How to Write a Simple Poem by Ananya Sarkar
A poem is a lyrical, emotive way of self-expression, using various elements to highlight ideas and feelings. It can literally be about anything under the sun. But it’s important to leave a deep impact on the reader’s mind. In fact, it should make them feel something without directly telling them to. If you’re ready to dabble in the art of poetry and give it a try, here are some pointers to help.
Choose a theme or idea
Choose something that inspires you. Remember that inspiration is there both in and around you – you only need to tap the right place to dig out the gold. Recall every situation and memory, both pleasant and painful, as a possible topic. At times, going for a walk or visiting a park can also provide you with some great inspiration – consider nature, the people and houses. Observation and a keen insight can make unique, interesting poems.
Try portraying a story
Everything boils down to a story, including a poem. So, make sure your poem tells a story. Consider Kamala Das’ ‘My Grandmother’s House’ which in just 16 lines describes her early childhood with her grandmother where she felt immense love and peace. Again, Robert Frost’s brief poem ‘Meeting and Passing’ narrates the commonplace phenomenon of strangers passing by one another in a simple yet profound way. Often, poems tell a story by “showing” instead of telling directly which is a great way of putting forth the point.
Use vivid imagery
The part that stands out the most about a poem is perhaps its imagery. So, make use of concrete imagery including visual, auditory, tactile and so on to paint a picture with your words. You can use predominantly one type of imagery or combine various types of imagery to present a composite picture. Some of these are given below.
Visual imagery relies on the sense of sight and pertains to visual scenes or graphics. Example:
Kubla Khan by S.T.Coleridge
The shadow of the dome of pleasure
Floated midway on the waves
Auditory imagery is used to convey ideas, things, and actions using sounds that appeal to the reader’s sense of hearing. The reader tends to experience the sounds when reading the poem. Example:
To Autumn by John Keats
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.
Tactile imagery involves the sense of touch. It includes the many sensations someone experiences when touching something. Example:
Good-bye and Keep Cold by Robert Frost
No orchard’s the worse for the wintriest storm;
But one thing about it, it mustn’t get warm.
‘How often you’d had to be told,
Keep cold, young orchard. Good-bye and keep cold.’
Olfactory imagery refers to the sensory information about any smells that the poet conveys. Example:
Prelude by T.S.Eliot
The winter evening settles down
With smells of steaks in passageways
Six o’ clock.
The burnt- out ends of smoky days….
The morning comes to consciousness
Of faint stale smells of beer.
Look at the subject from a unique point of view
Even if the theme or topic of your poem is a common one which has been written about in the past, approach it in a way that prompts the reader into viewing it from a different lens. This will help in creating a lasting impression. For example, one poem can talk of the beauty of the night while another about the terrors the darkness entails. Similarly, springtime can be described from the viewpoint of a lover, a lonely bachelor as well as nature. Focus the light differently on your subject to bring new things to the fore and make your poem unique.
- Deploy literary devices
Make use of literary devices to make your poem richer and more vivid. Some of the most common literary devices are simile, metaphor and personification.
A simile entails a comparison using the words “as” and “like”. Example:
In ‘A Red, Red Rose’ by Robert Burns, the poet compares his love to a red rose and a melody using the word such as “like”.
"O my Luve is like a red, red rose
That's newly sprung in June;
O my Luve is like the melodie
That's sweetly played in tune."
A metaphor describes a thing or explains a phenomenon by using another. Example:
In ‘The Poison Tree’ by William Blake, wrath is compared to a living thing that can be grown and nurtured. Example:
“. . . my wrath did grow”
I watered it in fears
night and morning with my tears.
I sunned it with smiles.
And it grew both day and night
till it bore an apple bright.”
A personification is when you attribute human characteristics or a personal nature to something non-human. Example:
In the poem ‘Because I could not stop for Death’, Emily Dickinson bestows death with the behavioral qualities of an attentive and caring lover.
“Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.”
Make sure there is a climax
It is important to have a climax in a poem, like any other literary art, in order to leave a lasting impression. However, this is applicable for longer poems only. Incorporate a turning point that surprises the reader or precipitates their feelings to the hilt. Consider the following questions for building an effective climax. Does the course of events take an unexpected direction? Is there a long-awaited union? Do things fall apart? The climax is the most exciting point and serves to make a poem much more appealing.
Make it relatable
No matter how abstract or personal the topic or theme on which the poem is based, ensure that it resonates with the reader. A great way to do this is by using phrases and images from everyday life. For example, the image of a paper being shred to pieces could aptly describe the plight of a heartbroken person, even to someone who has never experienced such a situation.
Choose a suitable form
It’s important to know which kind of poem suits you the most. Read a couple of poems from the various forms of poetry like sonnet ('Death, Be Not Proud' by John Donne), ballad (‘The Ballad of Father Gilligan’ by W.B. Yeats), poems with rhyme scheme, free verse (‘Song of Myself’ by Walt Whitman), haiku (‘In a Station of the Metro’ by Ezra Pound), rhyming couplet (‘The Cow’
by Ogden Nash) and so on. It is a good idea to start with free verse as it gives you greater creative license. However, if your creative juices flow better in some other form, go for it!
Polish and revise the poem
Once you have completed drafting your poem, consider reading it aloud to yourself. Notice how the words flow. Is the movement smooth or disjointed? Does it have the desired impact? Pay attention to how each line of your poem flows into the next. Also, reading out the poem to beta readers such as family and friends can open the doors to necessary suggestions and modifications. The key is to keep an open mind while ensuring that the voice in the poem is authentic.
Connect with other poets
It’s a great idea to connect with other poets via various poetry groups, poetry readings and poetry classes. This really helps in keeping up your inspiration and motivation. In a community, poets often recite their work and share valuable feedback on each other’s drafts. Also, sharing poetry exercises and journals/magazines where one can have their work published can go a long way to shape your mind as an artist.
Well then! Let the magic of poetry take over and steer you to new explorations. Stop waiting for the muse to strike and get going. You will not regret it.
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References
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