Snow Melt

Opinion Thursday: Poetry Priorities

The "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS"  prompt for January 3, 2012 is
Do you believe that incorrect spellings and grammar are acceptable in creative forms such as poetry?

My priorities for writing poetry, after I check to see that my prayer book is next to me and my coffee is hot, are

theme or subject,
metaphor and simile,
rhythm and rhyme,
stanza and line,
and spelling and grammar.

I worry more about spelling then I do grammar because sometimes the grammar aspect can screw up the flow of line phased poems. When I write form poetry, I focus on the syllable count, rhyme scheme, and stanza count. When I write free verse poems, I focus on the line breaks because a misplaced line break can mess up the flow of a free verse poem. The only time I focus on grammar is when I write prose poetry because it is difficult to get prose to flow properly without the proper grammar.

If I had to chose between spelling and grammar and say which one is more important in writing poetry. I would have to chose spelling because a misspelled word can affect the meaning of a poem. A misspelled word can change both the meaning and the emotions of the poem. Grammar is essential when writing prose, but with poetry it depends on the form the poet is using whether grammar is essential or is something that is nice for the poem to have as long as it does not mess with another element of the poem.