How to write a stanza poem

1. How to Write a Stanza Poem
Schwartz 2011-12

2. Writing a Stanza Poem
•Before starting on with your stanza poem,
it would not be a bad idea to get an
understanding of what is a stanza and
what it makes it an essential element
in poem writing.

3. •A stanza is similar to a paragraph in an
essay so selecting a stanza type for your
poem means that you are limiting yourself
to a particular set of rules of poetry writing;
number of lines,
rhyming structure and meter.

4. Meter in Poetry
•Is the regular pattern of stressed and unstressed
syllables that make up a line of poetry.
•Meter gives rhythm and regularity to
poetry.However, the English language does not
always fit exactly into metrical patterns so many
poems employing meter will exhibit irregularities.
•In English verse the most common meters are:
iambic, dactylic, trochaic and anapestic

5. •An end stressed two syllable foot e.g. from In
Memoriam by Lord Tennyson
I DREAMED | there WOULD| be SPRING | no
MORE
•This example is an iambic tetrameter - it has four
iambic feet and therefore the total number of
syllables in the line is eight. Iambic is an
example of rising meter.
Iambic Meter

6. Trochaic meter
•A front stressed two syllable foot.
•e.g. The Song of Hiawatha by Henry
Wadsworth Longfellow

BY the | SHORES of | GIT chee | GUMee
•This example is trochaic tetrameter - i.e.
four two syllable feet. Therefore the total
line has eight syllables. Trochaic meter is
less commonly used than iambic meter.
Trochaic is an example of falling meter.

7. Anapestic meter
•An end stressed three syllable foot
e.g. The Destruction of the
Sennacherib by Byron:
And the SHEEN | of their SPEARS | was
like STARS | on the SEA
•This line is an anapestic tetrameter i.e. it
has four feet containing three syllables
each. Therefore the total number of
syllables in the line is twelve.

8. Select a Theme
•Poem writing is basically “a word dance” where
you need to choreograph words, phrases and
sentences and set them to a particular style of
rhyming structure.
•Before beginning with your word dance, you
need to set up a theme to follow.
•A theme is akin to a central idea around which a
poem is built. It could be an object (tree, cloud,
room etc.) or a concept (a love poem or dark
poetry etc.)

9. Decide Your Style and Form
•Knowledge about a haiku or a sonnet is not
mandatory for drafting a good poem. A person,
totally clueless about different forms of
poetry might be able to pen down a master piece
if he or she knows how to manage the flow of
words, acquired from inspiration.
•Select the rhyming structure that suits you best.
•Try to format a few sentence on the basis of
your rhyming structure.
•Lock it in.

10. Collect and Pen Down Your
Random Thoughts
•Note down the abstract verses, words and
small bits as they come.
•Jot down and play around by adjusting
and readjusting your letters.
•Let loose of your imagination and you will
form new ideas as you work with your
sentences.

11. Filter, Select and Modify Words
•Find synonyms and related words by
making use of dictionary, thesaurus and a
synonyms dictionary for your existing
words.
•Insert them in your verses or make
readjustments for them to fit in.
•Rephrase your verses so they form a
better pattern.

12. Your Assignment
•Make as many notes as possible using the
displayed photo as inspiration
•Write a four stanza poem which refelcts
the photo, its theme and your own
imagination
•Your poem DOES NOT have to rhyme
•When finished writing your poem, either
type it out or write it on a clean piece of
paper or stationary, in pen.