the moment. Being mindful is one of the best ways to become a skilled poet!

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LYRIC POETRY

In comparison to narrative or dramatic poetry, lyric poetry is verse marked by its musical aspects. In fact, some describe lyric poetry as poetry that feels as if it could be sung. It does not have to rhyme -- although it often does -- but it should contain rhythm and cadence. That is, it should take advantage of sound. That could mean using assonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia, meter, repetition or rhyme.

Other sometimes cited aspects of lyrical poetry are that it is brief, doesn't focus on narrative, has rhythm, is based on emotional expression, tends to be personal, offers one unified thought and it is almost like thoughts overheard or a person talking to themselves.

Imagery and sensory language are important, and, of course, metaphor and simile deepen the effect.

Try writing lyrical verse: Imagine yourself in a place you can visualize in great detail. Paint a word picture of the place that suggests your mindset there and then invites the reader to join you. Try to include as many sound concepts (listed above) as you can. Keep your poem short -- under 20 lines if possible. Choose a title that suggests why you chose this particular place.

Creating "place" is one of the most important aspects of memorable poetry. Using sound well is another!

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CHANGING YOUR FOCUS

When it comes to details, writing poetry can be like using a camera. With a camera, you point the lens and then decide what you want to focus on. With poetry, you can choose a topic, but, just like with the camera, you must also choose your focus - near or far, people or nature, closeups or group shots.

When you write, it is important to consider the word picture you will offer. Sometimes you will ask the reader to notice distant clouds. Other times you will want the reader to bend to smell a gardenia. Still other times, you will zoom in on the pain in a person's eyes.

As an exercise, try rewriting some of your poems by changing your focus. If a poem is about a tree, write about a single leaf. If a poem is about spring, focus on a shaft of sunlight. If a poem is about a person, write about their hands. You may find that poetic moments offer more than one version of expression!

MAKING CONNECTIONS

Much of the aim of poetry is to help the reader/listener discover connections: between facts, words, images and experiences.As poets, we do that overtly by using metaphor and simile, but we can also accomplish it by offering a sequence of ideas whose connection the reader/listener discovers within the poem.

In fact, the essense of haiku, that very early form of poety perfected by the Japanese, is essentially just that. In traditional haiku, the poet succinctly describes three natural images, each one on a separate line of characters. It is then up to the reader to discern meaning from the trio of thoughts such as water, bird and cloud. While haiku writing is a lesson in connections (and a great way to learn to compress language and to develop an eye for beauty), we can also use the technique of haiku in free verse poems.

Try this: Choose a word, any word: “ready” or “folded" or "ice." This will be your title. Think of a remembered or imagined scene from your experience. Write about it in detail as if it is the central purpose of your poem When you have captured the occurrence, stop and clear your mind. Now consider your present circumstances. Where are you? What are you doing? Here describe what you are doing now. Explore in your mind what led you to the original title idea.  Begin the next part of your poem with, “I think/remember/imagine this while…”  and describe in detail the present moment. Finally, In the last few lines use the word you chose as your title.

This is the place where you discover the meaning of your poem, and the reader suddenly “sees” how the two scenes and the word are all connected to each other...and also how they are connected to moments in their own life!

"FOUND" INSPIRATION

Most people note that their favorite poem is one that “inspires” them. As poets, we must be inspired too! When you are having trouble feeling ready to write, sometimes it is just a matter of “finding” inspiration. Inspiring words, images, sounds, smells, people, places and events are all around us. When we are mindful of that, we can use "found" images and phrases to help us get inspired!

Choose three photographs, three pictures from magazines or three actual “scenes” or objects in your home or yard. Make an extensive word bank of words that describe each picture. Consider what you physically see, then what might be seen in a wider lens or a closer view. Finally think about how the scenes make you feel or what they remind you of. Write all that down as quickly as it comes to you in no particular form or order. Now look for connections or directions within your word lists. Do your notes lead you to unexpected threads of discovery? What question comes to mind? What discomforts? What joys?

Another place to find inspiration for poems is by using “found” words. You can choose a random phrase from a newspaper, book, magazine or even signs along the road. Go through the process described above: Make an extensive brainstorming word bank including specific images (use your 5 senses!). Note memories, people and places you are reminded of. Now look through your notes for things that “go together” or lead you to an unexpected memory or personal experience; consider what question or mixed emotion comes to mind. What comforts your heart? What are you afraid of?

Now look back over your notes from either the picture exercise or the “found” words activity. Use your notes (images, thoughts and questions) to begin writing. Don’t worry about poetic form at first, just write. Try not to tell the reader what to think. Don’t even what you are thinking. Instead, offer images (written versions of pictures) that can say it for you. Then add an event or experience you are reminded of. Reread and rearrange your words. Remove cliché or ordinary phrases. Add better ones. Finally, finish by considering a compelling unanswerable question as a way to lead the reader to consider his own feelings about life…all based on your “found” inspiration!

A DIFFERENT PERSONA

A persona poem is one in which attention is paid to the persona: the voice speaking.  The persona of a poem can be the poet or some other identity (another person or even a thing) that the poet has chosen to speak through. That chosen persona is revealed by what the speaker says and also by how he/she says it (the poem’s voice). Vocabulary, attitude, topics, slang and phrasing all contribute to voice. Another aspect  closely related to persona is place. Descriptions, references to events and subject matter all help show the reader place — where and when the poem is happening. Often a persona poe mdirectly addresses the reader in a conversation with the reader as in a play (dramatic) or a speech (monologue) talking to himself or using the reader as audience. Those persona poems use first or second person: “I” and “me” or “us” and “we.”  Other persona poems are in third person but have a specific persona's point of view. Writing persona poems can be valuable in many ways. They help develop the skills of voice (how to sound like ourselves or our chosen character), of place (how to paint a picture for the reader) and, most importantly, of empathy (how to imagine the feelings of another person/thing).

Here are some questions to ask when trying to determine or create the persona of a poem:

• Who is speaking? How do you know?
  

• What words, phrases, slang, attitudes, patterns of speech indicate the voice?
  

• What descriptions and details indicate the place or time or persona?
  

• What is the speaker trying to say?  What do they want you to think or feel?
  

• How is the persona different than the actual writer/poet?
  

Here are some ideas for writing interesting persona poems:

• Use your own voice  when you were younger.
  

• Writer in the character of a family member or friend.
  

• Speak as though you were a historical figure.
  

• Imagine the voice of a place or thing.
  

• Write as if you were someone you don’t like or don’t agree with.
  

• Take on the persona of someone deceased.
  

• You can even considering speaking as God!