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I am sure every person who has ever existed has written, at least, one love poem. Love brings out the artist in all of us. We want to tell the world how we feel when we fall in love. We want to document the silver sting we are sure no one else has ever felt.

Poetry is a great outlet for writing about love but some of it is really not for public consumption. I edit a poetry zine and I read poetry every day of my life. Much what I get is diary entry type poetry. I rarely read a love poem that pops.

You want to shoot for something different. You want to write about personal details another person can read and say, "I understand that! That's how I feel." You don't want it to be so personal that the reader says, "What? I have no idea what the significance of the purple striped sock is." At the same time, you want to say something original. And that's the kicker. So many love poems have been written it's a difficult task to say something new.

You have to read the type of writing you want to write. This goes for any type of writing, not just poetry. You should read every type of love poem you can find from classics to contemporary writings. If you don't read, you might not realize what's been said before. Reading is the single most important part of being a writer. It always blows me away when someone who calls themselves a writer, admits they never read. It floors me every time and I've heard it many, many times.

Avoid cliches. No one wants to read one more poem about your lovers eyes described as limpid pools. No one wants to read another poem that contains the phrase, "I love you more than life itself." I'd suggest forgetting rhyming in love poems, too. Good rhyme is difficult to pull off, no matter what the subject is, but to write a good love poem in rhyme has got to be the hardest poem to write.

Details are important. Description is vital. And again, I can't stress enough finding a new way to say something. A lot has been said about love. Your job is to say it so you knock a person over. The best love poem I ever read described how the roaches crawling up the guy's back turned into butterflies at the thought of his love. Talk about knocking me over!

Any poetry you write needs to sit awhile and breathe. You need to distance yourself from the material. Set it down and don't look at it for, at least, a week. Take it out and look at it with new eyes. Pretend you didn't write it. Go over it and cut out all the excess words you don't need. Cut every cliche, cut every extra and see what you've got left. If it's something that seems different and it amazes you, then send it out into the world. If not, whatever you do, don't throw it away! Save it to work on later.

If you write something only the love of your life will like, give it to them. Don't inflict it on the rest of the world. Good love poems are rare. It takes a lot of thought and practice. Keep practicing and you'll get there.

Learn more about this author, Kat Apf.
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