by Ariana R. Cherry

Created on: February 26, 2007   Last Updated: November 23, 2011

Have you ever gone to bed at night, only to find that you just can't sleep because of all of those little phrases, words, and ideas that are keeping your mind awake? Have you ever been in the middle of performing a task, cooking dinner, or on a nice little nature walk, only to stumble upon what you feel is the greatest idea in the world?

This is how you can come up with your ideas to write that brilliant poem! Each time that you stumble upon something that you just think is incredibly beautiful, or if that favorite song inspires you, write down your ideas on a piece of paper. Remember how it made you feel or think and express yourself and your words down on paper. This is where a small journal becomes very effective! Keep one with you at all times! Nobody will ever know when he/she may stumble upon an idea.

All of these ideas that have been discussed previously will aid you to write that piece of poetry. It doesn't have to be perfect and actually  it may not even be your finished piece of work! But it will be your first work in progress.

Now, take a stopwatch, or eye a clock somewhere and set yourself for a 10-minute "writing workout." Have your journal in front of you and take a few moments to think about your day. What were your high points? Were there any low points? What was the weather like today? Just think about your general overall day, and begin letting that pencil flow without stopping - I promise you that something will come out of that pencil!

It may seem odd the very first time that you perform this activity, but overtime, it will be a great way to generate your ideas when you feel the first symptoms of writer's bock at hand.

This activity is great to do on your own, or even with a group of people that you may write with. Just think of it as writing in a diary for 10 minutes out of your day. Poetry is a way of expression, and our way to talk to the world - But this 10-minute poem is just an introduction for you. This poem will get your foot in the doorway to create your creative masterpiece.

Once your 10 minutes is up, read what you have written on the piece of paper. You just might surprise yourself with the ideas that have flown from your writing pen. It's possible that you may find mistakes or phrases that you are unsure of, but that's the beauty of this workout. It gets those writing juices flowing! Feel free to make changes and add anything to this piece of work so that it becomes that poem that you were looking for.

If you find this workout useful, it could be something that you add to your routine when you begin your writing process. This activity is also great for writing classes and students too! If you are a teacher or a processor, begin this process before you even begin class. Just have your students take out a piece of paper, and tell them to write whatever is on their mind for 10 minutes. Not only does this activity work for poetry-it also works for stories, and as a warm up for research papers and essays.

So the next time you have a case of writer's block, just pull out a piece of paper and force yourself to write for the next 10 minutes. Who know-maybe this creation will win you a place on the next top-seller's list!

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