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I Do It My Way
| Critical Analysis #1 |
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I Do It My Way |
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Marq Member
since 1999-10-18
Posts 222 |
I DO IT MY WAY by Mark Fowler 1) That old saying that it’s okay to break the rules as long as you know you’re breaking them is also true for writing poetry. 2) The same general rules for writing generally apply to poetry: Write simply and clearly. Use the active voice. State negatives in a positive way. Nouns and verbs are better. Be careful with adjectives and adverbs, especially adverbs. Avoid qualifying words like ‘very’ and ‘a little’ etc. 3) Free verse is written in rhythmic, musical, lines. Choose the best words to create the best lines that read and flow with beauty, feeling, and tone. Single word lines must have a cumulative rhythm and flow that fits the aforementioned criteria. 4) Wording and phrasing must sound right, but don’t use something that has no meaning simply because it sounds good to you. Piles of meaningless words do not constitute poetry. Your music can have meaning and melody. Be able to explain any aspect of your poetry to anyone that asks. 5) Begin your poem with a strong opening line. Grab the reader’s attention right from the start. 6) A good poem concludes with well-orchestrated impact. Make the ending appropriate to what has gone before. Some like to make the last line of their poem the strongest. I don’t think this is essential but I like to finish with a strong line. Don’t let your poem fizzle out at the end – that’s annoying. Don’t end with ‘of’ or ‘is’ etc. Make the final word of your poem a solid word. 7) A good poem is one that maintains impact even after repeated readings. You want to write the kind of poetry that seems to get better with each reading. 8) Paint a picture in the reader’s mind. Don’t say ‘this is a tree’. Make the reader see a tree without using the word tree. Images and illustrations that create a picture in the readers mind will take your poetry a long way. 9) Think beauty, artistry, and creativity in both the way your poetry reads and sounds. Think ‘soft’ and ‘light touch’. Think ‘music with words’. Bold, bombastic, heavy-handed poetry has an ugly quality to it that destroys poetic feel. Make each word pleasing to the eye and each sound pleasing to the ear. 10) Each line of your poem should stand on its own. A good way to read and/or evaluate a poem is to examine it one line at a time. 11) Writing is re-writing. Revise and edit. But don’t revise the natural feel from your lines. Leave in the inspiration. Learn to enhance and embellish without disrupting the natural brilliance. Rhythm is extremely important to poetry and free verse. Always be conscious of rhythm and flow as you re-write. Don’t change something good to something bad. Don’t overwrite! 12) Originality is essential. There will always be new things to discover with words. Find new ways to say old things. Avoid cliché’s and stereotypes. No idea is completely original but the best poetry always will be. Don’t be afraid to experiment and explore! 13) Don’t allow your message to outstrip your poetry. You can convey your message without sacrificing poetic values. Poetry first – message second! 14) Preaching and lecturing are very appropriate for churches and classrooms but they have no place in poetry. Overblown, bombastic lines are to be avoided. Sometimes there’s a fine line. Poetry that is highly crafted has a tendency to get more bombastic with each re-write. Don’t fall into this trap. See the aforementioned note about re-writing. 15) Repeating for effect can be an effective tool but excessive repetition is annoying. Have pity on your reader. It’s generally better to avoid using the same words too often too close together. 16) Alliteration can be pleasing when used modestly. Excessive alliteration is bad and bothersome. The exception is when the poet alliterates the entire poem as an exploration of style or technique. Don’t insert clunky, alliterative tongue twisters into your otherwise wonderfully presented lines. 17) Avoid corny, sappy, moralistic, trite lines. Don’t write what is commonly called ‘greeting card’ verse unless you’re actually writing greeting cards. 18) The rule to avoid words that end in ‘ly’, ‘ing’, and ‘ed’ is one you should be aware of but remember ‘avoid’ doesn’t mean ‘never use’. 19) Don’t use conjunctions (and, but) or articles (the, that, a, is) anymore than is necessary. Throw out all unnecessary words and syllables but remember the importance of flow and rhythm to your poem when making this decision. 20) Express your feelings and emotions in your poetry. Where would poetry be without passion? But remember pathos and bathos will ruin your poems and are to be avoided at all costs. 21) Rhyming poetry will never go out of style. If you’re going to rhyme strive for free verse naturalness in your rhymes. Forced rhymes and rhyme for its own sake make an excellent argument to switch to writing free verse instead of rhyming verse. 22) Learn the particulars of meter but don’t use it in your own writing unless you’re completing a lesson or entering a contest where it’s required. Use natural rhythm and natural sound for your writing and rhyming. Please note however: Learning meter is important for understanding past masters and classical verse -- which is a good thing. 23) Reading a lot of poetry especially high quality poetry from well-respected writers will improve your own poetry writing skills immeasurably. The most complete poets are those who love poetry for its own sake. Don’t expect to be able to write perfect poetry without ever reading poetry. Mark Fowler Marq Poetmarq@aol.com |
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Temptress
Moderator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-06-15
Posts 7136Mobile, AL |
*APPLAUDS* Nice to see this, Marq.  I like what you've put together here, and am printing it out if you don't mind. I will be directing people to this thread. still d-i-s-c-o-n-n-e-c-t-e-d |
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Marq Member
since 1999-10-18
Posts 222 |
We're all here to learn adn analyze! |
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Kirk T Walker Member
since 2000-01-13
Posts 357Liberty, MO |
Thanks a lot for posting this. I will definitely print off a copy. |
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ccwryter Junior Member
since 2001-04-22
Posts 16TX USA |
Excellent guidelines, Mark, but I have a question about your number 22. As one who enjoys writing and reading "classical" poetry, meter is very important to me. I can't see how a rondel or sonnet can be truly called such without it. Perhaps, since I am new to this forum, I am missing something to this. Mike |
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roxane Senior Member
since 1999-09-02
Posts 505us |
and you're not the only one who does it your way...  frank sinatra and i are also on that list. in fact, i'd have to say a lot of people do it their own ways... i believe sid vicious also covered that song. |
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Marq Member
since 1999-10-18
Posts 222 |
Thanks everybody for responding! By all means print copies and show it to friends and etc. That's why I posted it. To ccwryter: I'm not anti meter. I read a lot of classical poetry too. I wish todays poetry measured up to the classics of days gone by. My advice is still the same however. Meter has its place but if you write only metered verse nowadays you're unlikely to go very far. That may not matter to you, I don't know. Any other questions by anybody I will be happy to answer. |
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