Poetry exercise

I should start by saying that I definitely am going to try some of the exercises that you’ve all blogged about.  For me, the hardest part about a poem is the beginning, because you’ve got to get yourself to think about things like a poet–at least in my case, I don’t walk around thinking like a poet all the time.  Putting myself in the poetry mindset is really hard, and not something that you can just instruct yourself to do and you’re suddenly there.

My challenge to you (and also to myself) is to write early in the morning when you first wake up.  I was once advised to do this because although everybody goes about their morning differently, we all start out the same: groggy, contemplative, withdrawn, etc.  I haven’t gotten to it yet, but my goal for myself is to wake up and before talking to anybody or having any interactions, write a few lines.

3 Replies to “Poetry exercise”

  1. To add to this, I tried Sarah’s exercise last night and it totally worked for me! While I didn’t end up writing a prose piece, it got me started on something that I plan to continue! Woo for poem-ing!

  2. Ashley,

    Morning writing, at least for me, is absolutely the best. (I should mention that when I say “morning” I mean like 10 or 11 am). I don’t just wake up and start writing; I usually give myself awhile to wake up, eat breakfast, etc., but when I sit down to write, I feel so ready! I often have really weird dreams/ half-asleep thoughts that can be interesting to incorporate into poetry, plus, this early in my day I don’t have the ten other homework assignments that I need to get done lingering in my mind yet. Thanks for posting this as an exercise, because it is absolutely worth trying. I hope you find it as rewarding as I do!

  3. Morning writing is amazing! I think it’s especially powerful on those days when you wake up after a good night’s sleep, and you have time alone with no responsibility. To paraphrase from Thoreau, morning is when there is morning in us. Though he’s referring to the time of day when the sun is actually rising, and to its inherent quality of awakening (morning to me is 9 earliest), that sense of awakening and newness after just waking up can give a new view of writing, and put freshness into our thoughts.

    I know we’re supposed to hesitate at using the pathetic fallacy, but I really do believe there’s an inherent quality in morning–the fact that the world is also awakening–that encourages new, precise thoughts–perfect for poetry.

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