November  30,  2020

SO,  YOU ALWAYS WANTED

TO BE A POET?   RIGHT?

  

Grab a ball point pen and some
junk mail paper and start jotting
down comments to these questions.
 
Name an emotion – any emotion.
Sad, glad, mad, joyful, joyful, joyful …
wow, wow, bark, bark, woof, woof ….
 
Grab a dictionary and just flip through it.
Pick out words that are interesting:
caramel, footbridge, hoopla, phoebe ….
 
Jot down the names of different objects
that you can see: refrigerator, couch,
soup spoon, foot stool, book case, rug.
 
Now you have on paper a few words
that express feelings and you have a
few words that sound or look interesting.
 
Next – if you have a computer – read some
poems. Pick short ones.  Read them out loud.
Can you spot a feeling or an interesting word?
 
Or next time you’re near a library enter and
find the poetry section. Read some poems.
Hope you find one or two poems with a grab.
 
Next using old envelopes or empty space
on junk mail write down some short poems
of your own. Don’t say, “I can’t do this!”
 
Forget about rhyme or reason. Just jot
down words – poets love words – till you
have what looks like a poem. Sculpt words.
 
Next time you’re in a supermarket –
go to the aisle that has stationary and buy
yourself a small spiral pad – 9 ½ x 6 inches.
 
They are usually 108 or 150 pages.
Put your first poem in there – and then
your second and third and keep going.
 
Keep reading other people’s poems.
Keep writing your own poems.
Slowly fill up your spiral pad.
 
Don’t throw away your poems, but
keep crossing out – and rewriting
your poems. I rewrite at least 18 times.
 
If you have a computer – type out
your poems. If you have the money
self-publish your best 108 poems.

 

 © Andy Costello, Reflections 2020