Spaces Of Sky And Treetops

Everyone has written something: essays, persuasive papers, literary analyses, and more grueling and generally unenjoyable experiences. So what are the keys to enjoying writing?


It's really easy: Pick something you enjoy. In your free time experiment. Try out a poem: haiku, sonnet, or just free form. Keep in mind that poems are not about rhyming and Dr. Seuss is not someone to admire for poetic brilliance. Rhyming does make for fun and whimsical poems, but it can also be a hindrance. Finding words to rhyme can deter your intent in the poem and ruin your flow and idea.


If you need help breaking the habit of rhyme just check out some free form poems and other alternatives (a good site to check out:fictionpress.com) Get used to the flow instead of the matching words and just let yourself go!


"April 18" by Sylvia Plath

the slime of all my yesterdays

rots in the hollow of my skull

and if my stomach would contract

because of some explicable phenomenon
such as pregnancy or constipation


I would not remember you

or that because of sleep
infrequent as a moon of greencheese
that because of food
nourishing as violet leaves
that because of these


and in a few fatal yards of grass

in a few spaces of sky and treetops

a future was lost yesterday

as easily and irretrievably
as a tennis ball at twilight


If you are going for the rhythm of rhyme, then try a new approach. Rhyming every line or every other line is too cliché. Try beginning and ending a stanza with a word that rhymes and don't set a number of lines to the stanza.

Truly the only great advice is practice. Experiment.





Dictionary.com Word Of The Day


Probity (noun): Complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness.


On a writing-related note, you'll see a lot of books presented here. Recently I read The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. The book is an amazing piece of writing. It paints wonderful pictures in the mind and you truly become a part of this historical story. The story is that of Mary Carey, the sister of Anne Boleyn. Their family pits the two against each other to win over King Henry VIII. The scandals and deaths and the life in court are illustrated beautifully and the story is captivating. I recommend it to everyone, though mostly girls. A must read! And look for the movie which came out this weekend starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, and Eric Bana.