A dance of words
on printed page
leather bindings
worn from age
enchanted door
beneath a cover
a world in wait
to be discovered
black letters
penned on white
dramatic art
enlightened sight
page upon page
silently heard
melodious echoes 
a dance of words

Is there such thing as a perfect poem? What reads like perfection to one may not to another, poetry is a subjective art. There are a few things which can endear your words to a greater audience of readers, however; it is not simply the words themselves, but the way in which you choose to craft them.

A poem needn’t be epic in length, think of the power the words of haiku hold. Poetry is something which comes from within, composition and form are secondary to the words which will bring meaning and life to the page.

Poetry comes in many forms, perfect to one – nonsense to another. What matters is the author’s voice tickling the reader’s ear through the whispered words of the page. You don’t need to use big words or flowery verse . . .

The laureate lamented
for her words were skewed,
her altiloquence mistaken
as being quite rude.
Her style clinquant,
her affectation too much,
too many mistakes,
like catchfools and such.
Circumlocution
and too many clichés
made all of her readers
turn quickly away.
What she thought
to be eloquent
was really quite fustian;
due to forced rhyme
she lacked any . . . lyricism?
Pedantry ad nauseam,
not even done right,
left the young writer
feeling contrite.
She vowed to improve,
she promised to change
and pay more attention
how her words were arranged.
Convinced of her talent
she started again,
but was soon held up
by heteronyms.
She stopped and she sighed,
then she started to cry,
for her poetic juices
had completely run dry . . .

Simply awful with that bit of forced rhyme and the ridiculous use of unnecessarily big words. I must admit though, it was quite fun to write.

Writing poetry can be healing, thought-provoking and at times, profound. The perfect poem is the one that touches your soul when you write it, welcoming the reader to become one with your words.

A poet pens his muse to the page
seeking not perfection
but release . . .

Poetry does not have to rhyme. If you cannot rhyme well, do not rhyme at all. Forced rhymes destroy what may otherwise be a fine piece of work. Rhymed poetry needs to have a rhythm; it needs to flow seamlessly as it is read. It needs to make sense.

If writing a rhymed piece, ideally each stanza should have the same amount of lines; the rhyme scheme needs to be consistent. There are several ways to craft a rhymed poem, once you’ve chosen your style, remain true to it throughout the piece, the jarring effect of switched up rhyme schemes can throw a reader off.

Every line in a poem does not need to be capitalized; many writers tend to do this, for the reader though, it is often hard to distinguish where one thought ends and another begins. A poem can have commas, periods, and question marks. These details can certainly serve to enhance your work; don’t be afraid to use them.

Poetic beauty is personal passion as it is with any art. There are those who love and admire the work of Picasso and others who are perplexed and not attracted to it in the slightest, yet both recognize the value of the art itself.

Words never rest,
an endless dance
of thoughts
and epiphanies,
which must
be forgotten
or given
life eternal
upon a page.

Words
ease fear
create terror
heal, hurt
make
insanity
the norm.

They never
cease
they never
fade,
never fail
never stop
dancing.

Crystal R. Cook