Line Breaks

Coi

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Jan 17, 2006
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It was suggested to me to play around with my line breaks, my question would be are there any rules per say to follow that will help as a guide in this area? Thanks for the imput everyone ~Coi
 
Coi said:
It was suggested to me to play around with my line breaks, my question would be are there any rules per say to follow that will help as a guide in this area? Thanks for the imput everyone ~Coi

There are a lot of ways to do this. You could make a line break to avoid punctuation or when you want a pause between words. Can you post a poem here that you have written or post a link? This way we we can discuss it and see what other people's opinions are as well. I haven't read any of your poetry yet, sorry.

There are people that stick to one particular style where others like to change from time to time. I have heard that free verse can be any style, that the meaning is what's most important. In a way I agree, but I believe that line breaks help make a smoother poem.
 
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Coi said:
It was suggested to me to play around with my line breaks, my question would be are there any rules per say to follow that will help as a guide in this area? Thanks for the imput everyone ~Coi


click here for a link on how to write poetry (ryhme) but it shows some ways to structure a poem.

excerpt:

Of course, there are no absolute laws in writing. Every rule ever written about poetry has been broken countless times by countless poets, and many times the results are outstanding. These rules, however, are a starting point; master them first, then decide if and when you want to ignore them. Anytime you break a rule in writing, you should not only be aware that you are breaking it but also have a very good reason for doing so.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am no expert <grin but if you do it like writing. each topic or train of thought should be put together and break when you start a new topic or change the pattern of the write.

like:

ZMP~ when a dew drop falls ...
by My Erotic Tale ©

When a dew drop falls?
...that's not it at all!

It races to the edge
of a leaf or a rim
holds for a moment
calculating the wind

Then dives with delight
embracing the splash
the deathly collide
when dew and earth clash

A dew drop understands
and knows natures Art
the smaller it becomes
first risers to heaven

On an early morning mist
lies the secret dew wish
when the sun and earth kiss
arrives the dew drops lift

when a dew drop falls ...
it is racing to heaven!

there are sites with all the different types of poetry and different reasons for line breaks, you'll have to play with your own style or way you relay thoughts into words. Read some of salne's poems and you'll see a great way to write poetry <grin

hope that helps!
 
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My Erotic Trail said:
there are sites with all the different types of poetry and different reasons for line breaks, you'll have to play with your own style or way you relay thoughts into words. Read some of salne's poems and you'll see a great way to write poetry <grin

hope that helps!

You want the new person to go into shock reading my poems, I see. LOL! He or she may become very scared of me then. No wait, I took my Lorraine Bobbit poem down. :D

BTW - great link. :)
 
Coi said:
It was suggested to me to play around with my line breaks, my question would be are there any rules per say to follow that will help as a guide in this area? Thanks for the imput everyone ~Coi


If the many ways of breaking lines of poetry are new, trying to swallow too much information can choke a writer. My suggestion, which I assume prompted you to start this thread, was given because I felt you were still feeling your way in that area, and experimentation would likely give you new ideas.

In poetry, the basic unit is the line, not the sentence (as it is in prose). Line breaks in poetry emphasize individual words, particularly the last word of each line, and also the first.

Until a writer gets a feel for their own style, I think it is a good idea to end lines with only important words (nouns and verbs) -- rather than minor ones (prepositions and conjunctions), or modifiers. To me, doing that allows each line of good poetry to blend seamlessly into the next, yet each holds on to its own identity.

Meaning flows from line to line, and the reader's eye is pulled forward by good line breaking.

If you want to do more research, line breaks can be loosely classified into 3 catagories: enjambments, caesuras, and end-stopped lines.
 
Coi said:
It was suggested to me to play around with my line breaks, my question would be are there any rules per say to follow that will help as a guide in this area? Thanks for the imput everyone ~Coi

This is something I think about a lot when I write poetry. There are a few things you can do with line breaks to make your poems more interesting and/or effective.

First, always think carefully about what word ends a line. Your poem can have more impact if your line breaks are interesting or, alternatively, be weakened if you don't think or make poor choices when you do this. Most of the time it is not a good idea to break with an article, conjunction or preposition. Just as you wouldn't want to end a sentence with "the," "and" or "of," you don't want to end a line in a poem this way. Think of these lines from William Butler Yeats The Lake Isle of Innisfree:

I will arise and go now and go to Innisfree
and a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made.
Nine bean rows will I plant there, a hive for the honeybee
and live alone in the bee-loud glade.​

Look what happens if you end the lines with the parts of speech mentioned above:

I will arise and go now and
go to Innisfree and a small cabin build there, of
clay and wattles made.
Nine bean rows will I plant there, a hive for
the honeybee and live alone in the
bee-loud glade.​

It doesn't read as smoothly, does it? In fact, it not only sounds "off" now, the "and," "of." and "for" stick out like sore thumbs. It pays off to edit your lines and make sure you don't have any of these sorts of words left hanging like orphans.

There are other parts of speech, like adverbs (e.g., likely, very) and gerunds (e.g., falling, sleeping) that you may not want to put at the end of a line either, but these are better decided on an individual basis, depending on the context of the line and what you want to emphasize. Sometimes they can work spectacularly well, but almost always because you made the choice to break your line that way.

Second, you should think carefully about what words you do choose to end a line with not just in terms of grammar (obviously), but also in terms of the meaning and theme of your poem. If you're writing about death, for example, you might want to use words like "end" or "rest" or such at the end of a line--words that signify death for you (well and your readers lol) to emphasize your theme. Sometimes the context of successive lines allow you to make word plays with multiple meanings of words or phrases with end words. You can do this very subtly or in a more pronounced way depending on how you want to make tone and structure work for you. That is part of the art of crafting a poem. You don't just end up with a certain tone or theme: you plan it by making specific word choices and using specific end words (of lines or strophes).

Finally, there is the concept of enjambment--running a sentence over more than one line. If a poem consisted of a single sentence on each line, it would sound choppy. Think of that same verse from Yeats. If he had written it this way, the poem would read very differently:

I will arise and go now.
I'll go to Innisfree
I'll build a small cabin there.
I'll use clay and wattles.
There'll be nine bean rows.
Honeybees will build there hive there.​

Well, that's a particularly bad example, lol, not even a poem anymore really, but my point is that it's choppy. If you flow sentences across lines, you not only get a smooth, poetic sound, you also get much more opportunity to break your lines in interesting ways. You get to choose specific words for emphasis and to create the "voice" you consider most appropriate for your poem.

The more you consciously choose the best words possible when you break lines and stropes--as well as deciding when and where you want to put extra space or lines between words--the easier it gets. I don't think it's ever akin to a picnic in the park, but you'll get to the point where you begin making good line break choices without stopping to think about it.

I'm verbose, I know, but I wanted to be clear and cover what I think are the key issues. I hope you find this helpful. If you have questions about specific choices for ending lines, post them here on the forum or pm me if you like--but there are always people here willing to help. :)

:rose:
 
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good grief, why didn't i ever think to ask about line breaks?

you guys rock! erm to knick a phrase from a handy teen. lol


hope the simultaneous posting didn't hurt too much!
 
wildsweetone said:
good grief, why didn't i ever think to ask about line breaks?

you guys rock! erm to knick a phrase from a handy teen. lol


hope the simultaneous posting didn't hurt too much!

Good poetry has a lot to do with craft. :D
 
when i get over the part about crafts and all of them sinking, i'll start learning. i promise i will. ;)

(sorry i'm on a high from having beaten my pc at spider solitaire. it'll no doubt kick my derriere next time. :rolleyes: why does everything i type look like i spelt it wrong today?)
 
wildsweetone said:
when i get over the part about crafts and all of them sinking, i'll start learning. i promise i will. ;)

(sorry i'm on a high from having beaten my pc at spider solitaire. it'll no doubt kick my derriere next time. :rolleyes: why does everything i type look like i spelt it wrong today?)

It doesn't--and I am addicted to spider solitaire (eagleyez says i play it to veg out). did you win on the hard version? if you did, i'm impressed--i never do. :D

:kiss:
 
Angeline said:
It doesn't--and I am addicted to spider solitaire (eagleyez says i play it to veg out). did you win on the hard version? if you did, i'm impressed--i never do. :D

:kiss:

i get eye spin on the hard version (only tried it twice). i win easily on the first version, and probably win every 4th game on the middle version.

i play it to veg out too lol gives my mind something else to think about. *smile*

:kiss:
 
My concern with line breaks is that they so often break up content in the poem that should be together, or put pieces together that are separate. I find myself rewriting entire sections of my poetry to avoid this from happening.

This is not the worst case I have seen (in my own writing) but still:

I read anna's poem today and found this one strophe troubling:

her back strains
under my weight
I am not small



this is one of those cases where a line break can break up components of the phrase where they should not be broken.

her back strains should be connected to under my weight
her back strains under my weight

under my weight should not be connected to I am not small
under my weight I am not small does not make sense


So what of the line breaks for the poem?
Would this make more sense?


her back
strains under my weight
I am not small


I did not use punctuation in the poem given its content, but I am not sure how else to fix this, or if it needs to be fixed.
 
when there is nothing between the pulse of your temples under thumb then where does it come from

your line break no your
enjambment is perfect

enjambment envy
I never know where to stop
they teach the rules sure
I get it but I do not want to end my line
on a stop
I want to bring it
around to the next meandering down the page
I wish I could write backwards I would
.......................................... r e v e n
......................................d n e
kcabhctiws a od tsuj enil eht
....when
......... it
.............. came to the end of the line
...................................yaw taht
tfil ot evah reven dluow i
.... my eyes from the page
 
neonurotic said:
This thread is very informative. Thanks for starting it Coi. :)


You are welcome.

Thank you to every one for the input I have to go back and do some reading to absorb all this information.
 
SeattleRain said:
when there is nothing between the pulse of your temples under thumb then where does it come from

your line break no your
enjambment is perfect

enjambment envy
I never know where to stop
they teach the rules sure
I get it but I do not want to end my line
on a stop
I want to bring it
around to the next meandering down the page
I wish I could write backwards I would
.......................................... r e v e n
......................................d n e
kcabhctiws a od tsuj enil eht
....when
......... it
.............. came to the end of the line
...................................yaw taht
tfil ot evah reven dluow i
.... my eyes from the page

I call it poemis envy. I get it once in a while, then I get over it. Sometimes I get poemis envy of my own poems, which is when I start thinking it may be time to go back into therapy. :D
 
SeattleRain said:
when there is nothing between the pulse of your temples under thumb then where does it come from

your line break no your
enjambment is perfect

enjambment envy
I never know where to stop
they teach the rules sure
I get it but I do not want to end my line
on a stop
I want to bring it
around to the next meandering down the page
I wish I could write backwards I would
.......................................... r e v e n
......................................d n e
kcabhctiws a od tsuj enil eht
....when
......... it
.............. came to the end of the line
...................................yaw taht
tfil ot evah reven dluow i
.... my eyes from the page
[flipH]Leonardo da Vinci would have liked this poem with its reversal of order, its flexed aesthetics, its flipped perspective. I find it curious that it is actually easier to read the reversed words in your poem, where the individual letters are not themselves reversed, than it is to read this comment, which is a true mirror image of the original text. Holding a mirror up to the screen would reverse even that observation, though.

Hmmm. Perception. Weird thing.

Interesting poem, SR.[/flipH]
 
Tzara said:
[flipH]Leonardo da Vinci would have liked this poem with its reversal of order, its flexed aesthetics, its flipped perspective. I find it curious that it is actually easier to read the reversed words in your poem, where the individual letters are not themselves reversed, than it is to read this comment, which is a true mirror image of the original text. Holding a mirror up to the screen would reverse even that observation, though.

Hmmm. Perception. Weird thing.

Interesting poem, SR.[/flipH]
i just want you, Tzara, to know i had a hell of a job reading those lines backwards. :D
to be serious, i have taught dyslexic children who found those flipped letters a delight to read.

perception, indeed. :)
 
Tzara said:
[flipH]Leonardo da Vinci would have liked this poem with its reversal of order, its flexed aesthetics, its flipped perspective. I find it curious that it is actually easier to read the reversed words in your poem, where the individual letters are not themselves reversed, than it is to read this comment, which is a true mirror image of the original text. Holding a mirror up to the screen would reverse even that observation, though.

Hmmm. Perception. Weird thing.

Interesting poem, SR.[/flipH]

wow I had no idea you could do that!

Very cool code, I will remember this.
Strange thing is I can read your backwards text just fine any I get nauseous trying to read my own.

When I close my eyes and imaging the United States, always Maine is on the left hand side of my mind's eye. I have to consciously flip it over. When I open my eyes, all is how it should be, how I have SEEN the map, but internally, my perception is reversed.

[flipV]Perception. Weird thing.[/flipV]
 
wildsweetone said:
i just want you, Tzara, to know i had a hell of a job reading those lines backwards. :D
to be serious, i have taught dyslexic children who found those flipped letters a delight to read.

perception, indeed. :)


oh you might be able to HELP ME! I have never been diagnosed with dyslexia, and I know I do not have it in the true form but damn, my left foot is danglin' in dyslexic waters I tell you that much M'am.

When I was little I always wrote my name backwards, completely.
Written across Piglet's belly in green magic marker

[flipH] Jenn[/flipH]
 
annaswirls said:
oh you might be able to HELP ME! I have never been diagnosed with dyslexia, and I know I do not have it in the true form but damn, my left foot is danglin' in dyslexic waters I tell you that much M'am.

When I was little I always wrote my name backwards, completely.
Written across Piglet's belly in green magic marker

[flipH] Jenn[/flipH]

What you did is more likely a sign of intelligence and creativity. I've worked with very young children, brand new to reading, who do this. I worked with a little girl--not quite five--who is very very smart and wrote everything backwards and then repeated it to me forwards. She knew exactly what she was doing and was capable of reading and writing "normally," which I knew because she'd show me she could when she was in the mood to do so. She just was delighted with letters and words and her newfound ability to control and manipulate them. (She was also really stubborn, lol.) I've seen other little kids around this age do the same thing. :)

I've also worked with kids who are truly dyslexic, and they don't turn words around so much as display an inability to focus on letters or words forwards, backwards or in any meaningful order. One kid (around 12 years old) described it to me as "getting lost in the margins," which I thought was inadvertantly a perfectly metaphoric (as well as literal) description of what happened to him when he tried to read. He was both literally and figuratively marginalized.
 
many children begin writing their names and get confused by 'all the rules' i.e. where to begin writing and which letter to begin with, where it's supposed to start. many children 'grow out of it' i.e. move on to the next stage of their writing development.

some of the basic forms i've worked with included letter confusion i.e. b/d (letters are shapes of stick and ball/ball and stick), p/q, n/u (shapes of tunnel and cup), etc and also writing some letters completely backwards. learning to know the correct formation of letters is a good place to start avoiding writing them backwards. using a green dot for the start and a red dot for the end of the letter formation is very helpful. using things like a think streak of bright coloured pva glue along the left hand side of the page is a good way of learning where to start. and pva on the bottom and top lines are helpful for keeping 'within the boundaries' of lines on a page. (the pva tends to leave a slight bump that is felt when writing.)

you may see some of these things in your own children. often forms of dyslexia show up in generation after generation, not always the same as your own difficulties.

your knowledge of the 'green magic marker' is interesting. it is very helpful for children with dyslexia to use colours and bright markers for reading information and taking notes. the colours help to keep the eye concentrating (among other things).

there is a book i recommend called hmm i can't find it... hold on while i think a sec... 'Learning Outside the Lines' by Jonathan Mooney and David Cole (google it, it'll be there). it's excellent. written by two very down to earth men who have lived through all manner of difficulties because of their learning differences. i was lucky enough to attend a talk by Jonathan.

my apologies if this was more information than you needed. *smile*

:rose:

and one thing i'd like to add is that often dyslexic children show incredible creative ability in right brain areas. :)
 
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