Embrace inspiration: Seek inspiration from your surroundings, personal experiences, emotions, nature, art, or anything that sparks your creativity. Keep a journal to jot down ideas, observations, or phrases that resonate with you.
Choose a poetic form: Decide on the poetic form or structure you want to work with. Common forms include sonnets, haikus, free verse, or experimental forms. Each form has its own rules and guidelines, so study and experiment with different forms to find what suits your style. You can learn about these forms with a Google search.
Understand meter and rhythm: Learn about the different types of meters like iambic, trochaic, anapestic, and dactylic. Practice scanning lines of poetry to identify stressed and unstressed syllables. Develop a sense of rhythm and experiment with various patterns to create musicality in your poems.
Explore imagery and figurative language: Utilize vivid imagery to engage the reader’s senses and paint a picture with your words. Experiment with metaphors, similes, personification, and other forms of figurative language to add depth and evoke emotions.
Master the art of word choice: Select words carefully to convey your intended meaning. Consider the connotations, sound, and impact of each word. Use sensory language, such as taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound, to create a multi-sensory experience.
Play with line breaks and stanzas: Experiment with line breaks to control the pace and flow of your poem. Consider how breaking a line at different points can create emphasis or alter the reader’s experience. Organize your poem into stanzas, which can be used to group related thoughts or create visual structure.
Engage with themes and emotions: Explore themes that resonate with you and find unique ways to express them. Reflect on your personal experiences, observations, and emotions to infuse authenticity and depth into your poetry.
Edit and revise: Writing a first draft is just the beginning. Revise your poem multiple times to refine your language, structure, and message. Pay attention to the flow, clarity, and coherence of your poem. Remove unnecessary words and refine your metaphors for precision.
Seek feedback and learn from others: Share your work with trusted friends, fellow poets, or writing groups. Accept constructive criticism and use it to improve your writing. Read poetry by established poets to learn from their techniques, styles, and themes.
You may find Beyondosaurus helpful in honing everything including synonyms, rhyming, idioms, and more.
Embrace experimentation and growth: Poetry is a creative and evolving art form. Embrace experimentation, take risks, and develop your unique voice. Keep reading, writing, and exploring new ideas to continuously grow as a poet.
Remember, writing poetry is a journey of self-expression. Enjoy the process, be patient with yourself, and let your creativity flow.
Study the venues in which you can publish your poetry. Study Kindle, Audible, conventional publishers, poetry websites, and other ways to get exposure both conventional and unconventional.
Understand that having many people read your poetry will take time. Just like one can’t pick up a guitar and become a rock star in a month, very few poets have been successful until after years.
Happy writing!