Coarse grained salt on a wooden scoop

How to Read Poems for Pleasure

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Coarse grained salt on a wooden scoop

May 7, 2016

How to Read This Poem

FIRST STEP
Find out which way is up. Read through once to see what's literally happening - no symbols, nothing hidden, nothing "deep." Where are we? Who are we with? What are they doing?

SECOND STEP
Read through again. Pick up a small detail or comparison and turn it over in your mind. Look for surprises. Read for what feels right.

THIRD STEP
Read once more. Watch the shape unfold. See where lines break, where meaning doubles, where stanzas walk you from room to room in the house of idea.

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Poetry Is Salt

How to Read Poems for Pleasure

Sample

Read a poem. No pressure, no rush, nothing to prove.

Savor

Let impressions form. Allow the poem to open up. Enjoy a small note about the ideas that got me into the poem, and the ideas the poem got into me.

Serve

Continue the conversation. Share this poem, or start your own from the invitation to write.

Suggestions for Use

Sit down to a cup of tea with a friend and use the invitation to write as a conversation starter. See where talking takes you.
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Start a reading group. Use these reading tips and writing reflections to spark your own responses to a shared poem or short story.
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Start a writing group. Gather friends weekly or monthly, in a living room, coffee shop, or google doc, to share a fresh draft grown from invitations you find here.

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