Poetry is Energy, or Six Quick Tips to Put Some Poetry in Your Prose

This week Araceli Esparza* gives us her top six tips on incorporating poetry into prose.  Whether you're looking for some serious advice to push your writing forward or a light-hearted bit of fun, this post has exactly what you're looking for.  And if you like her take on it, be sure to check out Bill Kennedy's post from earlier this month.


Art shows us what we do not know in ways that we had not considered. Poetry tries to say more and more in a language that is ever becoming more precise. Poetry is about learning about success, triumphs, failures, secrets, and teachings. Poetry is meant to inspire our next generation. Poetry can’t just be an afterthought in your prose. It’s an essential strategy for you to communicate the POV of this generation- your audience.

Your audience is fully engaged in the arts. Through visual poetry or audio, youth know about poetry without ever really studying it.

Poetry in our prose is the hope, laughter, vision, and the mirror of our audience. Poetry challenges the world they cannot control, and when you are writing for them, you have to understand this. Poetry can help you get there.

Stuck with your chapter? Try the following poetry tips.

Tip 1: Pick a character and write their backstory in one sentence verses by hitting the enter key at the end of your margin or sentence. Make each sentence a brave statement of the character. Give voice for their hopes and dreams; get vulnerable with your character. You are not meant to explain it all in that moment. A good phrase will awaken your senses to places that you never gone, smell things that you have never tasted.

Take a risk, let go and write like you just don’t care.

Tip 2: Use a container. Draw a circle and write only in that circle. More practical choice is to contain the emotion in one hard and fast sentence. Don’t let meter intimidate you, it’s algebra for words. It’s a container used to make your words work.

Free verse isn’t free, it’s the air that we breathe, it’s the fullest potential of our wit and wisdom. I chose free verse because I have found that tagging one sentence is easier than to reveal it in a paragraph. So it does have a container, but it’s one that is invented on fly, it may or may not follow a pattern and can break from that pattern.

Tip 3: Use a prompt. Get off the keyboard and grab a couple of sheets of paper and a pen and write long hand. A personal fav’s: I remember when…. (keep the hand moving for 10-20 minutes)

Tip 4: Now write with your non-dominate hand for 5-7 minutes. HA! I told you this was fun! When you write poetry, you write on your own wave of writing. Which is why timed writing works. Write until you find your aha metaphor.

Viola you are a poet!

Tip 5: Drink a bottle of Merlot! And try to write! Guaranteed proven results!

Tip 6: Read a lot of poetry, and then write. Here is an exercise I did for my poetry and yoga class: First, I read the following poem out load.


Still I Rise - Poem by Maya Angelou

You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?
Why are you beset with gloom?
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops.
Weakened by my soulful cries.

Does my haughtiness offend you?
Don't you take it awful hard
'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines
Diggin' in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you?
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I've got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise

Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise

Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

Final Act: Then I followed up with the following prompt; How do I rise up?

Write down this: You may write me down in history as ______________.

Finish this sentence and allow yourself to be taken to the sky where you can look at your inner beauty from afar, admire it, describe it, indulge in it, dance with yourself and write yourself out so we can see you too. Write without apology, filters, or explanations for 15 minutes. Think about what normally might be seen as nuances can actually be a place of resilience and strength.

Much of what I wrote I gleamed or was inspired by this lovely poetry workshop video I found on YouTube.

*Araceli Esparza is 2014 alum, poet, teacher, and future picture book author. You can follow her at @WI_MUJER.

Setting Boundaries As Writers

Today's post is from alum Araceli Esparza* and talks about one of the biggest issues that an author can face, setting boundaries and learning to say "no." Araceli also provides a great quote from another Hamline alum, Jennifer Mazi, and some life boundary exercises.

As writers, we are presented with many options and opportunities to give to a project by using our writing, like even writing for a blog! One way to give the very best of yourself to your writing is by setting boundaries.

Boundaries can help us trim down these options/invitation in to suggestions, and not into obligations that choke our time to write, our time to have for ourselves, and our families.

Writing, teaching, and sharing are all parts of being a writer. When we begin setting boundaries for our writing life, we add value to it, regardless of whether we are published or not.

Our boundaries help us structure and honor our craft, our profession and our choice to read or write. Setting boundaries is a muscle--use it and the stronger it gets.

Having boundaries doesn’t mean you have to close-off your relationships, it means that you can begin to select meaningful relationships. Beginning with ourselves, writers must communicate in our own voice style what it is that we want or desire. Building boundaries is a first step to getting to know your voice.

I asked fellow alum Jennifer Mazi to share with us her experience with writing as a mother and finding balance, boundaries, and time for her writing:

"I used to say yes to everything because I believed, by telling the universe that I was open for business, more opportunities would come my way, which would lead to wild success, that everything would happen in easy ways because of my awesome positivity. 

That kind of naiveté makes me tired even typing about it. Consider me yessed out, which is worse than stressed out. My new strategy is to structure my life around the writing in order to protect my own bandwidth and my family. 

This means I say NO a lot more, and to more people. This leaves me with enough energy to bring my best to both my writing and my kiddos, because if I do right by them, there is a good chance my best will be enough to reach other kiddos one day.

That’s the dream, anyway."

That’s all of our dreams. Each of us have a similar story/dream, whether it's to be published or just nail it.

After publication, most authors never let that comfort level go to high. I have found from talking with other authors and writers, that it’s important to stay hungry. Making space for our writing is a constant battle.

Remember that on the side of pre-publication: 

You can take a break from trying to get published and enjoy the freedom that you can write whatever the heck you want to, and you can submit it where ever the heck you want to.

Tips to do Free Writing:

• You can explore whatever genre, hybrid, heck invent a new meter.
• Ask for space for yourself.
• Visualize the word rejection and blow it up. 
• Paint. Draw. You are an artist. Collage. Redecorate. You are an artist.
• Instead of giving we need to take. Sometimes.
• Writing is giving, and as women, mothers, men, partners, etc. we give so much.
• Ask for quiet time from your family.
• Get some healing rocks.
• Spend quiet time at church.
• Ask for a room with no TV and cut off your laptop from wifi when you are on vacation.
• Read.
• Write like no one will see this!

Write out your writing life boundaries in these three sentences with 3 variations:

People may not ________________________________________

I have the right to ask for _________________________________

To protect my time and energy, it’s okay to ___________________

Thanks Araceli for saying yes to the Storyteller's Inkpot and deciding that this WAS worth your time and energy.  We appreciate it immensly and hope that your advice will be equally helpful for others.

*Araceli Esparza is a poet, budding bilingual/bicultural picture book author, and diversity in children's literature advocate.  An alum of Hamline University's MFAC program, she enjoys blogging about the writers life, her journey to publication, and writing latino children's books.

Meet the Grad: Araceli Esparza

On July 20, 2014, the final day of the summer residency, the MFAC program will have a Graduate Recognition ceremony, honoring the men and women who have just completed their studies and will receive an MFA from Hamline University. Between now and then  we'll be posting interviews with many of the grads. Araceli Esparza is today's grad; she lives on the second floor on a tree-shady lane in Monona, WI

What do you do when you’re not working on packets?

I’m a mother, Tia (auntie) wifey, nieta (grand-daughter) sister, friend and local supporter. I teach for the local district. I also teach creative writing and Spanish literacy class for young children at local libraries.

How did you hear about the Hamline MFAC Program?

I had been looking for a MFA program that was unique and could fit into my life-schedule. I still remember when I saw the essay question about diversity; it was then that I knew—yep, this is the place.

What was your writing experience prior to entering the program?

I’ve written on walls and paper since my teens, and seriously performing for about 7 years--both slam and poems.

What do especially remember about your first residency?

[MFACAlum] Peter Pearson telling me about Alexi Sherman’s NPR interview! I thought if this guy is in this program and he’s super smart--well then I gotta do it! Basically, I’m a true believer of osmosis.

The veil had been pulled…and still I needed a view…

Yep, first res left me twitching!

Have you focused on any one form (Picture book, novel, nonfiction; graphic novel) or age group in your writing? Tried a form you never thought you’d try?

First semester, I went over my hands and feet and dove into a graphic novel. If Swati [Avasti] in her wisdom hadn’t pulled it from my bloody grip, I would be still writing it! She suggested I do a picture book so that I could see through a story to the end. I’ve been hooked since; 700 words have never been so hard and fun to work with.

Tell us about your Creative Thesis.

All of the pieces have some tie to Latino culture in one way or another. Some are tied just by how I see the character, otherwise you might not get the connection. One is Purple Leaves, which began as a poem and grew into a story about self-confidence and speaking up/out about what you know is true! The others are more obvious through language and setting.  I wanted to create family stories in any setting: modern middle class home, urban barrio, airports, gardens, jail, living room, school, and under a slide in a park. Any and every place my own children have had to go to. The picture book about jail is a personal one for me. In my research, I only found five picture books written for children with parents in prison or jail. The best one was Visiting Day by Jacqueline Woodson. The illustrator and author notes for that book encouraged me to write the story my way.  

What changes have you seen in your writing during your studies?

It’s like I’m empty. For years I have written to exorcise my daemons, and now I’m empty enough to see and take a moment to describe fully what I see.  I can tell that my writing is clear, my poetry has elements of child’s play in them—which I love. Has it gotten easier to write: No WAY! There’s still no time, I still scratch on little pink slips from work, I still stay up way-late at night to get shit done. And my poems still only come in the moment. I have become patient with myself and less critical of my work and focused more on my killer taste (Thanks for the video! Ira Glass!)

With packet deadlines removed as an incentive, do you anticipate it will be harder to keep writing?
 I will continue to write. In fact, my whole family finally understands this is my work. So if I stop now—I can’t stop. For my family, for other Latino children, for me--I can’t stop.

Any plans for your post-Hamline writing life?

After Hamline, I will cry and be sad and then probably go back to teaching my community about Latino children’s books through the library programs that I have started.

Any thoughts for entering students or for people considering the program?

If you are a writer of color, writing is hard. Coming to terms that you are a writer wasn’t easy. Neither will this program be easy, but I promise you, there will be nothing that you will value more than all the work you put into it. I say that I didn’t choose writing, writing choose me, from all mi abuelita’s stories down to my daughter’s imagination--I have a need to tell a great story, to hear the joy of a poem.  At Hamline I have been able to do that.

***

The public is welcome to attend the graduate recognition ceremony on Sunday, July 20, 3:30pm, (Anne Simley Theatre, Drew Fine Arts Building). Vera Williams is the speaker.