Struggling to Start Writing Poetry? Try a Haiku!

So you've decided to stretch your creative lexicon, but just don't know where to begin. Maybe your hippocampus dreams to swoon others with expertly crafted poetry, but is just overwhelmed by the sheer amount of drafting you would need to do. You might even find yourself appreciating a rainy day, rustling flowerbed, or friendly cafe, but just can't seem to put your feelings into words. Good news! You don't have to worry. You're in the same boat as every other aspiring poet, and you too can build a stunning collection to be proud of. In fact, you've already taken the first step—you've made the decision to start writing. Many potential Walt Whitmans and Robert Frosts will never step beyond the milestone that you have, and here's why:

Simply starting to write can be the hardest part about writing.

Ask any sugar-addled middle schooler or slumped, exhausted college student, and they'll tell you: it doesn't matter how much caffeine you ingest, or how many red vines you aggressively suck on, you can't finish any project without actually sitting down and doing it (kudos to my former roommate Karl, however, for somehow passing an interpretive creative writing course by letting his cat walk across his keyboard. Well played Karl, well played). So, if a large project can scare us into never even starting, how do we get past it? How do some writers effortlessly manage to build awe-inspiring volumes of text? Well, two strategies can fairly effectively combat the paralyzing fear of trying to start a writing project.

1. Break up work into smaller, bite-sized pieces

No one, not even my former palm-calloused and seething literature professors could write an entire poetry book in one day. They might try (in fact that may be a fun challenge to propose to any that you happen to know yourself), but truly great things come with time. If you spend your Saturdays gazing longingly at others' poetry collections and are discouraged to start writing, try starting small. Instead of a chapter of poems, write one or two a day. After only a month, you'd already boast dozens of pieces to peruse! Plus, fine art requires thoughtful craft, and that just can't happen unless you give it the space and focus it needs to be unique.

2. Spread the workload out over time

Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will be your poetic dynasty. The most important thing for you as a new poet to focus on is—and no one ever likes hearing this—discipline! Consistency! Dependability! The process of writing volumes is similar to that old race between the hare and the tortoise. Where others might dive into inconsistent bouts and flurries of writing, you dear reader, must plod diligently along. I suggest a schedule, calendar, many writing-friendly beverages, and a comfortable chair. If you manage to stay the course, you will not only pass steadily by those who loudly bemoan their failed attempts to replicate Handel's Literary Messiah (in half the time), but will also find yourself looking back on the journey your writing has taken, and the improvements it has miraculously undergone.

"BUT CHRIS," I hear in your raucous uproar, "WHAT DOES ANY OF THIS HAVE TO DO WITH HAIKUS?"

Well put. eloquently stated. I couldn't have thought of a better question myself, and I wrote the whole thing. It's everything! Not only do haikus offer a rich history of poetic structure and elegant design, they are incredibly potent as an art form! These little buggers have even been created to provoke and combine visual language, feelings and intoned rhythm all in one breath (that's 17 syllables for you). If you are looking for an easy way to build the habit of writing poetry every day, in bite-sized pieces, while crafting visionary works of written art, there is no better option to start with than a haiku! With this clever poetic form as a building block for your beneficial writing habits, you can spend as little as ten minutes every day on writing, and still build an impressive portfolio of work.

Haiku Structure

Many readers see a haiku poem as too simplistic, or limited, and this is where the poetic format can be truly deceptive. Any schmuck with a pencil can read a thesaurus, find some words that rhyme, and count on his fingers like we all probably did in middle school. But this is not the way my friends. You heard me right: a haiku is like a beautiful oil painting, composed from the beginning in the artist's mind, and expressed tenderly onto a canvas with every detailed brush stroke. In this way, we aren't simply looking for words that rhyme or fit a syllable count, we must begin with the picture in our heads, the feelings we are experiencing, and what we think is truly most important about such a composition to be expressed to the reader—the essence.

Pro Tip: Begin with the essence of your haiku, then assemble the language of your piece together with the best visual language you can think of. Practice makes perfect.

Without an essence, no haiku can ever inspire others. But, if you begin with one, you are in a beneficial position to start throwing different words around like a jigsaw puzzle. Try your best to describe your essence visually, and separate it into three major sections:

The First Line [5 syllables]

This section acts as your readers' hook. Ideally you want to choose language that not only describes the scene you've formed in your head, but also does so creatively, and in a way that sparks the imagination of your audience. There are a variety of ways to accomplish this, and it can be done through double entendres, stark and provocative language, or even subverting the expectations of your audience carried through from the poem's title.

The Second Line [7 syllables]

Content in the second line should describe your mind-painting effectively, and to help an audience think they know what the piece is about (this is important, as it sets up a sort of "mini" narrative to intrigue readers). You want to use visual language that is unique, descriptive, and short enough to keep your readers' attention.

The Third Line [5 syllables]

Finally, this third section—while just as short as the first—serves an entirely different purpose. You want your readers to either encounter a grand twist that shifts their understanding of the lines before, or a descriptive phrase that works to summarize the descriptions you've already written. No matter what direction you choose to write towards for this final line, make sure that it works as a form of conclusion for the poem.

Check out this example of a well-executed haiku by the skillful poet, Natsume Sōseki:

"Over the wintry"

We can see from the first line, the readers' attention is captured. "A wintry what? What could be over this wintry thing, whatever it is?" We are immediately bombarded by vivid imagery and interesting questions about the author's mind-painting.

"Forest, winds howl in rage"

The second line unveils the subject of our question, while promptly creating a bit of a story. In this instance, we note that there is a wild storm. It violently moves through a forest, with ripping winds. How could this phrase be concluded to make an impressive piece? Well, the author continues by introducing additional imagery on the third line below.

"With no leaves to blow."

Summarizing with a final, short image of leafless trees, readers see the entire piece ultimately come together. Each section has its own purpose and characteristics, but together we truly see a complete picture emerge. Many haikus can even be considered as metaphor, adding even deeper levels to the art of haiku writing.

Interested in writing some poems yet? I expect many of you are certainly chomping at the bit! Go ahead and give these short but beautiful poems a try (if that still seems a bit intimidating, try just practicing some haiku-writing in ten minute sessions; just picking up a pen and writing can help you get your inner poet started)!

Like what you've read? Be sure to check out my entire poetry collection at https://allpoetry.com/Chris_Dyrland-Marquis, or my newest love poetry book, Bitter Blossom Thunderclouds on the Apple iBook store! You can also see all of my available texts here on the site's "Available Books" section.

Yours,

Christopher Dyrland-Marquis