First, an explanation: A few months ago, a friend of mine told me that he was beginning to write poetry, and asked me for any tips I might give him. I flubbed the response — essentially contradicting myself and being unhelpful. That’s okay; I’m sure he didn’t really need my advice. That said, I thought some on the subject, and figured I would try and do a better job. Am I qualified to give advice on writing poetry? I think so. Depends on what qualifications are necessary.

When I was in Bilbao, then, I spent some time sitting down and trying to think of some tips I should’ve given him. They are still contradictory; that’s part of the fun. I think, with this kind of thing, you need to pick and choose. Every so often, I come across an article — in a magazine or newspaper, usually — with tips for writers, from well-known authors. Half of them are always complete shit. Some of them are actually pretty good. Sometimes they’re ridiculous; sometimes they’re way too detailed. And sometimes one of them will ring true. So maybe I’ll put down something along those lines, here. None of these are new; they’re just the pieces of advice that have stuck to me. They’re not particularly in order. Some of them are more exercises than advice; some are more encouragement than anything else.

• Read books of poetry by a single author, and then try to emulate the style — or try to write nothing like it at all.
• Play with structure. Write something following a strict form, and then write something formless. See what fits. There are many good forms to play with.
• Don’t ask anyone to read your poetry until you feel like it. When you do, take it to someone who’s actually going to critique it, and then take their criticism with a thick skin. Sycophants might make you feel good, but they’re not actually going to help all too much.
• You don’t need to finish every poem you begin. It’s okay to throw something away.
• Be daring.
• Re-use something that didn’t work.
• Don’t write poetry when you’re drunk.
• Don’t force a rhyme. Don’t use feminine rhyme (rhyme using more than one syllable) unless you’re a rapper.
• It is, however, okay to rhyme. But realize that it doesn’t always sound good — so be aware of when your poetry is being shaped by a need to rhyme. If your couplet is being formed based more on the rhyme than on the thread of thought, scrap it. Rhymes should feel natural.
• Rewrite. If you feel like it.
• It is rarely enjoyable to read a poem written entirely in metaphorical language.
• Describe in actions, not just in adjectives.
• Avoid flowery language or language that feels like nothing new. Phrases like “silent scream,” “void,” and breathless descriptions of darkness are generally to be avoided. A poem about sadness or inner confusion needs to be really good for anyone other than you to want to read it.
• Show action and emotion — not just description.
• Pay close attention to line breaks.
• Learn how to read poetry well. Hint: You shouldn’t pause at the end of a line if there’s no punctuation, unless there’s a rhyme or something necessary. Spoken poetry is not the same as read-on-the-page poetry, and you shouldn’t try to make it so.
• Listen to (recordings of) poets reading their work. Read along.
• Learn how to end a poem. It’s not always easy.

Perhaps these thoughts are more useful to me than to anyone else. But I am curious: what advice would you give to someone writing poetry? It would be fun to hear some thoughts other than mine.