When people hear the word poetry, all too often they shudder and search for something else to read. Many readers, and writers, feel that poetry is inaccessible or for the literary reader only. Yet poetry is a craft which uses specific word choices to evoke an emotion, create an image or even tell a story, in the most concise or impactful way possible. And the techniques poets rely on improve prose too.
Be Precise
While description is important in all types of writing, poetry in particular uses description to evoke a mood or create a mental image that engages the reader. The key is in precise language. Consider the difference between the old metal box and the rusted steel container, edges worn to roundness. While the first example may be accurate, the specific description in the second creates a stronger image in the readers mind, which leads to a more memorable piece.
Engage the Senses
Description all too often involves only the visual. Don't forget the other senses: sound, smell, touch, and taste. Using a combination of senses creates richer description and brings the reader further into the setting of a piece, whether it's a short story, a personal essay, or a journalistic article.
Keep in mind, adding something about every sense will clutter up the piece -- and not all senses are appropriate to every description. Adding just one or two other senses brings the reader into the moment. For example, when describing eating an apple, including sweetness (taste) and texture (touch) gives for the reader a fuller understanding and more visceral experience than the factual statement "it was a ripe red apple."
Power of Sound
Poetry uses the repetition of sound of the word or letter to emphasize and make a thought or phrase stand out. Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in a phrase or sentence; alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in a phrase or sentence.
Taught almost exclusively as poetry techniques, both are common in prose, particularly in advertising writing due to its ability to make a phrase stay in people's memory. The assonance, for example, of Dwight D. Eisenhower's political slogan "I like Ike" remains famous more than fifty years after his presidential campaign.
Making It Count
Poetry is a craft of compression, of using the fewest words to tell the story. But while many prose projects have a minimum word count, the fundamental principle behind poetry is just as important to prose: Every word has a purpose.
While prose is expected to be more in-depth or broadly focused than poetry, making every word count remains important. Unnecessary information dilutes the message, mood, or conflict being presented. Worse, readers catch on quickly when a writer has padded a piece and all too often turn away to something, or someone, else.
When faced with too-sparse prose, it's important to avoid adding filler. Often finding a better way to word something not only brings up the word count but also makes the prose more relevant or gives it more impact.
Precise word choices, sensory description, and phrases that capture attention with sound are all excellent ways to strengthen any type of writing. However, whichever technique is being used, be sure it really does help the piece. Does changing the old metal box to the rusted steel container, edges worn to roundness enhance the mood, create a better setting or just add words? Does "Power of Precision" make a better headline "Be Precise" or does it lose clarity for the sake of alliteration?
Jessica Bockman - I still have a difficult time answering "what do you want to be when you grow up?" Nurse or doctor? Chef? Lawyer? I hate ...
