Poetry on Demand

By Northwind of Otters

Have you ever had to write a poem on assignment? For some, this is a difficult task that tests their abilities and stretches their skill; for others, it’s easy and comes to them naturally. When I first started out as a writer, I never was able to write on assignment, especially not poems. Now, I know that everyone says that lots of practice helps, and it does, but here are a few other tips.

Last semester I took an elective class that was called Creative Writing. Well, it really turned out to be all about writing poetry. For our first class the instructor brought in a bag of vegetables and told us to describe each one; I was very disappointed because I had been looking forward to an advanced writing class, but I did it anyway.

Later, my teacher made us write a poem with the descriptions we had written earlier. This proved to be one of my most difficult assignments and I soon despaired. My teacher asked me what the trouble was and I explained that I was at a loss for what to do and that I was unsure even where to begin. She understood and explained to me that I should try describing the vegetables as poetically as I could—that I should make it overly silly, dramatic, and sappy. I did so, and I ended up really liking my poem! So, when you have to write about veggies or some object that you could care less about, use this technique, the method of exaggerating your subject poetically. I also found it easier to associate past experiences with the vegetable (growing, cooking, or eating them, for instance) rather than just describing them.

The next assignment was also tough: we were told to write a poem about a horse. As I said earlier, it is easier to write a poem that is overly dramatic, etc. Also, you may not write the basic poem type, and instead like to make your poems sound mystical or more interesting. For instance, you could write like this:

The horse is a beautiful beast,

It is very strong and large.

Its coat is many colors…

Or, as in my poem, The Horse:

Majestic beauty,

You are strong yet lovely.

See your muscles straining,

A mystery in making.

(This next line is confusing to anyone who wasn’t in my class…)

Did he really know?

Like a river you flow.

Or iron biting dust,

Down your hooves are thrust.

I know, I know, I may have made the first example really unrealistic, but do you get the point? Instead of telling just solid facts about the horse, I made it sound slightly interesting and drew the reader in (I must say now, if you did not find that very good, please excuse me—I didn’t like it either).

Another type of poem commonly assigned is a ballad or a poem that forms a story, like The Lake Isle of Innisfree by William Butler Yeats. It is one of my personal favorites; I love the description and the mournful feeling.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,

Dropping form the veils of morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evening full of linnets’ wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day,

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,

I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

In this poem, Yeats is describing his longing for the peace and tranquility that can be found at the lake of Innisfree. Some really nice highlights are There midnight’s…and noon a purple glow, and And I shall… for peace comes dropping slow.

If you are told to write a ballad/story type poem, I would recommend writing about something with lots of detail, such as the sea, nature, weather, etc. There are many options and it is easier to write about one thing with lots of detail than a few things with less detail that would have to be tied together.

Emotional poems are one of the best to write; utilize emotion as often as you can. Mournful poems are the best of the emotions to use because you are able to wrap the reader in a feeling of sadness, thus wrapping them in a web of shadows. Humor has a different effect on the reader, but almost the same end result.

I wrote a ballad once, as assigned by the teacher, but what he didn’t tell us until later was that we were going to have to read our poems in front of the class. I knew that most, if not all, of the other poems were going to be cheesy; everyone would try to bring out their best for the teacher by highlighting and rewarding virtue in the book that was the subject of our poems.

I was sick of this kind of poetry. Every time the school had a poetry contest, everyone would write about virtue and being godly, trying to impress the judges. I was so sick of it that I vowed never to write one like that for the school; thankfully, they must have been sick of it too, because I won several of the contests. Anyways, back to the story. So I sat down and tried to think of a way to make my poem different. Now, please note, I’m not trying to teach you how to evade the grade you may deserve, just how to bring out the best for your reader or your audience. I finally settled on making my poem mock (in a way) the time frame of the book, saying that everything went so quickly that the book seemed to occur all in one day while everyone was getting old and having grandchildren. It turned out to be a moderately good poem…meaning my teacher gave me an A. (Have I ever told you how much I hate reading poems aloud?)

Another author that I found extremely helpful and inspiring is Sir Walter Scott. I just, to my immense pleasure, discovered a one-hundred-four-year-old edition of his complete poetical works. Two of my favorite poems are The Maid of Toro and Songs from the Legend of Montrose, both by Sir Walter Scott.

The Maid of Toro

O, low shone the sun on the fair lake of

Toro,

And weak were the whispers that waved

the dark wood,

All as a fair maiden, bewildered in sorrow,

Sorely sighed to the breezes and wept to

the flood.

‘O saints, from the mansions of bliss lowly,

bending!

Sweet Virgin, who hearest the suppliant’s

cry!

Now grant my petition in anguish ascending,

My Henry restore or let Eleanor die!’

All distant and faint were the sounds of the

battle,

With the breezes they rise, with the

breezes they fail,

Till the shout and the groan and the con-

flicts dread rattle,

And the chase’s wild clamor, came load-

ing the gale.

Breathless she gazed on the woodlands so

dreary;

Slowly approaching a warrior was seen;

Life’s ebbing tide marked his footsteps so

weary;

Cleft was his helmet and woe was his

mien.

‘O, save thee, fair maid, for our armies are

flying!

O, save thee, fair maid, for thy guardian

is low!

Deadly cold on yon heath thy brave Henry

is lying,

And fast through the woodland ap-

proaches the foe.’

Scarce could he falter the tidings of sorrow,

And scarce could she hear them, be-

numbed with despair:

And when the sun sunk on the sweet lake

of Toro,

Forever he set to the Brave and the Fair.

As far as whether or not to make a whole lot of sense in your poetry—well, that is a good question. I’ve read many good poems that made little to no sense whatsoever and I still loved them; on the other hand, I’ve found a fair amount that are spelled out to the letter but are also enjoyable. My friend feels like they must know the reason for everything, and can’t stand it when I have a poem that doesn’t spell out its meaning or purpose for you. I enjoy writing and reading this kind of poetry and it is far easier to write a poem and let the audience interpret at will.

I hope you found this helpful. Of course, if you didn’t, I have one more recommendation: practice. Practice the hardest things when you aren’t going to be graded or publicized, when it really doesn’t matter, because nobody is going to read it; it is one of those old standbys that really does work.