Young Writers Society

I'm aware that the best way to improve poetry is to read it, but, it's a shameful confession that I don't know many. So, who are your favourites?

Sylvia Plath.

-Kylan

Edgar Allen Poe. Creepy, but amazing nonetheless.

-Jared

BigBadBear wrote:Edgar Allen Poe. Creepy, but amazing nonetheless.

-Jared

Poe really is great, I have his complete collection.

Another one of my favorites is Robert Frost, he writes about themes in life, but not morbid like Poe is.

TS Eliot. And check out some of Shakespeare's sonnets as well. And ee cummings.

Robert Frost is ehhhh. Hit and miss for me, but mostly miss.

John Donne. ^^

Poe, most definitely.

T.S. Eliot-- you must read The Lovesong of Alfred J. Prufrock. Don't be daunted by its length.

Samuel Menashe and Carl Sandburg are a couple favorites of mine on the more obscure side, but still worth reading.

I usually have the best luck with anthologies. I prefer having a variety of poets and styles to choose from.

Blink wrote:I'm aware that the best way to improve poetry is to read it, but, it's a shameful confession that I don't know many. So, who are your favourites?

You cannot call yourself a poet without first reading "The Raven" by Poe. It is magnificent. Ella Wheeler Wilcox and James McAuley are also very good...

Have you read any verse novels? They're usually quite good and interesting.

What I would do is just go to a library, check out their poetry collection and look for a book with a overall theme rather than a single poet and work from there. I had a huge poetry assignment a while back, and I got several lovely poems from that method.

Oh, I've read that! Nice poem. Creepy, but brilliant. And thanks for the advice. =)

Poe, Frost, cummings, Shakespeare, and Plath are already mentioned. Gwendolyn Brooks isn't that bad, and neither is William Blake.

Carol Ann Duffy's who I've been studying for advanced english. Though I'm not a great fan of "Warming Her Pearls" my two favourite poems of hers are Valentine and Selling Manhattan. Before You Were Mine is also good...You should check them out, studying them is what made me want to start writing poetry again, they are really what helped me click on what poetry actually IS and why people write it.

Seamus Heaney
Ann Dean
Emily Bronte
Langston Hughes
and
Patrick Kavanagh
are all great. "Being Alive" and "Staying Alive" are great anthologies, published by Bloodaxe. They'd introduce you to a whole range of poets, so they're worth a look.

Carol Anne Duffy is definitely one of my favourites.

I met her recently as well because she came to my school as part of this 'Poetry Live' tour thing and it was amazing I think it made me like her poetry even more.

I also really like Ted Hughes since my mum bought me his book 'Birthday Letters'. Sylvia Plath and Edgar Allan Poe have already been mentioned but I guess there's no harm in mentioning them again

I think someone also already said, but reading books/ anthologies of collected poetry is a good idea

Enjoy!

Pablo Neruda.

Three and a half cheers for Pablo Neruda! My God, what a genius. "I want to do with you what spring does with the cherry trees." Doesn't that just make you want to cry? It's gorgeous! I'll stop raving now.