Risk a verse

1 Read widely

he joke goes something like this: no-one reads poetry these days, except their own. Sadly, it contains a kernel of truth – many writers of poetry never reach their true potential simply because they don’t read widely. The well-rounded reader/poet devours collections and pamphlets by established poets, titles from the poetry canon, and perhaps most importantly, reads work by the new contemporary poets making waves today, some of whom will become the stars of tomorrow. If you can afford it, subscribe to a poetry journal or two. Or ask your local library to take out a subscription. Ah, the library – please use it! Work through their poetry shelf, discover what you like and don’t like, request the latest ‘must-read’ titles. Many poetry collections will sing to you, others will fall flat. It’s a joy to discover poetry you instinctively love, but push yourself. If you don’t get on with a book, ask yourself why is this in print? Even though a collection might not be your cup of tea, someone, somewhere loved it enough to invest time