Thirty Things about Me

Part II: How to Write Poetry, and Haiku/Senyru

Part II: How to Write Poetry, and Haiku/Senyru

© April 3, 2017 by Olan L. Smith

When first starting out writing poetry it may seem daunting, and you may ask, "What am I going to say, how do I say it and what shape should it take?" The tendency for new poets is to write in choppy phrases such as:

"My heart aches,

I feel I will break,

Where will I turn?

My life is over."

But use in enjambment where the phrase is broken and carries over to the next line (some constraints do not use enjambments so know the rules to your constraints).

Here is the same poem with enjambments:

"My heart aches,

And I feel I will

Break. Where will I

Turn? My life is over."

The other thing about writing in short phrases, it makes the eye of the reader track back and forth and they tire or they get bored, so break out of the short lines for your poems and write longer lines with more phrases in a line. For example, the same poem:

"My heart aches, and I feel will break.

Where will I turn? My life is over."

Or as a monostich poem (a one line poem):

"My heart aches, and I feel I will break. Where will I turn? My life is over."

A beginning poet often is too wordy and goes on and on. Say what you came to say and be done with it; don't waste the readers' time saying nothing. However, some constraints call for repetition, but it is meaningful; you should remove parenthetical phrases. If you forget to say something, don't qualify it, rewrite it, and remember a poem, even a simple haiku, tells a story and is a complete thought. The haiku is a great constraint to start out with, because it has to contain 17 syllables. Practice the haiku and you can tackle any constraint in the future; and it will improve your free verse poetry.

An English style haiku is a mimic of a Japanese form of poetry, and the English version of it is 3 lines of 5 syllables, 7 syllables, and 5 syllables, The haiku is focused on nature. A traditional English Haiku is a complete story in 17 syllables (17 syllables is not a strict rule, but is expected to most of the syllable counters out there), and it carries both a twist, plus enjambment. Such as;