5 Tips To Perfecting Your Poetry

Writing poetry is one of those things that often times plagues the writer...where do I start, how long should it be, to punctuate or not to punctuate...these are questions that all become easily answerable with 5 simple and effective tips.

1. Get out that pen and pad and start taking notes on your subject matter. Whether you are writing about a tangible object or a deep intense feeling, you need to know your subject. Write down all that you can to truly describe the subject. Such as if it is a feeling of angst then make sure you describe this feeling of dread using words that present a picture to the reader. (Think dark, sullen, mood shifting, overwhelmed) 
2. Take Shape-Try different forms of structure which you can read about here, you may want your stanzas to have shorter lines or longer lines...they key is to write it several different ways and decide on which one works best. Never rush a beautiful thing such as poetry you will be glad you didn't. 
3. Meter-Make sure that you read each line aloud, that way you can truly see if the reader will stumble over your words. You want to use perfect meter if you truly want your poem to flow effortlessly across the readers mind. 
4. Impressions-When seeking to impress the reader we often use words that are merely there to impress versus there to improve the visualization of the feeling that the piece brings. So remove anything that will not fully envelop the subject. 
5. Rhyme-To ensure that you are producing a poem worthy of a read aloud go and read other poems aloud and see how they flow from the page to the lips of the reader. That way you are able to gauge whether or not you have created a melodic flow (think music to your ears) in order to truly entertain and engage the reader. 

Here is another interesting take that will have you craving to learn more about the art of writing poems of interest and quick effective ways to get you going with Robert Lee Brewer's Five Ways to Write a Poem.

Below is a list of links to help you get started on your journey.

Rhyme Zone

The Dictionary

The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators

Dumb Down

Come one, come all as I welcome you to the dumbing down of society

No longer a nation considered a standard of sobriety

Come and let them entertain you to the point of boredom

Losing quality gaining quantity a trade of decorum

Your senses are lost and have failed you miserably

No longer using your mind, just thinking visually

Turn off the automated mode and come back to reality

Unless you are happy with your life floating away at sea

Growing up I was raised in the south in a very diverse household, as I am sure many of you born before the 90's can attest to this was not accepted with kindness. So now apart of my mission is to help children feel welcome that come from all cultures. I have done extensive research on the origins of race and would like to show children that we are all one. Before we can learn to embrace one another we must first embrace the truth that we are all apart of humanity and that we are only separated by cultures, religions and beliefs. Even the Bible states that we are to become all things to all men...in that I know that we are to embrace all people with love and show that all children deserve to feel like they can dream, imagine and embrace our image.www.TheAtlantaIllustrator.com

Humanity in Bloom

Flowers bloom where no man dare cross

birthed into a world thought of as dross

Enveloping the full colors of life's arrays

Yet never to be seen, only counting the days

Sun rays beam across the petals of their life

Beating and burdening unto the ends of their strife

Humanity is so large and yet most are unnoticed 

Barely do we comprehend the scope of our focus

Embracing a world full of the light of love

Then and only then can we see the flowers from above

La Tay 

Lesley Taylor

Hear My Voice

Broken and torn
Left to a life of scorn.
The lies that comprise
Suppose it's true
And I surmise
that one day I might flee
and escape these hot sands
Destined for freedom
or so I planned
I am just a little child
abandoned of hope
Grabbing at straws as my
only way to cope
If you would just reach
with kindness
Then I might not follow
those with acts of blindness
Hear my voice, better yet
give me a name
Who is the one that's hurt
when negligent eyes are to
blame
With a myriad of hearts
and a world for of clues
Let us love the children
as we have all paid our
dues

La Tay

Please share this those who you know and love. Comment on this and let me know your thoughts on child negligence that is rampant in the world and what we can do as writers to help encourage them even through the toughest times. We all have a voice! What are you doing to use your voice for the betterment of tomorrow?

A lesson in Rhyme

Today more than ever it is important that we give our children a head start when it comes to reading and writing. One of the main things we can do as parents is to ensure that we are actively involving our children in the process of rhyming. Rhyming is a beautiful starting point for developing awareness phonetically with beginning readers. If we could once a day spend just five minutes asking our child to listen for sounds and introduce them to the idea that words can be divided into parts that make larger sounds then we can easily teach them the art of rhyming. 

While working on individual sounds we must make sure that the child not only comprehends the rhyming aspect of the word, but also the individual sound that each letter makes. 

Here is a short rhyme to help your children learn the art of rhyme while learning new sounds.

The Fan

One Fan 

Blew on the Man

I can

Turn off the Fan

Said the Man
Named Stan