Young Writers Society

I write a lot of poetry, but I have a problem. A lot of my poems are very literal and don't really have an underlying message. I really need advice on how to properly incorporate a message or meaning into a poem while using figurative devices. I imagine it like a story uses description to convey a feeling or thought that could be simplified in a sentence but instead has adjectives and the overall actions of the characters to show what is going on.

I know this is a pretty confusing concept, but can anyone help?

To be honest, I think if you sit down and say, 'I am going to write a poem with a deeper meaning,' you won't get anywhere but frustrated. It might help you to pinpoint exactly what you're going to talk about, and then allow it to flow naturally from there. Trying too hard to incorporate a message often leaves a poem that feels like the author tried to hard (one must avoid music that smells of music - Amadeus anyone?). Sit down and figure out what you'd like to discuss in your poetry. Did you want to talk about life and the future? Or how fleeting a moment is? You could google quotes to find inspiration.

Also, I would recommend looking again at your own poetry! Sometimes there's deeper meaning there that we don't even realize we put in. I often introduce my pieces with quotes, found after it has been written, which I find my poem embodies, intentionally or not - so, an unintentional deeper meaning. There's a part of you in everything you write, a piece of your experiences and your emotions, which often convey feeling even in the most literal of poems.

Anyway: don't think of it too hard, be confident in your poetry, and, if you want to incorporate a 'deeper meaning,' make sure you know what it is, first. C:

A good place to start is a truckload of research on symbolism and General Poetic Tropes that both work and are overused.

For example, if I were to want to veil the concept of death, you may read a line in my poem that unfolds as

dried bark hands peeled apart the husk of a pomegranate***;
smoke rested on sanguine cells

In that section, the concept is embodied by the pomegranate, which has been a symbol of death/captivity since ancient Grecian poets assigned it to Persephone. The imagery is bolstered by "dried bark", "husk", and "smoke"--which are all images that connect to death, decay, and the general end of life (or fire).

Once you have some concrete symbolism in your arsenal, you can easily layer your meanings behind imagery, and from there move on to the duality/ambiguity of words and phrases. For example, if I said

greedy hands clutched apart the chest, but found it empty

it can be interpreted literally, as a person searching for treasure in a chest (I guess pirate imagery is a thing), but it also has the duality of unrequited love (i.e. the empty chest being the lack of heart of this person's true love).

It's just...a lot of analysis and playing around. Sometimes it can happen by accident.

I only can write poems with a deep meaning once I've been inspired. Without that my poems seem blank and bland. From what you are saying I think you may have the same problem as me. Let me suggest:
-Listening to your favourite music, maybe slightly relating to the topic
-Movies, books, games are all good too!
-Walks, meditation or looking at various art forms.
-Recent experiences: Love? Love poems. Seen something beautiful? You'll probably be inspired to write about it. Sad? Sad poems. Happy? Happy poems. Etc.

For some people they can just chew out meaningful poems while others have to be deeply inspired. The above methods work for me but whatever inspires you is great! Just don't force it!

To write about oranges you must first think about oranges- you can't do the former without the latter at least being present in your mind. If you want to write a love story you have to think about a love story. If you want to write deep, you need to think deep.

I'd recommend taking a notepad and going to sit on a bench somewhere in a public place and just watch people, or take a really, really long train ride. Somewhere were there's an ambience and visual stimulation.

Then just observe. Relax and let things pass through your mind- trying too hard will break the flow, so if you feel the need to focus on something focus on the things passing around you. Eventually the little thoughts will start linking together into bigger pictures, and your mind will naturally wander into deeper territory.

It's really good fun, too, when you relax and get into it. The rest follows suit.