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Thread: can someone plz explain why my poems ryme like "green eggs and ham"

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    can someone plz explain why my poems ryme like "green eggs and ham"

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    a question to the poets in the world is it stupid to have ur poems rhyme like doctor suess,not like the childish things he writes about but the way it rymes the way it sounds when i read it in my head,i mean i have read poems and i man a lot and alot of other people poems use words i dont even know lol and ryhming in hell good pro ways,i really am staring to think i am doing something wrong or what i am doing is not good at all i mean who wonts to read poems that ryme like "i do not like green eggs n ham,i do not like them sam i am,but another thing to is is it good or bad to have everyline ryhme cuz i can write a poem 2 pages long with every line ryming,i no i soound like a noob thats cuz i am i really like poetry writing but i think i am no good at it like all the things in my life,

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    Something's gotta give PrinceMyshkin's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by theriddler89 View Post
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    a question to the poets in the world is it stupid to have ur poems rhyme like doctor suess,not like the childish things he writes about but the way it rymes the way it sounds when i read it in my head,i mean i have read poems and i man a lot and alot of other people poems use words i dont even know lol and ryhming in hell good pro ways,i really am staring to think i am doing something wrong or what i am doing is not good at all i mean who wonts to read poems that ryme like "i do not like green eggs n ham,i do not like them sam i am,but another thing to is is it good or bad to have everyline ryhme cuz i can write a poem 2 pages long with every line ryming,i no i soound like a noob thats cuz i am i really like poetry writing but i think i am no good at it like all the things in my life,
    First and most urgent I would suggest that you separate the writing of your poetry from "all the things in my life" that you say you are no good at. I would guess you're maybe not so good at some things but not so bad as you think you are at others, but try to write poetry apart from that self-defeating attitude. You might get to writing poetry well but still be as bad as you think you are at other things; or you might suck at poetry but be better than you think you are in other areas.

    Write for and out of your love for language. Don't read any more Dr Seuss as his style - or any other style that is consistent and strong - will get into your brain-waves. Read a variety of poets here and in some anthology you get hold of of 20th century poetry. Don't study what those other poets do; don't aim to imitate them but trust that the best of their effects will make an impression on you.

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    Jethro BienvenuJDC's Avatar
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    1) Don't worry about the poets of the world...your poetry is yours...
    2) Whatever you put into your mind will come out. Don't try to produce something that is not within you.
    3) ....no, I think that's it...we'll stick with just two.
    Les Miserables,
    Volume 1, Fifth Book, Chapter 3
    Remember this, my friends: there are no such things as bad plants or bad men. There are only bad cultivators.

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    I agree with both Prince and Bienvenu - you should read as much poetry as you can - and then write your own stuff without trying to write the same way as somebody else you have just read.

    It's like learning to play a musical instrument - just because you listen to other people's music and you play the same notes as everyone else doesn't mean your tunes will end up being the same.

    Just try to scribble down whatever is in your head without thinking too much about what it sounds like. Then take some time later to sift out the bits you are not so happy with. And what you are left with should provide you with something to work on.
    Your poetry doesn't have to rhyme. It's not a case of : good poetry rhymes / bad poetry doesn't. And nobody else has to like them - as long as you do, and as long as you know you were being honest with yourself.

    The rest of the crap in your life? Well getting these thoughts on paper might be just what you need to clear your soul of all those negative vibes.

    Good luck.

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    Quote Originally Posted by hillwalker View Post
    nobody else has to like them - as long as you do, and as long as you know you were being honest with yourself.

    This is true as long as you are writing them only for your own consumption. If you want other people to read them and appreciate them, then you do have to think about what makes a poem - or any art - work for someone other than the artist.

    This is not selling out, by the way. It's communicating.

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    Quite. A good point and I totally agree - but you'll probably also accept it's better to write for yourself and hope that what you are most happy with also pleases others (your readers) than that to write specifically with a readership in mind (but actually despise what you are churning out).

    In particular for someone starting off I believe finding a voice that reflects your true self is difficult enough without having to second-guess what your imaginary readers might be thinking at the same time.

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    Quote Originally Posted by hillwalker View Post
    Quite. A good point and I totally agree - but you'll probably also accept it's better to write for yourself and hope that what you are most happy with also pleases others (your readers) than that to write specifically with a readership in mind (but actually despise what you are churning out).
    I would agree - but I don't think that that's the choice a beginner is faced with. The battle at first is to get anyone to read you at all. Once you get that figured out, then you can worry about voice.

    In particular for someone starting off I believe finding a voice that reflects your true self is difficult enough without having to second-guess what your imaginary readers might be thinking at the same time.
    Finding your own voice isn't something you can do in a readerless vacuum. You need to hear it coming back at you to know what it is.

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    Something's gotta give PrinceMyshkin's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by hillwalker View Post
    In particular for someone starting off I believe finding a voice that reflects your true self is difficult enough without having to second-guess what your imaginary readers might be thinking at the same time.
    This is a decidedly important point, but one shouldn't overlook the difficulty of finding one's own voice, not even for the mundane purpose of casual, everyday social conversation. One needs to begin there before one can move on to establishing a public voice or a poetic one. I feel that all my own poems are conversations between myself and some aggregate imagined other. A model for me is to be found in the great black spiritual:

    I’m going to tell God all my troubles
    When I get there.

    I’m going to tell Him the road was rocky
    When I get there.

    I’m going to tell Him I had hard trials
    When I get there.

    I’m going to tell God all my troubles
    When I get there...


    One needs to imagine that one is already or nearly there.

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    King of Dreams MorpheusSandman's Avatar
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    As for the above debate, I've always subscribed to the notion that if you create are that you're interested in, others will be interested as well. As so many songwriters or film-makers have said, "I write songs/make movies that I would want to see and if others like it, then that's fine too". David Lynch once said that both him and Steven Spielberg make the movies they want to make, but for anyone who knows the disparity in box office between the two, the comment is somewhat ironic.

    Anyway, to the OP, you have to think of poetry, on one level at least, as being a craft like anything else. It's something you can study and learn and work at and get better at over time. The way to do this is like with anything else. First, learn the basics. I recommend Wikipedia's poetry page as it will not only take you through the history of poetry (which is a good education for any aspiring poet) but it will go into the basic forms, terms, concepts, styles, while providing lots of examples. There's also lots of "workshop" poetry books you could check out at your local library or buy from Amazon. Second you have to practice, practice, practice and learn to be critical (but not overly self-deprecating and harsh) on your own poetry. When you write a piece, don't just wait for others to judge it, analyze it yourself. Constantly ask which parts you like and which parts you don't. But, don't stop there, ask yourself WHY you like certain parts and why you don't like other parts. Play around with form and style. Write a long poem and then force yourself to cut it in half or in 1/3 or 1/4 and see what a difference it makes.

    As for rhyming, you have to understand that rhyming is just a TOOL that a poet can use to build a poem. It's not a be-all, end-all, and it's far from the only important and useful tool. Most modern poetry doesn't even use end-rhymes and favors free-verse. But that doesn't mean you have to abandon rhyme either. In fact, one way to get better is to practice all kinds of forms and styles. Part of how you find your voice is learning where your strengths and weaknesses lie. I know that I, for instance, feel at home with rhymes and forms like sonnets but feel lost in free verse. So lately I've been practicing free verse. I noticed I had a tendency to always use end-stopped lines, so I started practicing enjambment.

    Basically, the best recommendation is: study, read, write, practice, experiment, critique and keep repeating this process ad infinitum.
    "As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light of meaning in the darkness of mere being." --Carl Gustav Jung

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    I like Dr. Seuss. His rhymes are awesome. If you write poems that sound like Dr. Seuss, why not instead of cringing and whinging embrace your talent and hone these rhymes as one of your styles?

    If you are dead set against this rhyme (again, I don't see why anyone would be) try to rely on consonance and assonance instead of perfect rhyme.

    Don't despair, instead repair to your library. Read. Read. Then read more. Read books from all genres. Listen to music from all genres. Find your lyrical spirit. Write. Write. Then write more. No artist picks a brush and suddenly paints a masterpiece. It takes time and patience. Give yourself this time and you will learn from your mistakes or perhaps learn how to transform your mistakes (for instance a strong rhyming habit) into stylistic virtues.

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