how do I become more proficient in writing poetry?
read a bunch of it.
write a lot of it until it's not shit
also, have feelings (a lot of people miss this part)
>>7371154
I have a similar question to OP
How can i write poetry and not be completely embarrassed/disgusted by it when looking back on it in the future?
>>7372675
I don't think you can anon
Unless you write some Whitman and Eliot, subtexty ,allusive ,planned and perfectly executed posey you're doomed to look back on it as a cringey mess.
But hey the best artists are their own worst critics. It's probably "disgusting and embarrassing" because it's tangible and good poetry.
>When you self consciously tear up everything you write because you can't help but think you suck at writing and should just stahp.
>>7371138
hate. hate is the fuel of all literature.
if you can't, just plagiarize someone more capable.
>>7371154
>also, have feelings (a lot of people miss this part)
f-fug off my poems about detached aesthetic appreciation of various inanimate objects are gonna be lauded forever I know it
>>7372700
wow i'm new to lit and if the whole board is this constructive then damn, i should've come here a long time ago.
i feel you on tearing your writing up though. i usually scribble in notebooks and just throw them out when they're full because i don't want to look at them ever again.
>>7371138
>proficient in writing poetry
>proficient
I think you should just give up.
>>7371138
by reading poetry
http://pastebin.com/cBZknniE
>have feelings
dont listen to this nonsense, "feeling" in this context is a single niche of poetry. read more than the high romantics and you'll realize poetry is more than sentimentalist vomit
Poetry is the literary artform most dependent on inborn talent, anon. So you might be fucked from the get-go.
I recommend you read poetry OUT ALOUD that is written in meter and try to become proficient in writing in meter. You can read newer free-verse stuff too, but I will emphasize one more time, OUT ALOUD.
Then once you have a grasp of how to create rhythm with words through meter, you can write free-verse and poetry with no rules.
Doing is the best way to learn. Poetry is the most dependent on inspiration of all the literary arts, so write as often as you are inspired.
This will likely guarantee that you won't write sophomoric garbage like Mira Gonzalez or something.
>>7371138
I recommend Western Wind.
by listening to Death's Scream Bloody Gore album. nice pic OP.
>>7372709
kek, yea.
follow your dreams, i'm going to be the "idea guy" at a video game company.
>>7373985
I agree with this, Death is a fantastic band.
>>7371138
Just think about how poetry works. Break it down into little conceptual units and then learn how to build structures out of those units. Analyze poetry according to the patterns you find, drawing reference to them when you try to write. If this shit isn't intuitive then compensate with analytical skills. If you can't do that then you're probably just stupid, or at the very least should spend your time on something else.
Just don't.
No one likes reading poetry.
No
One
It is a meme.
>>7374112
I like reading poetry.
>>7374144
>hansmoleman.jpg
>>7371138
start fingering your butt when you jack it and start drinking lots of red wine.
>>7374176
>hansmoleman
I don't watch the Simpsons. Are you saying I'm old or is there a joke I'm not understanding?
>>7374187
Not that person, but I assume he's referring to molemans magnum opus:
I think that I shall never see
My cataracts is blinding me
>>7374187
"l was saying Boo-urns"
>>7371138
1. be born with poetic talent (you weren't, so you can stop reading here)
2. read
3. write
4. don't listen to living "poets" for advice
>>7373506
This. Western Wind is the best book for learning to write poetry. It you can't afford it try the library or buy a used previous edition.
>>7372700
I just recently listened to a podcast on the Dunning-Kruger effect which featured an appearance from Dunning himself. One of the points he made was regarding sources of insight and awareness. He pointed to the embarrassment he felt towards his early essays as something which signifies not only an awareness but evidence of progression. So that's always worth remembering
Most poets are undetected plagiarists.
>>7371138
Don't bother.
Poetry is the lowest form of literature; it's basically the literary equivalent of a Twitter post. It's whingy intellectuals venting their frustration in the most banal and passive-aggressive way. Nobody ever became famous for their poetry; poems become famous for their writer.
>>7372712
Wait until you encounter a whole thread of DFW faces.
>>7371138
Write more.
Read more.
Think about what you read.
Live an interesting life.
>>7373497
>Poetry is the literary artform most dependent on inborn talent
I have to agree with this anon. If you were destined to be a great poet, you would already be showing great promise. You're only drawbacks would be inelegant structure and timing.
Poetry isn't about how well you can fit words together, but about how well you can understand the hearts of others. The things others didn't know about themselves until they read your poetry. I think you just have to be born with the ability to do it, and reading the poetry of others is just a means to refine what was already there.
>>7374199
This guy gets it.
