Help!

Ok so I'm really bad at poety. Almost all the comments I got for my poetry where insults. It stinks.

Alright lets ge to the point. I need help with my poetry. If you want some exsamples of my poetry and how bad it is go to my thingy.


Please only you can help me. I begging every one that I do and don't know.

Aw, you're probably not that bad! We just have ridiculously high standards here.

The easiest thing to do is to read good poetry. I compiled a list of my favorite first person poems here and other people added on to them, so you can always check there. And just spend a ridiculously long time at your library, checking out different poetry books. It'll do you good in the long run.

Also! If you have money, you might want to buy the book, "Sound and Sense." It is a fantastic collection of poetry, and it details what makes great poetry and how to create metaphor and stuff... really neat things! And it starts off at $2!

So yeah. Have fun!

I read a bit of your poetry. Its nice. You just need some improvement... Try using a thesaurus to find more complex words and maybe try to rhyme them.
Other than that its fin. You just need to think a little more about it.

Good luck
Gwenevire
xox

alright I shall take your guys' advice. Tomarro I'm heading to the libary.

When i was younger I was a wonderful at poetry. Now its been so long that I lost most of my skill!

I will try my best!

May I ask what you are going to look for at the library?
I am just curious. I myself would like to improve on my poetry skills.
Are you just going to look for poetry books and thesauruses?

I guess I'll just browse through a few poetry books and the ones that i like I'll check out and carefully read throught it.

Cool. Thanks
Good luck!

alright!!!

As others have said, the number one way to improve is to study poetry. Read poetry and read books about poetry and books about writing poetry.

Also read stuff that's on here; read what members who are well-known as good writers post and read what less experienced members post. Read the comments they get from better critiquers, i.e. Instructors, Junior Mods, Mods, and members of SPEW.

And if you want to avoid some of the harsher comments, put a lot of work into your poetry before you post. If people see you posting a lot or posting stuff that looks like it was written in five minutes and not edited at all, they're much more likely to be harsher and not as helpful. If they see that you put a lot of work into the poem, the comments will be kinder and also more constructive.

And don't let harsh comments upset you. Do take them seriously, especially from people who have a reputation as good editors, but don't let them get you down. Accept them, use them as a learning experience, and move on.

alright I guess I will, and thanks!

It's really great that you're asking for advice on this. So often newer members are all, "I don't deserve these comments. My writing is good so SHUT UP."

So congratulations on not being annoying like that and actually getting out there and asking for advice. It shows a lot of maturity and a real desire to improve your work.

-Colly

Thank you very much. I always took my writing seriously, and I always enjoyed the opinion of others. Its very important to have comments. Ones that tell you your writting isn't very good makes me want to improve so that I can prove to that person I am a good writter, while people who complement your work is like a little reasurents( i think i spelled it right?).

Its very important for a writter to change and adapt or you'll be left out in the cold.

So thank you all very much for helping me, by telling me where I'm great and where I need work. Thank you all fellow writters!!

I agree with everything that's been said. Reading poetry will really help you. Keep at it, we're just a bit finiky around here (we're just trying to help, not break your spirit or anything!)

Think I'll go have a peek at your stuff. I found that writing sonnets really helped me get a sense of rhythm and meter. I wrote them obsessively for months and they made me really conscious of how things should sound, taught me disciplin, and helped my rhyming.

Rhyming dictionaires are good if you find rhyme hard. Or you can just go through the alphabet, though sometimes dictionaries come up with things you;d never think of, and keep your rhymes fresh in that way.

I also think that playing around with different formats has helped my poetry to develop, so maybe you can give that a go. There are a bunch of books on this sort of thing, or you can just google poetry formats.

Reading your stuff aloud can also give you a sense of how it should sound.

Don't give up! Practise makes perfect. You are obviously dedicated, adn prepared to spend time on this, so you're half way there already.

Good luck, and I hope this helps.

Jasmine

today I went to the library, finally, and got some really good poetry books. After I read a few of them I got insperation. 2 new poems you can look at and tell me if I've improved. They are called " True Jewels" and " A place called your home".

Thank you all very much for being very sapportive....now if I could only spell....

just seeing if i cant halp a little bit-
firstly it sounds like you have been writing poetry for a good bit of timme. and thats a good sign. look through your poetry and see if there is anything common. look out for your very own, one and only signature style. that defines a poet and gives him/her a personality. once you've got that start experimenting, whenever wherever inspiration hits you. check out about such things as metre, the number of syllables (which i discovered about a couple of months ago), types of rhymes, look out especially for what you are trying to tell the reader and ,like any self respecting writer, put the self in the others shoes). just watch along those lines and remember that you are not alone. also take special care to never give up this fine art..........