Tag: rhythm

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Guest Posts

Do You Know These Benefits of Writing Poetry?

Guest posts

Poetry is such a beautiful form of literature. It allows you to say so much without having to write pages and pages. Through symbolism, rhymes, rhythmic, and aesthetic language, poetry can truly express the author’s deepest emotions and wildest thoughts. And, the best thing about poetry is that it brings certain benefits to the author.

The benefits of writing poetry might be a mystery to you, but we’re here to tell you more. We’ve put together a list that will help you learn just how good poetry can be for you, mentally and physically. Let’s take a closer look.

1. Expressing Emotions

The number one benefit of writing poetry lies in expressing emotions. This is crucial for those people who have trouble dealing with how they feel.

And, one thing’s for sure- you should never swipe your emotions under the rug.

Through writing poetry, you’re able to:

  • process the emotions you’re feeling
  • use creativity to express them
  • deal with them in your poetry and let them go

That means that poetry helps you let go of certain feelings instead of constantly holding on to the past. And, this is extremely beneficial for your mental health and inner peace.

2. Escaping Reality

We all need a break from our reality every now and then. And, poetry allows us to create our own little world and escape in it whenever we like.

People who write poetry regularly report that they feel shifted away whenever they’re in this process. Here’s what that means:

  • writing poetry takes you to your happy place
  • you feel relaxed, stress-free, and inspired
  • you can rest from the daily noise and tension

Escaping your busy reality is a good idea, and poetry is one of the best ways to do it.

3. Building Self-Awareness

Learning about ourselves and getting in touch with our inner-selves is never a bad idea. This is something we should try doing for as long as we’re alive.

Why?

Because it helps us build self-awareness and grow stronger on a personal level. Here’s how poetry helps you build self-awareness:

  • you express your ideas and emotions in your poems
  • you do it intuitively, which makes it honest
  • you re-read those lines and gain new insight about yourself

Poetry allows you to learn about yourself, grow, and improve.

4. Memorizing Important Moments

When certain things happen in our lives, we like to hold on to them. Whether it’s a beautiful memory or a life-changing event, it’s good to be reminded of your past experiences.

But, holding it all inside can be potentially harmful to our mental health. This is why it’s a good idea to write it down through poetry. This way, you’ll be:

  • getting it out of your system
  • making sure it’s never forgotten
  • allowing yourself to re-live it whenever you read the poems

Angela Baker, a literary critic, and editor at Trust My Paper, says:

“Poetry is one of the best ways to preserve some of the most important moments of your life. When you turn them into poetry, they’ll forever remain alive and available for you to re-live them. That’s the beauty of poetry.”

Angela Baker

5. Remove Emotional Pain

Some of the most beautiful poems were written as a result of great emotional pain. When we suffer, we feel most inspired to write poetry because we feel the need to ease the pain we’re feeling.

Poetry helps us remove this emotional pain, and here’s how:

  • we bring it out of ourselves
  • we deal with all the emotions we’re feeling
  • we find relief and peace

Writing poetry benefits those who are struggling to heal from a recent emotional episode and need a hand to do it successfully.

6. Improving Cognition

Poetry isn’t just beneficial for our emotional side. It also has a positive impact on our brand and cognition, so we can almost say that it’s making us smarter.

Here’s why this is the case:

  • writing poetry is a complex process
  • it requires us to combine the words, hidden meaning, symbols, rhymes, and rhythmic
  • this process makes our brain active and stronger

Poetry helps us train our brain into being sharper and working smoothly. As a result, our overall cognition, memory, and focus are improved.

Final Thoughts

Writing poetry is an immensely enjoyable and beneficial process we should all try. People who write poetry experience significant benefits and improvements in their well-being.

Hopefully, the benefits listed above helped you understand just how valuable the process of writing poetry is. Use it as inspiration to start enjoying writing poetry more.

Donald Fomby is an experienced freelance writer and amateur poet. He currently works as an editor at Supreme Dissertations. Donald mainly focuses on literature-related topics and aims to provide practical advice his readers can apply easily

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A Pinch of Poetry

Consonance: The Sound of Poetry II

How you create sound in your poetry will make it bloom or wilt. The whole purpose of a poem is to artistically express a message in a succinct, powerful way. Sound devices, such as consonance, add musical qualities—key elements that accomplish this.

Since we’ve recently explored alliteration, it would be best to distinguish its sibling, which also makes use of repeating consonant sounds.

[bctt tweet=”How you create sound in your poetry will make it bloom or wilt. #poets #poetry”]

Closer than a Brother

Consonance is a sound device in which many of the words in close proximity (in the same line) repeat the same consonant sound. Remember that alliteration is unique because it only emphasizes the first sounds of words. Consonance allows for the sound to be repeated anywhere within the words or phrases.

As with alliteration, consonance adds a musical element to the poem and creates a smooth-flowing rhythm.

Let’s look at a few more lines from Edgar Allen Poe’s famous poem “The Raven” again to understand how it works.

“And the silken, sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain”

In the above lines, the poet repeats the “s” sound even in the words that don’t begin with that letter. The resulting sounds harmonize, creating a musical effect. Not only are the sounds repeated throughout the line, but the word “uncertain” also rhymes with “curtain.” Both devices create a beautiful streak of sounds that easily roll off your tongue.

A few stanzas later, he uses consonance again.

“Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted”

Poe could have chosen any number of words to communicate the same meaning. However, each word has a purpose. Notice how and where the “d” sound is repeated—the beginning, middle and ends of several words in this line. Again, the sound repetition enhances the rhythm of the poem.

It simply sounds nice. Doesn’t it?

Working Together

Because alliteration and consonance are so closely related, the poet uses both at the same time. But don’t fret over which technique you are using to create pleasant sounds in your poems. If you are aware of the devices, then you can consciously incorporate them into your work.

Remember that all poetic techniques usually work together rather than in isolation to create the most effective poems. You probably recognized other sound devices in those lines, such the internal rhyme. We’ll explore other musical elements like this in future posts.

Now that you have a grasp on alliteration and consonance, see if you can work it into your own poems. If you have any questions, ask me below.

[bctt tweet=”Create a beautiful streak of sounds in your poetry! #poets #poetry”]

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A Pinch of Poetry

Alliteration: The Sound of Poetry I

One unique attribute of poetry is the way it sounds. Using special techniques, such as alliteration, can bring your poems to life and add musical beauty.

In this series I’m going to explain the different ways you can create sound effects in your poems and why you might want to do that. I’ll be using Edgar Allen Poe’s famous poem “The Raven” as an example. This piece contains multiple sound devices that work harmoniously together to create a musical masterpiece.

Sweet Sounds of Similarity

Alliteration is the repetition of initial consonant sounds.  In other words, the beginning sounds of certain words close together are the same. Note that the sound of the word’s first letter is important, not the letter itself. For instance, salad and celery are examples of this sound device even though they don’t start with the same letter.

Note: Typically this device is recognized as the repetition of consonant sounds only. Yet some sources may disagree as to whether alliteration also includes words that begin with the same vowel sound.

Regardless, Alliteration is important because it creates rhythm and is pleasing to the ear. In other words, it adds a musical element to poetry and even helps with memorization.

Consider your favorite song on the radio. I’ll bet you will find alliteration all over the lyrics if you listen closely next time.

The Difference One Device Can Make

Paying attention to the sounds you use in your poetry is essential.  You should always select every word with a purpose in mind.

Read the following line from “The Raven” and my revised version. Listen to the difference in each:

“While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping” (original)

Or

“While I rested, almost asleep, suddenly there came a tapping” (revised)

The first sentence is the way Poe originally wrote the line. Notice how the repeated “n” sounds add a pleasant sound as they roll out of your mouth. It’s actually more difficult on your tongue to read the second sentence. And it doesn’t sound nearly as nice as the original.

Here’s another example:

“Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken” (original)

Or

“Upset at the quiet broken by reply so aptly expressed” (revised)

In both of these examples, the meaning is approximately the same, but the effect is dramatically different. Again, the alliterated words in the original line create a beautiful, memorable sound by adding a smooth rhythm to the poem.

And did you notice that alliteration is not used in isolation?

Generally sound devices enhance each other to create the ultimate effect on the reader. Throughout his poem, Poe uses alliteration along with multiple other techniques and devices, which we will explore in future posts.

[bctt tweet=”Paying attention to the sounds you use in your poetry is essential. #poets #poetry”]

Can You Use It?

Now, find a poem you’ve already written, or challenge yourself to write a new one. Examine each line carefully and try to see where you could use alliteration. A thesaurus is very helpful for finding synonyms. Just be sure to only use words that you know well and fit the context of your poem.

Do you have any questions or suggestions for using this sound device? Share them below.

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Child's Craft

Rhyme Time

‘Twas the evening before Christmas, and through the entire shack

Not a soul moved, especially tiny rat.

If Clement C. Moore had written like that, I’m pretty sure the story would have died and we’d never all cherish that fabulous story that he imagined. The above is why editors and agents cringe when they receive children’s stories written in rhyme. Some publishing houses refuse to even look at manuscripts submitted in rhyme because so many people get it wrong and rhyme written wrong is just plain painful.

So, what is the magic in Clement C Moore’s writing? What is the charm in his rhyme that kept the story alive and thriving all through the years? What can we learn from his writing to mimic in ours to write in beautiful rhyme?

“Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a Creature was stirring not even a mouse.”

Ahh, much better. He wrote in perfect rhyme and perfect meter and perfect rhythm.

First he used perfect rhyme. Every time. Shack and rat are close to rhyming as they have the same vowel sound, but we should try to make a perfect rhyme especially when writing for children. Imperfect rhymes send mixed messages to children about what rhymes are. Some words look like they should rhyme: pain and again. Word and Lord. They don’t. Strive for perfection in your rhymes.

Try to find different words to rhyme. Clement C. Moore rhymed clatter and matter, flash and sash, foot and soot, teeth and wreath. He stepped away from the hum drum of the normally rhymed words.

Secondly, he used perfect meter. In the opening stanza, there is no meter. Accents on words fall all over the place. It is difficult to read. However, Moore places 12-13 syllables in each line and rhymes the last words. His accents fall consistently on every third syllable making it a joy to read. Everybody reads it the same. Every time. We don’t have to figure out how to read it correctly. It just happens.

We don’t have to use his meter in our writing. There are tons of different meters. Pick another, make up your own, but be consistent.

I love the 8/6/8/6 lines with 8 syllables in the first and third lines and six in the rhyming second and fourth lines. I have found that the accents fall naturally on every fifth syllable. So that’s what I strive for in this type of story.

If Jesus came to visit me

I know just what I’d do.

I’d wrap my arms around him tight

And say I’m glad it’s you.

 

Find one that works for you and play with it.

The reader will figure out the meter in the first verse and will come to expect the same meter throughout the story, so stay consistent. Play with your words to find the ones that have accents in the right places.

“The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow gave a luster of midday to objects below.”

Don’t you know he must have played with those words and plugged in numerous words until he obtained the flow and meter that he wanted? Luster may not have been his first choice in words, but glow or gleam would throw off the meter. This is the fun of writing – finding the perfect words.

Finally he wrote in perfect rhythm. This is a combination of perfect rhyme and perfect meter that evokes natural speech. Don’t force words to make a rhyme. Don’t use ‘Sally did run’, to make a rhyme with sun. Nobody talks like that. Sally ran. Don’t rhyme it with sun. Find another word to rhyme with ran. Be creative. Play with words. It all works together to form verse in beautiful rhythm.

If it’s too painful to play with the words to make it beautiful then write in prose. Children need all kinds of books, but if rhyme comes naturally to you then strive to make it perfect!

Please spend lots of time in writing your rhyme.

So that your book soars, like Clement C. Moore’s.

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Child's Craft

Onomatopoeia and rhythm

Onomato-what? Onomatopoeia is what makes your picture books pop! It’s the smooth, silky, wispy words that tap into other senses and emotions. It’s the silly-willy words that make your readers giggle and squeal. It’s the slam, clang, or bang to make kids jump or the plop, ooze, squish to make them squirm. Perhaps, it’s the oink of a teeny piggy, the yip-yip of a fluffy puppy, or soft purr of a kitty that will elicit an “Awwwww.” It’s the crunch of the leaves, the eerie creak of an opening door, or the faint whisper in the dark that will keep your audience on the edge of their seats.

According to Merriam-Webster, onomatopoeia is the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it (as buzz, hiss) 2. the use of words whose sound suggests the sense.

As writers of children’s books, it’s what we need to use frequently. Kids don’t want to hear that a car raced down the street and quickly stopped. It zoomed across the scorching pavement then screeched to a halt. With a whoosh the car sped off then’ urrrrrched’ to a screaming halt. Play with it. This is why we write. We want to make a great story even better. We want to make it interesting for the children, a book that the kids ask for over and over again. And we want to write a book that parents actually enjoy reading. Keep your words appropriate for your target age level. A screaming halt may be too advanced for a three-year old, but certainly not for a 10-year-old.

Can you incorporate onomatopoeia into your existing story? Check out this website with an infinite list of words to use. http://www.onomatopoeialist.com/ Play with it until you find the perfect word for the rhythm of your story. Also check out http://www.thesaurus.com/ to find equivalent words that may enhance your story.

By rhythm, I don’t necessarily mean meter for verse, but all books have a rhythm, a flow. If a bunny is hopping to get away from a predator, he’ll hop, leap, jump, zip, zoom, skitter. You’ll write with short, quick words. Short sentences. You want to evoke that tension. At this point he’s not going to meander through the delicious carrot patch in hopes of escaping the hungry fox. He skitters through rows. Zips around brush. Darts through the woods.

A gentle, bedtime story however, will have a soothing effect. Use gentle, smooth, calming words, perhaps longer sentences. A story about bath time will most certainly include bubbly words, splashes, and silly, slippery soap type words. Rain shouldn’t fall in children’s books. It pitter-patters, drips, splats, sprinkles, drizzles.

The rhythm may change through your book to obtain the feel that you want. It might start peppy, zippy and energetic at first and slowly wind its way down to a lulling, sleepy, nighty-night mood by the end. Zzzzzzzz.

You have control of this by the purrrrrfect words you choose. What are some of your favorite onomatopoeia words? What makes you or your children giggle, hoot, howl, shrink back, jump or cause you to want to read a book again? List them in the comment section below. These are the types of words we want to use.