Go to More Poetry Readings

The other weekend I braved the cold and went to a weekly poetry reading that is held by my grad school. It's in a warm, usually overcrowded bar, with low lighting and a wonderful feeling of ease and camaraderie among the fellow writers. I'm not at all well-versed in poetry, particularly contemporary poetry, so I was expecting to feel very disconnected from the reading. I was completely surprised by how moving and delightful the poems read really were. I was impressed by the work of my fellow students, but more than that, I felt inspired and eager to think about these poems as a source for my own writing.

Poetry readings are a wonderful event to attend, even if you're not a poet. Here a few reasons poetry readings are the place to be if you're a fiction writer.

You'll be among writers.

First, you'll feel inspired just being among your fellow writers, discussing writerly things, swapping book recommendations and sharing your troubles about the difficulties of getting the words right. It's always a great experience when you're among a bunch of likeminded individuals. You can be confident that poets "get it." They know what you're going through, and they're going through the same thing.

The work will give you story ideas.

Second, you'll be inspired by the work being read. It deals with the same emotions, the same troubles, and the same stories that fiction writers write about. You'll get story ideas and character ideas. If a poem writes about one person's troubled love life, you can imagine a fictional version of that character. Or often a poem mentions a peripheral character with accompanying vivid detail. Try writing a story about that less important character, and you may be surprised how much there is to tell about him or her.

You'll improve your language.

And third, it's great practice for your own writing to listen to some poetry. Poets have it even tougher than fiction writers in some ways; because their work is shorter and more about the music and sound, they have to choose absolutely every word with care. Their work has to have a smooth rhythm and sound beautiful. Those kinds of qualities can make ordinary fiction extraordinary. So try picking up a few pointers from the poets.

Comments

[mary brady]

You are so right about poetry being an inspiration to writers. I found Billy Collins to be a good "starter" poet. He can begin with the mundane and end up with the ecstatic--and he usually gets there by way of humor.

Another great poet is Kay Ryan, our current US Poet Laureate (Collins held the post several times recently). Her works are short but deep and her rhymes are staggering.

But for pure fabulousness, you MUST read James Tate. His "poems" are simply short prose pieces filled with surreal people, places & situations. He wanders among them like a Holy Fool. They are utterly hilarious.

Thanks for your website. I get a lot from it.
L&K, MaryB

[sell books]

Yes writing a book needs passion and ideas. Whenever we see in open environment, many things come to our mind and each contaianing a story to start with.