Marielle Ignacio DeTorres

Poetic living finds inspiration in all things.

Echoing the poet Rilke, there is no shortage of material for aspiring poets who want to capture and create beauty.

Originally published
WordPress

Date posted
Feb 17, 2023

There is beauty in this world. Too often, we fail to see this beauty because we have become too pre-occupied as a generation: Glued to our screens, our eyes wide open to the endless stream of information and entertainment. Now is a time for distraction, a time for escapist fantasy that forgets what it’s like to see beyond appearances.

In this plane of awareness, there is no need to think deeply. There is no need to slow down and search for meaning when the ceaseless parade of content is deliberately designed to be consumed in less than 30 seconds.

What does it mean to live poetically?

Poetic living is about slowing down. It is about savoring moments. It is about the awareness that comes from being mindful of the senses – be it sight, scent, sound, taste, or touch. It is the lost art of noticing, the craft of finding and creating beauty even in the most mundane environments. Poetry is rediscovering what it’s like to see things again for the first time.

To live poetically is to live: It is all about being rather than doing. It is being at ease with boredom, being joyful in time spent doing nothing, being patient in rest, being mindful of emotional experience as the inner world comes to light.

Poets experience the world differently, and the depth and intensity of their experience enriches our literature through their writing.

How do I find inspiration for my poetry?

As a budding writer, I stumbled upon some principles that I follow that allowed me to bring out my best work. The first one is the belief that we are all capable of living poetically. Believing that you are capable of enhancing your experience of life is game-changing. It is empowering to know that your thoughts, your emotions, and your values are lenses through which you view the world. These lenses are under your control.

Every person is a world to explore.

– How To Love, Thich Nhat Hanh

In his book How To Love, Thich Nhat Hanh said that every person is a world to explore. Poetry is a result, the external manifestation, a written record of this inner world. Our ability to be aware of this inner world determines the quality of the poetry that we will write.

This inner world is not unreachable nor impenetrable, at least not completely. When people say that the eyes are the windows to the soul, they do not only mean that our eyes convey our emotions but also that what we see influences our soul. They are windows that let air and sunlight into our homes, which leads me to the next principle.

Your inputs generate your outputs. Great writers are first avid readers. For them, reading is like breathing in, while writing is like breathing out. You cannot have one without the other. Anything printed – be it books, magazines, comics, and online posts – are potentially rich wells for inspiration. All it takes is an idea, a small seed.

It doesn’t mean that writers are solely determined by what they read, or that they only copy what is existing. It’s not about paraphrasing or summarizing. The skill is in the building. Infuse what you’ve learned in your reading with grounded experience. Write about your specific take. Add a different perspective. Say something worthwhile.

There is no greater resource that our own stories. It is our stories that make up our lives. Look to childhood memories. Look to school lessons. Look to travel experiences. Look to hardships, look to pain. Expose the wounds and you begin to heal and learn from them. Ask: What is the story that I’m telling myself in this situation? Is there something new to find?

When in doubt, look around. We cannot be great writers if we are not curious about the world nor the worlds around us. I always say that the brightest writers are the most generous in their heart of hearts. Why do I say this? It’s because we can only write beautifully if we can see with empathy, understanding, and compassion. It takes a lot of energy and effort to write without judgment, without fear, and with all sincerity.

If we can believe that humans are generally surprising, then it will be a big step towards thriving as a writer. Believing that there is always something refreshing, something awe-inspiring, something shocking to find, opens us up as writers to new levels of wisdom. There is always something new to learn, and all it will take is to look with much enthusiasm and to peel off layers every time.

How do I write inspired poetry?

• Read more. Read a book from a new genre, a new author.
• Journal with the intention of finding out what you think. Ask the hard questions. What do you truly think about the matter at hand? What is the story that is playing out in your head right now? Capture it all.
• Pay attention to the strangers you encounter. Listen to stories, listen to conversations you have with others. Really listen. Distill the characters there. Who do you see? What do you make of this character? What is this character motivated by?

That’s it for now. If you have any more questions, or if you just want to drop by and say Hi, send me a message on Instagram. I would love to get in touch.

For a more detailed guide on how to develop your own writing process, check out my detailed guide on how I write poetry.