While working my way through John Hewitt’s 30 Poems in 30 Days blog posts, I found this gem:
Another key to writing issue-oriented poetry is to remember that the poem should not take back seat to the issue it addresses. Make every line interesting and memorable to the reader. Make your images sharp and specific. Keep your reader interested until the end. Don’t work too hard at drawing conclusions and giving instructions or you will risk leaving the reader feeling manipulated, which is a quick and easy way to lose your audience.
This is, I would say, the biggest mistake poets make when writing political or issues-oriented poetry. They try to make the issue the primary purpose for the poem. It isn’t. The poem itself is the point. The issue should play the support role.
What I mean is, if you are writing a poem then you should engage your reader using the elements of poetry. It doesn’t matter whether you use rhyme, alliteration, tropes, or some other poetic expression (you should, though, use the elements that are appropriate for your style and form); what really matters is that you deliver an experience that your audience won’t forget. If all they hear is your rant about endangered dolphins or global warming then all you’ve written is another poem about an overdone topic. But if they remember your poem years later for its language in describing the issue then you’ve written a poem that can be entered into the annals of literature. See the difference?
I encourage you to read John Hewitt’s series. Participate in the exercises. He’s got a dynamite blog.
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