{"id":83708,"date":"2015-03-21T10:00:02","date_gmt":"2015-03-21T08:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/83708\/10-top-tips-for-writing-the-perfect-poem\/"},"modified":"2015-03-21T10:01:33","modified_gmt":"2015-03-21T08:01:33","slug":"10-top-tips-for-writing-the-perfect-poem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/lifestyle-news\/2015\/03\/21\/10-top-tips-for-writing-the-perfect-poem\/","title":{"rendered":"10 top tips for writing the perfect poem"},"content":{"rendered":"
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  1. Make sure that what you have to say is original \u2013 unless, of course, you are writing entirely for therapeutic reasons.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The birth of a baby, your favourite pet, war and famine, the beauty of nature, unrequited\/lost love are all themes that people write about\u2026again and again and again. So, try to think of something different \u2013 or at least look for an original approach.<\/p>\n

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    1. Use all the tools at your disposal: a wide vocabulary, similes, metaphors and alliteration \u2013 but try to make your imagery fresh and unusual. Avoid clich\u00e9d expressions such as \u2018white as snow\u2019, \u2018green with envy\u2019, \u2018hands as cold as ice\u2019, \u2018a heart of stone\u2019 and the many others that you must be familiar with.<\/li>\n
    2. If you are using a rhyming scheme (abab or aabb) make sure that the words you use actually do rhyme. For example the words \u2018box\u2019 and \u2018flocks\u2019 rhyme but if you used \u2018box\u2019 and \u2018flock\u2019 you lose this.<\/li>\n
    3. Don\u2019t torture the natural word order to get a rhyme. The following has a very odd feel to it: You wanted some new books, and so you said, \u2018Now to the library go\u2019. Instead you could re-write it more naturally as: You wanted some new books, and said \u2018Go to the library\u2019. Off I sped<\/li>\n
    4. If your poem is supposed to be in a particular form (ie a limerick or a sonnet) make sure that you not only use the correct rhyming scheme but that you also use the correct metre. In simplified terms this is the number of \u2018beats\u2019 in each line. For example, a limerick has 5 lines and has the following rhyming scheme: aabba<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Lines 1, 2 and 5 have 3 beats each while lines 3 and 4 have two beats each. If you tap out the metre with your hand you\u2019ll soon see what we mean:<\/p>

      <\/div>\n

      A lady who hoped to find fame<\/p>\n

      Made poetry writing her aim.<\/p>

      <\/div>\n

      She wrote day after day<\/p>\n

      Till they took her away \u2013<\/p>\n

      But nobody\u2019s heard of her name.<\/p>\n

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      1. Always give your poem a title \u2013 it focuses your reader\u2019s attention.<\/li>\n
      2. Make sure you punctuate your poems. Some free verse poems make a point of not using punctuation but the majority of both rhyming works and free verse need punctuation. And your punctuation should do exactly the same job as in a piece of prose \u2013 it should help your reader with the meaning and show when a pause is necessary.<\/li>\n
      3. Avoid archaic or overtly \u2018poetic\u2019 language. Use \u2018you\u2019 not \u2018thee\u2019, \u2018over\u2019 not \u2018o\u2019er\u2019 and stay clear of \u2018sylvan glades\u2019 or \u2018hosts of golden daffodils\u2019!<\/li>\n
      4. Make sure your free verse is just that \u2013 not just a slab of prose broken into shorter lines. Even if your work does not rhyme, it must still have rhythm and metre.<\/li>\n
      5. Once the initial outpouring has finished, put your work to one side and let it stand for a few days. Then go back to it and read it again in the cold light of day.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Alter any words that don\u2019t sound right, check your punctuation, the rhythm and the rhyme (if it is not free verse).<\/p>\n

        Also stand back and see if it still gives you the same pleasure that it did when you were writing it.<\/p>\n

        Finally, read it aloud to yourself \u2013 that\u2019s the best way of telling if it really works as a poem.<\/p>\n

        Remember, you\u2019re writing for you but it should be a matter of pride to make every poem you compose original and worthwhile so that, hopefully, it will give others as much pleasure when they read it as you got from writing it.<\/p>\n

        Source: STT Courses<\/a><\/p>\n

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