by Ronnie Dauber

Created on: September 10, 2008

A love poem is made up of flowing words of passion that are written on paper to reveal a heartfelt devotion. There is no rule for it's length, the kind of words you would use or the intention of its meaning.

The format and style that you use would be dependent on your ability to say what you mean in poetic form. Its length and content would also be dependent on the person you are writing this poem to.

For example, if you are writing your poem to someone to impress them or to make them understand how you feel, you don't want it to be so long that they have to read through pages of meaningless chatter to get to your point of interest.

So, if you want someone to know how you feel, catch their attention in the first few lines so that they will be encouraged to read on. If you leave the actual message to the end of a lengthy sonnet, they may never make it to the end to get it.

Poets often use elegant words that grace a page with romance and capture the heart of the reader. Make sure that you use words that you understand and know the meaning of. It would be a tragedy for you to give the wrong impression because of an incorrect use of words.

Make sure that comparisons presented in the poem are a clearly understood reference and not something you just decided to use. For example, you may love your puppy, but using that comparison in your poem could give the reader a very bad inference, in that you are comparing them to a dog.

So, read some famous love poems and learn what and who they make their comparisons to, to give you an idea of what references to use.

Love poems usually have a theme that flows through all the verses and expresses one thought or idea.

Some love poems are written from the heart of the writer to the heart of the reader, with the focus on the love and needs they have for a certain person. Other poems talk about the virtues and beauty of a particular person and don't speak of anything else. Others speak of times passed and love shared.

Be careful that you don't intertwine too many ideas or the subject of interest could be lost in too many thoughts. Keep your poem to one idea and follow it through to the end.

You can make you poem short and to the point, or lengthy. Descriptive poems can be longer whereas poems to capture the heart of someone could be shorter and more direct.

There are no rules, only guidelines that can help someone to write an effective love poem, and it usually begins with the heart.

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