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How Reading and Writing Poetry Makes You a Better Writer
Insights into reading and writing poetry
Poetry is presumed to be the oldest of the literary arts. In its early form it was performed, sung or orally spoken. Basically, it’s a succinct and condensed form of expression using an economy of words to tell a story. A poem can be thought of as a slice-of-life or vignette. In terms of fiction writing, we can think of a novel or short story as a collection of vignettes. Each poem or vignette can very often stand on its own.
Poetry tends to be concerned with specific and concrete language. Its strength lies in the interaction between language and rhythm. This is one of the reasons that poetry is often sung, such as in the case of the late poet and songwriter, Leonard Cohen. Poets often help us see a perspective of the world which we might not have considered before. Poetry is detail-oriented, which is great practice for all fiction writers.
A poem often begins with inspiration from a feeling, an image, or an event. Similarly, our connection with prose often starts with something we see which is brought into our consciousness by our senses, whether it’s hearing a sound, seeing a color, or tasting a food. Famous poet Goethe said, “I no sooner have an idea, than it turns into an image.” This is where keeping a journal comes in handy…
