I have been asked so many times ...

"Bill, how do you write so many poems?"

I shrug and say.

"I just write."

I am not an educated Poet.

Unlike many of my fellow Poets, I did not grow up with a love of the classic Poets or Poetry. Matter of fact, if anyone asked me, I would probably stare at them and do my best Homer Simpson ...

"Duh?"

I didn't even know there were different types of Poetry, until high school and we studied something called haiku.

Again ... "Duh."

I actually hated poetry. It was so stupid.

Then I started writing songs and the proverbial light went off in my itty bitty brain.

'Songs are like poems put to music.'

"Duh."

I rarely write structured poetry, because I don't like the restrictions of that type of writing. I like to write free.

'Yes I am an old rock'n'roller / hippie from the 70s.'

Anyway.

What are my basics for writing poetry?

Observe.

See.

Feel.

Open your heart.

Don't think ... write.

If it don't work, drop it.

Edit once.

Move on.

Above all ... just write.

Observe ... Just open your eyes and look around you. I know you see the same things every day, but in reality, you really don't. You just need to open your mind.

See ... This is the most important thing I use. We look at the same things every day, as I said before, But do we ever really see what we are looking at.

Take for instance, a flower in your garden. Yo see it every day and suddenly one day ... It is a blooming beautiful, colourful plant. 

'WOW'!!! 

How did that happen?

Because you are not really looking at things. Each day there are subtle changes in that plant. Don't wait for the bloom. Look at the day by day growth of that plant and write about the wonder of life. Appreciate that wonder and see the plant for what it really is.

'Life, in all its glory.'

You could probably write a poem, every day, about the changes in that plant and the immediate area around it.

Now take that same attitude and apply it to everything. Start looking at everything, how it changes every day, and with about that.

Don't just observe ...

Really see what you are looking at.

Feel ... While really seeing things, become that thing.

No matter what it is, revert back to a childlike state and look at every item, animate or inanimate, and be that item.

Be it a plant or a toy or chair, a car, a pet ...

Even a favourite coat, sweater, jeans or footwear.

Can you imagine if your favourite jeans could talk? The stories it could tell. The memories it could remind you of. Many you might remember and a few you have forgotten.

A simple chair, at a kitchen table. Imagine the stories that chair could remind you of. The happy gatherings, emotional moments. It has heard and seen it all.

That pesky crow in the backyard. Put yourself in their wings. Look at life, the way they see it.

Become that crow.

Open your heart ... Don't worry about what people would say, if they think you are a little crazy.

Open your heart and embrace what you see and feel. Grab the memories and the emotions. Let your mind run free.

Don't be embarrassed. Let your heart guide you.

Don't think ... write ... Don't overthink or analyze or have second doubts.

Just write. Whatever you gathered from see, feel and heart, put it into words. Let the words flow. Don't look at it, reread it or analyze it.

Just write it down.

If it don't work, drop it ... Don't agonize over what you are writing. Just write until you finish, whether the poem is completed or your mind is depleted.

Don't try to finish it. Put it aside and maybe revisit at another time. 

Move on to the next Poem, the next thought, the next feeling, the next experience.

Edit once ... Once completed, edit once.

If you are ready to post the Poem, look it over once, maybe change a word or two, but never the essence of the poem. Don't look for perfect word. 

The perfect word is the one that comes from you, not from a Thesaurus.

Post it.

Appreciate it.

Move on ... I know Poets that take weeks to perfect a poem. I appreciate the dedication of those Poets and I would never belittle their drive and ambition. They are amazing ...

I am simply writing about how I write.

I would rather write 20 poems. Express 20 feelings. Go in 20 different directions ...

rather than agonizing over a single direction you are taking.

Again, this is my opinion on writing. This is how I write. I envy and appreciate those who write to perfection. It is simply not my way of doing it.

ABOVE ALL

JUST WRITE

Everyday. Even if it is just one stanza, one simple thought.

You will have days like that, but then you will have days, when you cannot write or type fast enough to get all the thoughts and feelings out of you.

Either way, embrace all days and write every day.

On slow days, pop back and look over thoughts and feelings you wrote before that didn't make it to the final cut. You might finish that thought or it just might inspire another thought, another direction

and

before you know it ...

you are writing up a storm.

~~~~~~~~~~

I have written over 10,000 poems and songs in my life.

Maybe 10% are worth a crap, but each and every one are special to me and revisiting them always brings back a pivotal moment in my life.

Poetry is like a journal of your life.

Like the great songwriter, Harry Chapin, said ....

"Write about your feelings, not the things you never did."

Poetry writing should be enjoyed ...

not endured.

Above all, have fun.

I am not saying not to try the likes of haiku, tanka, senryu, limericks, sonnets, couplets and so on. They can often help to give your own poetry a flow about them. 

Even writing lyrics can give your poetry a melodic beat.

I, myself, have created several poetry styles that follow a strict format, but they make up less than 1% of the poems I write.

I am simply telling you what works for me.

Create your own style and writing habits and techniques.

Bill Temple.