As it was National Poetry Day this week, I’d like to attempt to rehabilitate poetry. Perhaps you, like me, were burned by your experience at school, glumly underlining metaphors and labelling rhyme schemes in an overheated classroom, wondering how this poem was relevant to your life in any way. Perhaps this experience made you feel intimidated too- people often seem to worry that they’re somehow doing poetry ‘wrong’ or won’t ‘get it’ or there’s no point unless they’re reading the classics.

I promise you can’t get poetry ‘wrong’ and that there is poetry out there that will speak to you - it isn’t all long-dead white men describing the natural world. There is poetry out there that will make you catch your breath, seeing your innermost thoughts pinpointed with excruciating accuracy by a stranger, poetry that will make you giggle, that will make you tear up on the bus, poetry you instantly have to screenshot and send to your best pal. 

Like music, Netflix or exercise, it’s about finding what fits and you’re absolutely allowed to adore some bits and hate others. Try it all out and see what sticks, it could be life-changing. Here are four ways to get started:

1)  Anthologies: Your Poetic Smorgasbord

Anthologies are a fantastic way to discover a range of poets and poetic styles when you’re not sure of what you like, before diving into an individual poet’s collection. One of my favourites is Ella Risbridger’s anthology Set Me On Fire: A Poem For Every Feeling, a diverse collection of emerging and established poets from across the globe, which Risbridger began as a present for a friend who hated poetry so is ideal for poetry sceptics. 

It’s a beautifully arranged collection, the poems grouped into sections by feelings such as ‘hungry’, ‘overthinking’ or ‘this is probably over huh’ and each poem annotated with witty commentary. This collection is a gateway to finding poets that make you feel your feelings on everything from Monica from FRIENDS to loss to ice cream - it’s a gutsy, wide-ranging beginning to your poetry journey.

Other brilliant anthologies to dip into include The Poetry Pharmacy by William Sieghart, SLAM! You’re Gonna Wanna Hear This by Nikita Gill and Staying Alive: Poems for Unreal Times by Neil Astley. 

2)  Off the page and on the stage: Spoken Word

If reading poetry isn’t your jam, try spoken word gigs. These tend to be fast-paced, buzzy events, which often have their roots in rap and drama - and with the world opening up, now is the perfect time to explore your local poetry scene. Often you can sign up to perform yourself but there’s no obligation. Check out Apples and Snakes’ events, a trailblazing spoken word organisation, and Write Out Loud where you’ll find poetry gig listings around the UK.

3)  Poetry Podcasts

Podcasts are a fab way to ease into poetry; there’s a huge range of formats available and it’s easy to stick on if settling down with a book doesn’t fit your lifestyle or accessibility needs. A wonderful starting point is the Poem of the Day podcast, which is exactly what it says on the tin, featuring a daily poem from both older and modern poets. 

Highly commended others are Poetry Off the Shelf, The New Yorker Poetry podcast and Apples and Snakes: The Podcast which examine contemporary poets, rappers and spoken word artists through performance and interviews.

If you’re after something more academic, Oxford's Poetry with Simon Armitage lecture series, The Open University’s Poetry podcast and the Classic Poetry Aloud podcast are excellent.

4)  Instapoetry

Much has been said on the legitimacy of Instapoetry. A lot of people are quick to call it simplistic, self-involved millennial drivel not deserving of the title ‘poetry’. To these people, I say: ‘Shut up, stop being an elitist snob’. 

What makes Instapoetry so remarkable as an art form is that it’s specifically designed to make poetry approachable for the unconvinced reader, provides an accessible platform for marginalised artists and integrates poetry seamlessly into your day. Try searching #instapoetry and see what your feed throws up.

Some favourites include Yrsa Daley-Ward, Lang Leav, Nayyirah Waheed and Charly Cox.

5)  Get writing yourself

Scribble in a notebook, type a few lines in your Notes app. It doesn’t have to be profound, rhyming or well-crafted, you don’t have to show anyone but writing your own is a great way to get into poetry. Creative writing can be cathartic, a creative outlet and studies indicate both reading and writing poetry positively impacts mental wellbeing.

If you start getting into it, there are multiple of organisations where you can take workshops (City Lit, The Poetry Society, Apples and Snakes sessions, the Young Poets Network for those under 25) and multiple competitions to enter. 

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Written by Hannah Stephings

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