I am not a poet. But I love words and ideas. Brilliant wordplay can spotlight both, and that’s arguably best exemplified in brilliant poetry. The point of poetry is to give the reader the most comprehensive imagery from the fewest possible words. The aim of the game is brevity.
Prose also benefits from verbal brevity. Orwell once wrote ‘If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.’ Naturally it has been commented on that he could have made this rule of thumb a bit briefer, but who’s counting? Well, that’s kinda the point. Whilst Orwell was… um, terse, he did also allow for breaking of his writing rules on occasion.
Anyway, I’m rambling on here. The upshot of the desire for more bang for your word is that I sometimes practise the craft of writing by attempting a bit of poetry. The minimalist need to use the right word at every turn makes it good exercise for all writers. Here I give you the chance to read and hear some of my efforts. See what you like. It’s just for fun though, remember I’m not a poet.
Here’s one that I entered in the Oakune Writer’s Festival poetry slam and came third last (of 15):
Or there’s this one of the circle of life on a beach:
And another one of the animal fables videos I submitted for BBC Newcastle’s Upload Festival: