About Poetry Writing

I can teach you the craft of poetry writing but self-realization cannot be taught. You may master the necessary tools to write a good poem but without the proper mindset, you will never improve. You must first have the will to undertake the process. Are you willing to leave your ego outside the door? Some are born with knowledge; but most know by studying. We acquired knowlwdge only after a painful feeling of being ignorant.

Remember, no one can claim to know so much that he/she can afford to stop learning. Poetry writing is a ceaseless process; there is always more to learn. Poets who think they are already perfect and need no further improvement are already imperfect just because they think this way.

Most aspiring poets lack humility. We are often tempted to deceive others and ourselves about our own abilities. The result is that our real abilities are badly affected. We become over-confident and complacent. Avoid self-deception. Be true to yourself.

For a start do not spend all day worrying about writing. You will gain nothing from it. It would have been better for you to spend the time reading good poems and learning their crafts. When you read poems of worth, you should think of equaling them. When you see unworthy poems, you should remind yourself not to commit similar mistakes.

When you think you are ready, feel free to write what you know and also write what you know not. Most of the time poets started off with very vague ideas. It is like visiting a new place for the first time. Each new poem offers a new experience. But you can also write about things that you know. You can write about falling in love, death, suicidal thoughts, etc. The trick is to write in such a way that your poems stand far above the crowd.

However, you must also find joy in writing. To be fond of poetry is better than merely to know it, and to find joy in it is better than to be fond of it.

To establish yourself as a poet, you must also seek to establish others. To improve yourself, you need friends. They act like a refining tool, shaping and polishing your poems. Friends are important.

Writing is a lonely process. But you have a choice.