For the occasional, the aspiring, and the professional poet, the how-to poem provides the writer with a simple prompt to get her exploring unfamiliar territory as well as the depths of what may be thought of as areas of expertise. Even if the final product of this exercise, in "how-to" format, does not stick with the writer as a complete or favorite work unto itself, the form promises to uncover new modes of thinking about a subject that may then pave the way to a new and insightful poem.
How-To Basics
Most writers are familiar with the how-to format, though it may take several different forms; it is possible to write a how-to poem about the same subject in three (or even more) ways. Consider the following templates:
- Recipe - Perhaps the most stripped-down version of the how-to poem, this form restricts language to a bare minimum of directives; little more than quantities and specific actions are described, always in the imperative mood (e.g. "Stir in one egg"). The sparse and direct nature of this form does interesting things with complicated subjects - imagine the ironic or unsettling effect of using the recipe method to write on "how to forget" or "how to grieve."
- Advice - This form, though it does not have a standard written component (other than perhaps the "advice" column listed in some newspapers), allows the writer to adopt not only a subject but a voice with which to explore it. The poem could manifest itself as friendly advice from a friend or a stranger, as motherly/fatherly advice, or even as threatening advice (an ultimatum) from an adversary. The writer also has the freedom to direct this advice to the reader or to another dramatic voice/persona.
- Scientific Methodology - Like the recipe template, scientific methodology allows the writer to achieve a distance from the subject that affects both the speaker's perspective and the reader's reception of the poem - though it does so through its language, not by the lack of it. Consider the precise and somewhat academic language one would use in describing a medical procedure: "supinate the wrist until the palm is exposed." Imagine the effect this kind of language would have on a sensitive or familiar subject like "how to make love" or "how to take a bath."
The How-To Prompt
First, choose a subject for your how-to poem. If you choose something within your area of expertise (playing the drums, for example), be sure to take advantage of the expert language afforded by that subject ("flam," "roll," "fill," "crash," etc.); this gives the writer an opportunity to reexamine that language and come to understand it differently - perhaps more poetically. If you choose some previously foreign subject, allow yourself to understand it in whatever terms are natural to you; work the new eyes with which you approach the subject to your advantage.
Next, choose a template for the how-to poem. Any of the above may be applied to any subject, but one may be more effective than the others. Allow yourself to experiment! Observe how your language works within each of the templates and determine which one is best for the poem. If in the end you find that the poem is growing beyond the confines of the how-to format, let it. See where it takes you.
Angela Zito - Angela Zito holds a BA in English with Creative Writing from Albion College. Before graduating, she completed two senior theses - one a ...
