“Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art”: Thomas Hardy

Everyone is filled with many unspoken feelings, emotions and thoughts spinning their head around but only a few have the artistic capabilities to beautifully pen them down in words. Poets love conveying what is rambling in their minds through words. These artists are not professionally trained but are creatively gifted. Poetic sensibilities can be hidden inside any engineer, doctor, lawyer, teacher or just a student scribbling through life and trying to make the sense of it all! While we know that there is no specific recipe for poetry, this blog strives to bring you a detailed guide on how to become a poet by furnishing your creativity and getting the best exposure to follow the path of an artist.
Poetry can be described as an art form to convey one’s thoughts and feelings or tell a story and paint a canvas through the lyrical arrangement of words. While you might think that poetry is all about rhyming words, it does not really need to adhere to a certain rhyming structure. As a poet, you are free to choose any language and writing style to present your inner ramblings. Further, in order to become a poet, you must first understand what poetry means. Read about famous poets and their astonishing works and explore poetry as a form of literary expression. By delving into the history of poetry, you will be able to find your own way of expression and thus you will embark on the journey of becoming a poet.
While there is not a particular degree that can train you to become a poet, you can surely choose from creative writing courses and furnish your writing skills to express yourself better through verbose. These courses are also offered in different languages thus giving students the chance to find the right language to express themselves and polish their writing skills. Moreover, you will also get to know about popular writers and poets and their writing styles which will further help you grasp the intricacies of poetry writing.
Pursuing a degree or diploma in Creative Writing abroad can also equip you with international exposure thus immense opportunities to know like-minded people and develop your own unique understanding of poetic discourse. There are many diplomas, certificate-level and degree programs in creative writing, linguistics, literature and related fields. Along with this, you can also register for workshops at the universities, where you can learn from popular and contemporary poets.
Amongst the numerous advantages of social media, the incredibly beneficial one is the global reach it offers. As a poet, it is important to build your own audience and social media can help you make that happen. You can create your own social media page on Facebook or Instagram and start from there. Through this, you will be able to reach a global audience without any heavy investment. After establishing a strong presence online, you can even pitch your own poetry book to publishing houses and get published. In order to become a poet, your writing must touch the hearts of your readers and using social media, you can seek feedback from your audience and thus ponder upon the suggestions. You can further collaborate with other poets and different brands to extend your reach to a larger audience and establish your popularity.
Every artist needs to keep a portfolio of their works and masterpieces as it represents their artistic sensibilities and understanding of the art form. On the journey of how to become a poet, we would also suggest that you should create a portfolio accumulating your poems and musings together. It will assist you in grasping your own quest as a poet and will also be beneficial if you are applying for similar writing opportunities in the creative field like copywriting, songwriting, etc.
Predominantly, poets are self-employed. They are generally associated with publishing houses to publish their works. But on your expedition to become a poet, you might not find a publisher at the first attempt and thus it is always important to keep some alternative career options by your side. Using your creative writing skills, you can explore many career paths like copywriter, editor, songwriter, composer, etc. These pathways will assist you in accentuating your writing skills, networking with like-minded people and earning a handsome amount of money alongside.

Aarif Mushtaq