Purpose In A Poet's Writing

I guess there are many reasons why a poet writes. First and foremost, anyone who writes, whether it be poetry, short stories, novels or other genre of writing, must undertake to write for the love of writing...period.

If a writer does not write for the passion of writing that passion will wane into non-existence. There has to be an internal mechanism that drives an author to continue to produce written material. Focus on the writing itself...the content of a written piece is critical to its success in gaining a reading audience. If there is no sense of value in what is read the reader will simply look elsewhere to satisfy their reading needs and desires.

All too often I have seen writers churn out material that is half-baked. In that instance it appears that it was more important to get the written material published in volume rather than true purpose and quality. In order to captivate a reader's attention there must be an element of unique and compelling content that will leave the reader feeling that they have had a worthwhile reading experience and a desire to return for more.

Poetry can fulfill many purposes for the writer and reader. For the author, poetry may be an outlet, a means of therapeutic release, a means to share their own life experiences with their readers. Perhaps the writer feels compelled to reach out to their audience to appeal to the reader about an issue that the author feels very strongly about.

Poetry is a deeply personal form of writing, and often reading, experience. In many instances the writer is relating a true accounting of their own personal experiences, feelings or opinions. This type of writing can have a powerful effect on the reader - this non-fiction, highly personal accounting laid out for all the world to see in published medium.

Because poetry has this quality of realism, this depth of emotional contact with the reader, it sets itself apart from all the other genres of writing. True, poetry is not for everyone. We all have our own tastes in reading, as in music, food, and other life interests, but poetry has gained considerable ground in recent times as a highly desireable form of written expression and reading experience.

We would be hard-pressed today to compare poets of the day to those infamous writers of long ago. The likes of Keats would perhaps cringe at the style of verse penned today. Poetry can be written in both classic or traditional form as well as current day styles that lend themselves to a more freestyle structure. Contempory poetry speaks of things current, life situations that exist today and can easily be identified with by today's reading audience.

There are many subjects common through the ages that poets draw upon for writing themes, subjects that are ageless and powerful, the content of which will be just as profound to the reader today as it will be twenty or thirty years hence and beyond. That is the beauty of poetry. Timeless themes include romance, friendships, personal conflict, nature, children, religion, death, and fantasy, just to name a few.

Having a diverse range of themes in one's writing portfolio gives an author a much broader audience and offers the reader a wide selection of topics to draw from depending on the reader's mood at the time they pick up the book. If they feel romantic they will head straight for the chapter on things romantic. Maybe sadness has plagued the reader in recent days because of a situation they are dealing with - so they look to read of things that mirror their emotions of the day...or perhaps a subject that will distract them from that situation ie something inspirational, uplifting, humorous.

In my writing I have sought to maintain that diversity in subject matter. Sure, there are themes that I seem to excell in but I still feel it is important to offer my readers a host of different themes to draw from with the expectation that my readers' experience with my poetry will only be enhanced by offering them more than just romance..or just fantasy..or just nature and the environment, etc.

Writing and reading poetry can have so many different purposes. Some seek inspiration, a better understanding of a life experience, an outlet or escape, a journey or exploration, sharing of emotions, and much more.

Feel like a good laught today..or perhaps shed a few tears? Then read a poem!

Please visit my website, A Poet's View

Preview My Book: "Journeys In Verse"



Don MacIver
copyright 2005