a short guide to editing poetry

here are some things we look out for when reviewing submissions - 

punctuation

• this is a big one. be intentional about where you use commas, full stops, italics, and so on.

  make sure there is continuity throughout your poem.

pronouns

• a clear narrative thread is key to guiding someone through a poem.

  the improper or unclear use of pronouns can be majorly confusing.

  consider whether it's clear to the reader who is being referred to with each “you” or “they”.

tenses

• mixing up past, present, and future tenses is an easy way to trip up your readers.

  be sure you are using the same tense throughout your poem,

  unless the jump between timeframes is intentional and clearly laid out.

auto capitalisation

• auto capitalisation is the bane of a poet's existence.

• think about whether the first letter of each line should really be capitalised.

  sometimes it can be a stylistic choice! other times, poets just didn’t think about it.

  we can tell the difference between the former and the latter.

layout

• the way a poem looks on the page can impact readers as much as the poem itself.

  think about where each word is falling on the page.

  play with the length of each stanza and the length of individual lines.

  typically, aligning a poem in the centre of the page is only effective when done intentionally.

imagery

• poetry has been around a looooong time.

  you’ll almost always be writing about something that has been discussed before.

  originality comes through in your use of metaphor, tone, and other language techniques.

  think about whether the images in your poem are unique, or if you’ve seen them expressed that way before. 

these are not concrete rules, rather just things to consider.

poetry is all about reconsidering and pushing the norm!

just be sure your stylistic choices come across as clear and intentional.