HELP

[AngelBaby]

I am a relatively new writer. I have had people say that they thought my poem TIME needs some more pucuation. I am not quite sure where to put it. Also, I was wondering if there were any other good websites/online resources that I could look into for beginning writers (?) ----
I mainly write poetry,but I wouldn't consider myself a poet by any means. I mean, I still get stuck when I start to write, because I think it has to rhyme (or maybe I am just a perfectionist and I want it to rhyme or maybe I think it'll sound better if it does... I dunno). I am also alway afraid that I am going to set a poem up "wrong". I feel like I need to go to poetry preschool or maybe even something LESS advanced!!!  ARRRGH!!!!!!!!!!!! 
Anyway, I am just rambling on. Thanks in advance for any advice/help.

[Foxy]

Hello Midnight Mistress

I think what you should do is read your poem aloud and when you pause, place a comma or a full stop/period, whichever seems most appropriate. Or you could just leave it as it is. There is a technique that poets use called enjambment which means, to continue a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet or stanza, or in other words, use no punctuation. A good example of this is the poem Woman Work by Maya Angelou, which has a 14 line verse in rhyming couplets, without any punctuation until the full stop at the end of the verse. This gives the verse a hurried and breathless quality. You can find this poem on the internet, just put the title into Google.

Hope this helps.

Patrick

[Sara-Rose]

Hello Midnight Mistress;

First of all, be encouraged that you are writing in one of the most difficult genres - poetry.  It is so subjective, that it can be all rules and no rules at the same time.  The one consistency in poetry is individual style - what works for you and why.  Finding that takes time and practice.  My suggestion is to first, don't stop writing.  And second, to read other poets.  Find an established poet whose work you enjoy reading and pay a attention to their punctuation style.  Have you read any Emily Dickinson?  She used dashes "-" to punctuate her verses.

All the best.
Srb2006

[DCSchreibt]

Hi Midnight Mistress,

Have you visited www.winningwriters.com - it's a poetry site.  It mainly focuses on competitions but does offer advice too.

Hope this might help.

Dawn
Editor - www.newbie-writers.com - a site for new and aspiring writers.

[katinka]

I agree with all the above.
I write poems , sometimes I capitalize only the first letter of the line, sometimesI put a comma  only when I'm breathess, to me it all depends on the mood. Poetry should come from the very depth of your soul where it sometimes makes no sense at all, and sometimes it is where you meet yourself for the first time. I rarely ever change a word of a poem, I like them just as they come. I can only rhyme but I think all styles are great. You descibe a beautiful picture you see with your soul, even the morbid one's.
Don't let a lot of technical instruction kill what's in you. Get the basics only.
katinka