Get Inspiration for Poetry

Writing poetry can be a joy and a challenge, especially if you have hit a block or feel devoid of inspiration. You can get inspired to write poetry by responding to writing and media, and by using writing prompts and exercises. Sometimes, a shake up of your usual styles and practices can also help inspiration bloom and take hold.

Steps

Responding to Other Writing and Media

1. Write a response to your favorite poem. One way to get some inspiration is to read poems that you love or admire and write a response poem. This could be a poem that you tend to read when you feel like you are in a creative rut or a piece that you recently discovered and cannot stop reading. You can then pretend that you are writing a poem that answers some of the questions presented in the poem or discusses questions you may have about the poem.
   • For example, maybe you are inspired by the poem, “One art” by Elizabeth Bishop. You may then write a response poem that examines your own feelings around “failure” or how you have experienced failure in your life recently or in the past. You may also write a poem around a specific question or detail in the poem, such as “my mother’s watch” or how it would feel to “lose two cities.” This could then allow you to start writing a new poem.
2. Create a poem based on a piece of music. Another way you can get inspired is to listen to a piece of music you enjoy and think about how you might describe the music in a poem. Use sensory details, such as taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound, to discuss the music.
   • Consider selecting a piece of music no words or very few words so you can focus on words in your mind as you listen to it. You may start by listing keywords that come into your head as you listen to the music and then create a poem out of these words.
3. Channel your favorite movie or tv character in a poem. Mix up your point of view by going into the mind of your favorite movie character and writing a poem based on what that character might think, see, feel, and touch in a space. Maybe this is your favorite bad boy movie character from a film, or your favorite sitcom mom on your favorite tv show. Embodying a different perspective could help you create surprising and engaging poetry.
   • You can also try selecting a movie or tv character that you dislike or find unpleasant in some way. You may end up writing a poem that is full of humor and emotion, as you can channel all your dislike into the poem.
4. Compose a poem based on a photograph or an image. Sometimes, you can be inspired by a strong visual, especially if you are a visual person. Pull out an old photograph from your childhood and write a poem based on how you felt in the photograph or how you feel now about the photograph. You may describe the scene depicted in the photograph as well as the circumstances around why the photograph was taken.
   • You may also use found photography or images from magazines, newspapers, or the internet. You could then try to imagine how a person in the photograph might feel or think about the world.

Using Writing Prompts and Exercises

1. Create a poem from the perspective of an animal. This writing prompt may be useful if you are feeling tired of your regular writing voice and would like to try to embody a different voice or perspective. You may select an animal you find strange or intriguing, or an animal you find repulsive or disturbing. Try to use an animal that you have a strong emotional response to, as this can help to inject some intensity into the poem.
   • To write from the perspective of an animal, you may want to start by writing down what the animal may hear, smell, feel, see, or taste. You may also want to describe humans or other animals from the animal’s perspective.
   • If you were writing from the perspective of a snake, for example, you may focus on how a snake may feel the grass or dirt on its belly as well as how a snake may see humans from its perspective on the ground.
2. Write from the perspective of a historical figure. Another shift in perspective that could be useful might be taking on the voice of a historical figure. This could be a known political figure that you admire or a person that once existed in the past, such as a runaway slave or a street sweeper in the turn of the century. Think of a historical figure that may have a unique perspective on their time and write about how they might go about their day.
   • If you were writing from the perspective of a runaway slave in the South, for example, you may consider how this person might feel about being on the run, in danger, and in fear for their life. You may use sensory details to describe the slave’s attempt to escape the plantation and gain their freedom.
3. Compose a poem about a distinct smell from your childhood. Many childhood memories can be triggered by certain smells, from your mother’s baking in the kitchen to your brother’s smelly socks. Think of a distinct smell that colors your childhood and pull out a memory associated with that smell. You could then write about how the smell fits into the memory and why it is such a powerful smell in your memory.
   • For example, maybe you associate the smell of bread baking in the oven with spending time with your father as a child. You may then try to describe the smell of the bread and your perspective on your father making bread in the kitchen as a child.
4. Create a poem about being trapped in a confined space or area. Another inspiring exercise might be to set limitations for your poem by trapping your perspective in a confined space. This could be your bedroom with the door locked, a treehouse in your backyard, or a classroom with no windows. You may then try to write a poem about how it feels to be trapped in the space. You may describe the space itself as well as your emotions when you realize you cannot get out.
5. Reinterpret a fairy tale. Sometimes, inspiration can come from a tale you have heard before, such as a classic fairy tale. You may have a favorite fairy tale or a fairy tale that you find particularly interesting. Set the fairy tale in modern times and compose a poem about the reframed fairy tale.
   • Another option is to set the fairy tale in a new context by switching around the traditional roles in the classic tale. For example, may instead of a prince saving sleeping beauty, sleeping beauty saves the prince. Or, maybe Little Red Riding Hood ends up eating the wolf.

Trying New Forms and Structures

1. Write a poem in the form of a shopping list or a recipe. Sometimes, approaching poetry in a new form can be a fun experiment and get you inspired. Take a familiar form, like a shopping list or a recipe, and write a poem in that form. You may be surprised by how placing content in a new form can shake up your writing practice and create images you may not have thought of with a more traditional form.
   • You may want to find a shopping list or a recipe you have already written and replace the words with words from a poem. Placing an existing poem in a new form can also change up the meaning in the poem and make the poem more interesting visually.
2. Create a poem in the form of a horoscope or a magic spell. If you are looking for a less rigid form, you may decide to try writing a poem in the form of a daily horoscope or a magic spell. Play around with trying to write poetry in these forms and see what comes out of placing your writing a different structure.
3. Write a poem that consists solely of dialogue. Another interesting structural device might be using dialogue that you have overheard in public places or among friends and using them as lines in a poem. You may also include dialogue that you have made up, overlapping real world conversations with fictional conversations. This could then create an interesting poem that uses different spoken slang and inflections.
4. Compose a poem using a literary forms, like sonnet, sestina, or haiku. A literary form, like a sonnet or a sestina, can actually be a great way to get inspired, especially if you are struggling with how to start a poem. Choose a form you’ve never used before, such as a haiku or a rhyming couplets, and challenge yourself to write a poem or a series of poems in that form.
   • You can look up different literary forms and study the guidelines around the form.
5. Try a constraints based form. Another way to challenge yourself with limits in your poetry is to use constraint based forms. These forms have set rules or constraints that you must follow to create a piece. You can create your own constraints, such as writing a poem that only uses vowels, or use constraints that have been used by other poets.

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Sources and Citations

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