How to Write a Poem

Ever wanted to try your hand at writing poetry? Poetry is not only an enjoyable form that will let you experiment with language, ideas, and creativity, but also a great exercise to improve your prose. If you're not sure where to start with this playful and inventive form, we've broken the process into eight simple steps!

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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Intro
0:57 - Brainstorm
1:58 - Generating Material
2:47 - Choosing a Form
4:01 - Research
4:21 - Drafting
4:59 - Read it Out Loud
5:39 - Let It Rest
6:01 - Revise
6:39 - Review

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RESOURCES:

[exoexo]

The Moon
He shines, luminating the gloomy sky
Cold, stern, huge he stands there hovering over mankind
His soft glow ignites a fire inside of me
Keeping me warm whether i wanted to be
The loneliness that once was there
Disappears when i admirably stare
Into his beautiful beam
As if its all just a dream
But coldness quivers my heart
When he suddenly departs
Behind the gloomy clouds
Out of my bounds
Oh how does a single moon
Bring one so much fortune?

(Hope yu like it)

[malikmudi]

As a beginner i want to say that : you must have two things for writing a poem
1:words
2:feelings

[jonahd.]

Poetry’s not hard
You can do it easily
Wait that’s a haiku

[fishypopsicle]

The sun.
She’s as bright as the morning skies
She’s always immensely happy
But she’s not like that deep inside.
She’s a ray of light, shining others with happiness as she skips through the halls
You’d never be able to tell what went on behind the walls.
The sun.
Always so caring
So fragile, yet so bearing.
I wished I was like her.
We all did.
But after all, we were just kids.
The sun.
She was so happy, yet she broke.
Her voice trembled as she spoke.
Her father was abhorrent, her mother was gone.
But who was there for her all along?
The sun.
She listened to everyone, but did anyone return the favour?
No. Nobody went out of their way to save her.
The sun shines so bright, but soon enough, it all ends.
She was so strong, she held on for so long.
Not long after, we all stood in-front of her casket.
We all had questions, but no one dared to ask it.
Suddenly, everyone’s sorry and trying to make amends.
“Oh I’m so sorry, she was such a sweet girl”
No, you were never one of her friends.
The sun.
So bright, yet so vulnerable.
She went through things, so insufferable.
The sun.
You don’t recognize it.
Until it all ends.

[theteacupbunny]

Honestly, when I write a poem, I pretty much get inspired and write the poem. There's not usually much brainstorming involved. It just comes out. I may fine-tune it a bit after but most of mine are written in one go.

[scihlar]

my therapist said i should try and find more hobbies lmao. let’s see if poetry works 😅

[MisokoFukumoto]

I always like to force my rhymes,
Now, just like every other times,
Uhh, strawberries, lemon and limes.

[skhafijurrahaman]

Pigeon's life

Their feathers
Touching the sky
I wonder if I could
Fly that high
They move with a mysterious grace
An enchanted force that's
keeping me away
Will, I ever have wings like them
I want to fly unafraid
Touching​ the stars
It's all I have ever wanted
So please little pigeon
Let me share your wings
with me
For that's all I ever wanted
for me

[FirstNameLastName-pgpi]

is it just me or do yall feel like theres so many people with that same exact

[beckstr]

let’s see how much I
can fit into a haiku
oh no I’m out of-

[ritupangogoi]

Let me try a poetry for the first time 😅
A Promise -
I saw you,
Saw you in the night sky
Shining with the tiny stars
You stood up there
Shining and shining
With the light of a thousand stars
The night sky reminds me of something
And brings a sourness in my heart
Oh! There's something I wanted to say
But I'm just too afraid
Too afraid it'll make you sad
So I'll not say it
Not say it now
But I'll tell you, someday or the other
That's for sure
That's a promise between you and me
For promises are never to be broken
Just wait till that day comes
And I shall tell you
Because that's a promise
A promise I made to you

[thunderlord]

Confusion
The clarity in the great blue skies
reminds me of the look in your eyes
the look full of love and care
while I caressed your hair
Will it ever return
You left me with a burn yet I still stupidly yearn
Now I hate you with a passion
Will every woman leave me in a similar fashion

Attempted poetry i hope you enjoyed it lol

[sallyboyye]

why are people giving here dislikes she is helping me out a ton for school. she is also helping me learn, i think she is a good teacher

[DeathItself]

An ode for him.

Ever since I met you,  
I know there's something,  
I know there's this feeling. 
A feeling in my heart 
that wants to break out 
and wants to dance with you. 
With a mind of its own 
that circulates and revolves 
to nobody other than you. 
That feeling I've had four years ago...

When I look at you in the eye,  
there's a spark in my heart 
and a fear in my mind 
so, I once tied my eyes to someone else. 
Someone not like you... 
Someone more captivating than you... 
Someone I can like other than you... 
And at those moments I've been with somebody 
are the same moments 
my eyes still look at you.

Don't you dare try to ask me to forget you 
because you don't know how many times I've tried. 
That every night you stay in my mind 
are the nights I tried fighting it. 
Stop thinking of him. 
Stop imagining yourself with him. 
Just stop loving him. 
Yes. 
I tried. 
And I can't.

As time passes by,   I kept everything secret because we got 
closer and closer together even more. 
We build a friendship and you became my best friend 
and every time you tell me something,  
I think of it every time because 
you are precious in me,  
you are the apple of my eye,  
my only rose,  
the one I have been telling to the moon 
and the one I want to be with when I look at the stars at night. 
This friendship of us grows into a circle that rejoices victories.

We did our projects and assignments together 
that you even bring me to your house. 
I saw your mother and your brother 
and it made me blush to see your family around. 
We had a great friendship together 
especially with other people in our circle 
that makes our day yellow and brighter.
With every single smile I saw in you 
are like stars that shine 
and fireflies sparkle up my night.

You told me your secrets and those things 
I didn't know will stab me in my heart. 
You said there's someone in your heart,  
someone you've been dating,  
someone that completes your day. 
My mind cherishes because for once,  
this might be a reason to forget my feelings for you. 
But my heart mourns and suffers tremendous grief. 
My mind cheers you with your lover 
while my heart torments itself alone in the corner.

Three years ago, our world splits 
and our paths never meet again. 
This brings me to hope in myself 
that the feelings I have with you 
will forever be gone. 
You became a star and I became someone who just lived in your past 
and will never be remembered by you ever again. 
I've heard rumors about you and your lovers 
and still makes me in pain 
especially that those lovers are my friends.

My mind forgets you but your heart kept you for years. 
I have loved people other than you 
and got my heart into a different journey of love. 
There are some paths that lead to an end,  
and some path that still continues 
even with a stop sign that is long been there. 
There are some loves that led to tragedy 
and some love that tests possibility. 
But there's a love that never disappears. 
That love I had on you.

My mind once forgets about you 
and I will never dare to remember again 
the past I have with you. 
I always ask myself things 
that might happen if we ended up together. 
Will my friends you've dated will forgive me? 
Will society accept us? 
Will I be happy with you? 
Will my heart stops loving you if I finally have you? 
Will you love me back?

I told hundreds of cruel words to my heart 
every night when it speaks your name. 
I torture my heart every time it thinks about you.. 
the way you move...
the way you laugh...
the way you make jokes...
And thinking about you makes me question.
What did I do to you to hurt me in this way? 
I always cry every night thinking about those times we had 
that I will never have again.

One year ago... 
Me and my friend reconnect again. 
We restore the joyful bond 
we had four years ago. 
And at that day we rejoice,  
I remember you. 
You and I are in the same circle of friends 
and our squad will never be complete without you. 
Scared and worried, we still rebuild the group we made 
and make myself control my heart every time I see you.

The squad held things together
My eyes look over you every minute 
while my heart thinks about you every second. 
Every time we touch,  
are sparks like lightning,  
and every time our eyes meet,  
are an intense force that makes my heart explode. 
I'm over you! 
I am! 
Please don't let me dig your grave I once buried in my mind

I saw you there in the middle of a party 
with your previous lovers that surround you 
and here I am,  
sitting on a bench alone,  
the only one who kept the love for you in secrecy. 
The one who hides the fear of being together 
and the joy of being together. 
Why am I like this? 
Why do I have to befriend someone I love 
just to hurt my heart over and over.

I hate you,  
you are the root of my heartache. 
The reason I'm crying every night. 
The cause of my miseries and agony. 
You,  
and only you. 
Your gestures,  
your smile,  
your humor,  
all of that excruciates my heart. 

Why do you have to be in my mind every night? 
Why do you have to dance with my heart in my dreams? 
Why do you have to be there when I'm happy? 
Why do you have to exist and agonize this precious heart of mine?
Why do I have to ask these things?
I have this pillow made of cotton.
I always hug it every night
And every night I hug it,  
my heart hug someone
Someone that resembles you.

I made an ode. 
An ode just for you. 
It has 16 stanzas, and 10 lines each
filled with thousands of words and countless figures 
and yet there are three words 
I can't say to you. 
Three words my heart wants to tell you. 
Three words my mind don't want you to know. 
Three words that might tear our friendship apart.
I loved you.

2017

[cafepoem]

"Poetry is not only an enjoyable from that will let you experiment with language, ideas, and creativity, but also a great exercise to improve your prose."
I entirely agree with you.

[abinayar]

I tried.. Not sure how good it is though

why fear death?
When it's just another thing in life,
Is it death or the unpredictability that we fear?
It's one day anyway gonna appear;
As the day moves closer to night,
We burn and ignite,
With each breath, a step closer-
A move towards death, and we feel colder.

[skhafijurrahaman]

The tree -(unknown)

Once there was a green oak tree
So tall so green yet so free
The children came
And sat under it's shade
Those were the happy days

Once there was a old oak tree
So tall so bald yet so free
The shades were empty
It was all alone
The happy days were finally gone.

[lilygosnell]

I'm about to write my first poem ever for an AP Language assignment. This very was very helpful! Thank you!!

[aryajha]

The moon shines with a shade of crimson
Roses bloom around rivers dyed red
Ghostly wails resound through the night
A lone warrior marches on


The myriad waves roar at heaven
The eerie winds curse at the earth
Endless graves scattered throughout the realm
A lone warrior marches on


Limitless chains arise from the ground
Countless swords glisten under the light
Endless arrows fall like rain
Eternally, a lone warrior marches on

[beckyann]

Words (A dedication to Maya Angelou)
Words can make you feel all sorts of things, no one is immune to them not even mighty Kings. Words can be like a hug that warms you up in the rain, but sometimes words can be hurtful and be a source to someone’s pain. Let’s toss out those nasty words and focus on the rest, friends, sister, brother, love, I like those words the best. When you plan on saying such lovely words please use them as you should, because you can feel a lot better when you use your words for good.