How to Write a Poem for Beginners?

Poetry is about verses put together to teach, inspire and correct. It is a list of words which flow when read, performed or recited.  It is a way of a writer impacting the world positively with their thoughts and feelings.

Everything has a beginning and for one to become a great poet, they have to start somewhere. This article will share the steps for beginners in the journey of poetry.

Related Reading: Why Am I Unhappy Right Now?

What to Do to Become a Poet?

• Pick up a theme
• Read widely
• Write consistently
• Find a mentor
• Understand your niche
• Accept mistakes

Pick up a Theme

Having the right theme is a sure way to find captivating topics that will capture the minds of your audience. Before jotting down the first line, understand first what you want to write about. Pick up a topic that resonates well with you. This way you will have no difficulty in expressing yourself because words will be flowing freely from your mind. Picking up a theme you understand will make it easier for you to put yourself in the shoes of the characters that make up your story. Putting yourself in their shoes makes it easier for you to write from observation and experience. When you are able to understand what the readers want, you will know what topics to write about, so research the current trends in the world.

Read Widely

Reading widely enriches your mind with new ideas and the new trends. It gives you new information and inspiration that is much needed in the poetic space. You will be able to relate with the ways of the world and craft a story that will inspire many people to have new thoughts and ideologies. Not only reading, but also listening to recitals and performed playwrights can help you to grasp the mind of a poet and how to arrange your lines for the message to flow smoothly. There is power in information. The famous poets around the world understood that for their poems to resonate well with their audience, they had to package the messaging well because how you give information determines how it will be received.

Write Consistently

Practice makes perfect. Writing consistently keeps your mind stretched as you learn the ropes of types and forms of poetry. The goodness with writing is that you can write anytime, anywhere. The environment around you, your personal experiences, societal beliefs or natural occurrences can be your source of inspiration. There is flexibility in writing poetry and you can jot down a few lines every day at the start. The important thing is to keep a journal of what you write. Keep a schedule of writing down something every day and stick to it.

Find a Mentor

For one to make it in life, they need a stepping stone to catapult them into success. While you may have a topic to write about, you still have to find someone to take you every step of the way. A mentor will help you find the way around and inspire you to never give up.  To increase your creativity, you can join a community of poets in your society. They will be able to relay to you firsthand information about challenges in the field of poetry and how to overcome them. You can also take online courses that teach about poetry writing.

Understand Your Niche

There are many types of poetry and when you get to understand them you can find the one that fits you.  

Types of poetry

Haiku– It is an unrhymed poem which originated from Japan and it consists of three lines with first and third having five syllables, while the second has seven.

Sonnet– This is a poem comprising of 14 lines. Each line is written in iambic pentameter, meaning each line should have 10 syllables. The 14 lines are broken into 3 quatrains (four line stanzas) and 1 rhyming couplet (two line stanza).

Free verse– It is a poem which does not follow the rhyming rules. Therefore there is no set standard on how many lines it should have or how many syllables in each line.

Lyric– It is a musical poetry where one expresses their emotions, feelings and thoughts about a certain subject.

Elegy– The type of a poem about emotions. The poet mostly expresses sadness.

Limerick– It is a poem which consists of five lines in a stanza. The first, second and fifth lines should end with rhyming words. The third and fourth lines should also rhyme.

Acrostic– It is a type of poetry where the some letters of each line can spell a name, a word or a phrase when read vertically. While mostly it involves the first letters of each line, they can be put anywhere in the line.

Epic– It is along narrative poem which mostly involves heroic or extraordinary deeds. Here the poet tries to remain objective and omniscient (knowing everything about the characters and the setting).

Accept to make Mistakes

You cannot be perfect the first time you begin, so accept to start small and grow gradually. Write the first draft and make sure to edit and edit until you feel you have something that resonates well with the readers. Also seek constructive feedback from other writers on your writings as this will help you polish your poems for clarity and positive impact to the readers.  Your first drafts will be full of mistakes but this should not discourage, rather it should tell you that you are making a progress.

Finally,

While poetry may seem arduous at the beginning, with practice and consistency one will eventually flow with it. The above strategies can help you in the journey of poetry.  Most famous poets had to overcome challenges too before making it into the limelight, and they never gave up. Today start and never give up.

Poetry is about you expressing your feelings and thoughts freely. It is about opening up your inner soul for the whole world to see, it is about sharing your deepest thoughts and feelings to positively impact the world.  Do not fear to shake the world with your thoughts about different subjects because you are afraid of how people will take you. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about the global events. So choose your topic and express your feelings freely.

Have a poetic day.