Writing Poetry

Poetry is a fascinating art just like sculpture or painting. In sculpture, you use your hands to mold clay, chisel wood or weld metal to shape a beautiful figure. In painting, you play with colors and shades on canvass to create a masterfully drawn art. With poetry, you chisel words in your mind and mold them into a thought. It is fascinating! It is an interesting skill one should grind to excellence. I am not pretending to be an expert in the art because I am not but people who are good at it really enthrall me. They inspire me to create my own poetry.

I was fourteen when I started to try writing poetry. I felt I could freely express my emotions through it. At that time, all I knew about poetry was that it had meter and rhyme but after I learned about free verse- the style of poetry that does not require meter, rhyme or syllabic limit- I felt relieved. I took a world dictionary with me which I used to look up for better synonyms for simple words that came to my mind then I would let my English teacher read them and waited for her comments. She was kind enough to give very encouraging remarks. Now, as I read my old poems, I could not help but laugh at myself realizing the mediocrity I flaunted.

I used to think that a poet must have a very wide vocabulary and adept in describing things. I thought he must be someone who could describe in words the northern lights to someone who had never seen such a natural spectacle in such a manner that the latter would seem to have seen it. If that was the rule, I could not be poet.

However, I have realized that the most important element in writing poetry is the passion for the art. You can acquire and develop the skill but the enthusiasm for poetry is an special gift. Even if you do not have sufficient guidance, you can put together words to create a wonderful work of art. You just need to pour out what you feel. You do not even need to think about words, you only need to let them come out of your heart. Technical knowledge is indeed, essential but it is not a prerequisite. For example, blank verse is a style in poetry that does not require rhyme but requires a structured meter pattern. One example of a meter pattern is the iambic pentameter. A pentameter means that each line has ten syllables. An iambic pentameter means that every other syllable is stressed, starting with the second syllable. So the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, and tenth syllables of every line are stressed. Imagine if you will try to explain the “iambic pentameter” to one who is just starting on his first composition, he would probably drop the idea altogether. However, if you will try as I have tried, you’ll find it truly exciting and enjoyable.

by Arnel Oroceo

December 20, 2009