Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Part One: Basic Structure and Format
• Method 2 of 3: Part Two: Manuscript Format
• Method 3 of 3: Part Three: Formatting Quotes

As with prose, there are rules governing the design of poetry. Poems have a basic format, which must be followed during their creation. Whether you plan to submit your manuscript to a publisher or include multiple lines of poetry in your essay, there are specific ways to format your poem for these occasions.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Part One: Basic Structure and Format

1. 1 Check out the type of poem. You will have a little more freedom if you are writing a white poem, but if you are trying to write a specific type of poem, you need to check the specific format requirements of the type of interest before considering anything else.
   • The haiku should consist of three lines. The first line has five sounds, the second has seven, and the third has five. Often, these "sounds" are seen as the syllables of our language.
   • Limerick has five lines. The first, second and fifth rhyme with each other and have eight or nine syllables. The third and fourth lines rhyme with each other and have five or six syllables.
   • The sonnet has 14 lines and is usually written with iambic pentameter. Shakespeare's sonnets follow the ABAB / CDCD / EFEF / GG rhythmic pattern. Petrarch's sonnets follow the ABBA / ABBA / CDE / CDE rhythmic pattern.
2. 2 Create strings based on speech patterns and appearance. The length of each line and how the lines are split will affect the reader's experience, so you need to format the lines in a way that makes sense.
   • Readers tend to pause briefly at the end of each line, whether there are punctuation marks or not. As such, it makes sense to end the line with a period where a pause would be natural or could be used to emphasize an important point.
   • Words placed at the end of a line tend to appear more significant than in the middle.
   • Shorter lines feel jagged and fast, so they can speed up the reader. Long lines are more prose-like and can slow down the reader.
   • Take a look at how the lines look on paper. Poems with light content should have a light appearance, with short lines and plenty of white space. Deep, meaningful poetry can appear more compact.
3. 3 Experiment with punctuation. Even though readers naturally pause at the end of a line, a punctuation mark at the end of that line will encourage a long pause to be delayed.
   • On the other hand, when there are no punctuation marks at the end of a line, the pause is kept to a minimum, and may even be skipped.
   • Ending a line in the middle of a sentence can highlight an idea or create tension.
4. 4 Group the lines into logical stanzas. Stanzas are to poetry what paragraphs are to prose. Lines are grouped into separate stanzas to maintain order and flow.
   • Stanzas are commonly used to organize ideas, so one stanza is likely to have a different tone or slightly different stress than the stanzas before and after.
5. 5 Rewrite the poem as needed to improve the overall shape. You probably won't find the best mix of rhythm, line, and general order in your first draft, so you'll need to rewrite your poem several times to improve its format.
   • Generally, it may be easier the first time to write your ideas instinctively and naturally.
   • Reread your poem aloud and make any necessary adjustments as you write them down. Pay attention to the look and feel.

Method 2 of 3: Part Two: Manuscript Format

1. 1 Use standard margins and fonts. Use a 2.5 cm margin and a size 11 or 12 font.
   • The left, right and bottom padding should be 2.5 cm. The top margin can also be 2.5 cm) but you can also make it smaller, for example 1.25 cm, if this makes the poem look better.
   • Use a standard font such as Times New Roman, Arial, Cambria, or Calibri.
2. 2 Please include your name and contact information at the top. In the upper right corner of the page, enter your full name, followed by your full postal address, phone number, email address, and website (if you have one).
   • Each piece of information should be on a separate line.
   • Specify this information, single-spaced, right-justified.
   • This format is standard, but it is also acceptable to write this information in the upper left corner of the page, especially if it makes the overall structure of the poem cleaner. Include the same information and keep the text single-spaced, but left-justified.
3. 3 Specify the number of lines. On the line immediately after the contact information, enter the number of lines.
   • This is only required if your contact information is in the upper right corner.
   • If your contact information is in the upper left corner, place the number of lines in the upper right corner on the same line as the name.
   • When specifying the number of lines, write "xx lines." For example:
     • 14 lines
     • 32 lines
     • 5 lines
4. 4 Write the title in the center in capital letters. Pull down 5-6 lines, then type the title of your poem in capital letters.
   • The title is usually written in the center of the page. If your contact information is aligned to the right of the page, you can also align your title if you like.
   • The name should be followed by one blank line.
5. 5 Align the stanzas to the left. Line up each stanza on the left side of the page. The text should be right-jagged, not justified.
   • Each stanza is separated by a single space.
   • The space between two stanzas is double-spaced. In other words, each stanza must be separated by one blank line from the previous and the next.
6. 6 Include basic information about any additional page. If your poem continues on a second page, you will need to place a heading at the top of this page.
   • The title should include the last name, title of the poem and the number of the current page.
   • The last name should be indicated in the upper left corner, the title in the center, and the page number in the upper right corner. All three parts must be on the same line.
   • This heading format should be used on every page after the first, regardless of whether it is the second page, the third, the eleventh, and so on.

Method 3 of 3: Part Three: Formatting Quotes

1. 1 Please provide a quote. Submit a quote and enclose its text in quotation marks within the rest of the sentence.
   • Don't make dry quotes. This applies to blocks of text that are nothing more than quotes, without your own introductory or concluding words from the presenters. Such a reference to a poem does not provide sufficient conditions for quotation.
   • Correct example: In Sonnet 82, Shakespeare compares the beauty of the subject of the poem to his wisdom, saying, "Your mind is as graceful as your features" (line 5).
   • Wrong example: In Sonnet 82, Shakespeare compares the beauty of the subject of the poem with his wisdom. "Your mind is as graceful as your features" (line 5).
2. 2 Enclose three or fewer lines in quotation marks. When you quote only one, two, or three lines from a poem, include the quote in the body of the text by placing it in quotation marks.
   • Use the backslash character (/) to indicate a line break. Place a space before and after each character.
   • Example: The poet praises the knowledge of his subject and beauty, declaring: "Your mind is as graceful as your features / Much subtler than all my praises" (lines 5-6).
3. 3 Quote four or more lines, offset to the left. When you quote four lines or more, place the quote on a separate line after your introductory word.
   • Use a left offset of ten full indents from the left margin. Each line of your quote should start with this indentation.
   • Don't use quotation marks or forward slashes.
   • Example: Shakespeare opens Sonnet 82 with the words of his friend about his muse:
     • You are not betrothed to my muse.
     • And your judgment is often lenient,
     • When the poets of our days
     • Eloquently devote work. (lines 1-4)
4. 4 Quote line number. For each poetic quote in the text, you must indicate the lines or line numbers that fall on your quote in the poem.
   • When enclosing three or fewer lines in quotation marks, place the line numbers in parentheses after the quotation marks are closed. At the same time, the quote should go to the point.
   • When quoting four or more lines, indent from the body of the text, include a line number after the closing point of the quotation.
   • Write "line", "lines", or "st" before you first quote this poem to clarify that you are referring to lines, not pages. But for each additional citation, you only need to provide a number.
   • Example: Shakespeare opens Sonnet 82 with the words of his friend about his muse:
     • You are not betrothed to my muse.
     • And your judgment is often lenient,
     • When the poets of our days
     • Eloquently devote work. (lines 1-4)
   • He continues later, praising the beauty and intelligence of his muse, stating: “Your mind is as graceful as your features / Much subtler than all my praises” (5-6).