Yours to Choose: Intriguing Nouns, 
Apt Adjectives, and Zippy Verbs 

Poetry has been defined as the best words in the best order and one of the challenges is finding the right words. This can be more of a challenge than we might at first expect.  So, let’s take a look at some practical tips on how to get the most out of the words you choose when you’re writing or revising a poem. 

One of the first steps is to recognize words may have become threadbare with constant use.  If you begin to write a poem about “love,” “heart,” “roses,” and “the whisper of the wind,” it is going to be very difficult to bring anything new to the piece.  There is a bevy of poems already on the page with “moon,” “bone,” and  “ash.”  Unfortunately, the list does not stop there.  Some words and phrases have become ‘stock’ and it can be difficult to write poems with a sense of originality if you constantly rely on these.  This may account for the striking similarities of poems written by young people who depend heavily on ‘everyday’ language.   If you doubt this, visit one of the poetry critique and review boards available on the Internet and read any beginner’s forum.  Take note of the words you see repeatedly employed, in poem after poem. Then turn a critical eye to your poems and redraft, replacing these common words with words that are more specific and better convey your intent. 

Another frequent mistake we make as writers is the overuse of adjectives. Attempt to be as concise and precise as possible.  Compare: “ A Large Dark Colored Male Horse” and “The Black Stallion.”  Both convey the same information to the reader, yet the second is clearly the better, more precise, choice.  As you work through a draft, focus on the adjectives and nouns.  If there is a noun that will encompass the attributes that you would like to convey, choose it over a noun with a string of adjectives tacked on. 

The specific nouns and the carefully chosen adjectives place us right on the street corner with the speaker. Not just any street corner though, the specifics of the street musician and his instrument combined with the details of the awnings and elms helps the reader to envision this particular place.  Note also, how the order of the images in the last section actually is consistent with what is occurring in the poem.  From the word ‘rain,’ the images begin above street level with trees and awnings then drop down to cell phones and car windows.  The writer guides the movement of the poem not only with the words but also through their specific order. 

Check to see that the adjectives in a line do not merely comment on an innate characteristic of the noun.  Adjectives such as “beautiful” and  “red” do not add much to “rose,” since these would likely be a reader’s first associations with “rose” 
anyway.  Choose the characteristic that best suits the intent of your poem instead of trying to include every single detail.  Too many adjectives describing one noun tend to dilute the impact of the noun and slow the movement of the poem. Often a single adjective such as the “worn accordion” in the above example can bring a stronger association to the noun and the poem.  Imagine if the writer had instead written ‘loud blue accordion’. While there is more detail in the phrase, these traits do not give us as much insight as the simple “worn” into the character of the musician or the instrument.

The verbs in this case all indicate the type of movement you would expect in a poem discussing the ocean. The very active verbs give a sense of movement, of trees buffeted by the wind. The choice of the order of the description brings us from the 
top, to the trunk, to the ground. The poet, per her construction of the poem, leads us to a very specific image and understanding of the pines.  In our earlier example, Drawn by the Light there are also several excellent examples of word choices for verbs. The musician does not merely pick up his instrument but “straps (it) on.” The music is not just heard, it “pours forth” and “worms” its way “into cell phones and car windows.” 

When you revise, take the time to make lists of the nouns, the adjectives and the verbs. Look through your list. Does it contain a high number of  ‘stock’ poetry words?  Can you improve the adjectives to sharpen the image that you would like the reader to see?  Check if the verbs are consistent in working to move the poem towards the desired reading. If you can incorporate these checks into your writing and revising process, you will end up with stronger, clearer poems that better demonstrate the originality of your perspective.