Taking Wings...Tips For Writing Inspirational Poetry

Taking Wings ...

A Poetry Session with Jeanne Ripley

If you have been trying to write poems and sense they lack substance, it may be that you need to go deeper into your experience. Does this resonate for you? If so, read below for more. As you know, writing poetry requires each word to count. It is often difficult to find the balance of enough words so that we connect with the reader but not having so many words that the reader loses interest.

When I was writing for my first book, Wings to Fly, I threw away several poems because I realized that I didn’t have passion or a focus. I believe that when we draw from a deeper well of passion, ideas and words flow easier. I asked myself: Why am I not writing about what is central to my life? When I did that, my focus became spiritual growth : the crossroads where science and spirituality meet.

It also helped me to write from a photograph. If you take a look at the sneak preview of Wings to Fly at www.jeanneripley.com the first poem is called Choices. It’s also the first poem in the book.

We want to write so that the reader is drawn into the poem and can relate it to her/his own life experience but not make it so narrow that most people cannot find themselves within the message.

Have a read and tell me what you think. Did you see yourself and your own story in the space of the poem and photograph? Would you like to share what that story is: a breakup of a relationship, an illness?

Learn and have fun with this: share your thoughts and comments.