ELEMENTS OF WRITING BY POET IGE

ELEMENTS OF WRITING BY POET IGE

Elements of writing, picking each word in the topic one after the other, *elements* simply means composition, thus, we can rephrase the topic as *The composition in writing*
[11/19, 8:39 PM] Ige: *writing* in my own words, is the process of penning down a thought, whatever must be written down must have passed through the corridor of the brain before the ink will exhibit it
[11/19, 8:39 PM] Ige: Now, attributing that to Literature (poetry in particular)
[11/19, 8:40 PM] Ige: Literature- is from the word 'literate' ability to write and read
[11/19, 8:41 PM] Ige: However, poetry in my definition is the expression of emotion
[11/19, 8:41 PM] Ige: Idea, concept
[11/19, 8:41 PM] Ige: In a *unique* way
[11/19, 8:41 PM] Ige: What makes poetry to differ from other genres of Literature is the uniqueness
[11/19, 8:43 PM] Ige: As a poet, you are synonymous to a blacksmith, we don't coin cutlass or knife but we coin *words*
[11/19, 8:45 PM] Ige: Example- *Abike, I know you deserve more than this, even than these*

2. *Do you remember Idanre tree, where many passer-by passed by before we could say bye bye*
[11/19, 8:45 PM] Ige: These are the lines from my poems, we can see that the playing over words
[11/19, 8:46 PM] Ige: Unlike Prose or Drama
[11/19, 8:47 PM] Ige: Where I can just write

*Abike you deserve than this* using these again in prose, editor would say it is tautology
[11/19, 8:48 PM] Ige: Now, what makes poetry to be unique?

The use of Figure of speech makes poetry to be unique
[11/19, 8:49 PM] Ige: Before shedding more light on figure of speech, it should be noted that the *blood* of any Literary work is *Imagery*

A literary work is dead without imagery
[11/19, 8:49 PM] Ige: What's Imagery?
[11/19, 8:50 PM] Ige: Imagery is the process of creating picture in the mind of the reader. *In my simple definition*
[11/19, 8:50 PM] Ige: Now there are two major types of Imagery
[11/19, 8:51 PM] Ige: 1. Sensual imagery
2. Olfactory Imagery
[11/19, 8:51 PM] Ige: Sensual imagery arouses the sense of thinking of the reader
[11/19, 8:52 PM] Ige: It is the most common type of Imagery being used by poet
[11/19, 8:54 PM] Ige: Example-
*Though there is a vast of wound in our heart*
*Yet we must learn how to smile*
*For if we must die, let's die at once*
*If living is worthwhile, let's live not forever*
[11/19, 8:55 PM] Ige: This is a stanza from my piece, to whoever is reading this, you will notice a touch in your heart and at the same time, you will be picturing a frustrated human being in your mind
[11/19, 8:55 PM] Ige: That's imagery
[11/19, 8:57 PM] Ige: There are many figure of speech, numerous
[11/19, 8:58 PM] Ige: However, there are some basic figure of speech that gives aroma to poetry
[11/19, 8:59 PM] Ige: But NOTE- all figure of speech serve either of these two purposes

1. For understatement or overstatement sake
2. To create Imagery
[11/19, 9:00 PM] Ige: Let's take *Personification* for example
[11/19, 9:01 PM] Ige: Giving human attribute to non-living things
[11/19, 9:01 PM] Ige: Example- this common example that we all know

*The sky weeps*
[11/19, 9:02 PM] Ige: Since it is not possible for the sky to weep, but as a poet you have authorized the sky to weep so as to create the imagination of rain falling in the mind of rhe reader
[11/19, 9:04 PM] Ige: 2. When the moon was naked
3. And the river roar
4. The sky clapped its hands
[11/19, 9:05 PM] Ige: All these are meant to either create imagery or overstatement sake
[11/19, 9:05 PM] Ige: Another beautiful figure of speech which I love to use is *Oxymoron*
[11/19, 9:05 PM] Ige: Placing two opposite words together
[11/19, 9:07 PM] Ige: This figure of speech could be confusing but it often gives perfect description to either object or person
[11/19, 9:07 PM] Ige: Eg
For I know that this life is *positively negative*
[11/19, 9:08 PM] Ige: This is an oxymoron depicting life as good and bad
[11/19, 9:08 PM] Ige: Another example

The atmosphere is *beautifully horrible*
[11/19, 9:10 PM] Ige: This is telling us that to some, the atmosphere is favourable while to some it is not
[11/19, 9:11 PM] Ige: Another FOS that spices up writing is *Paradox*
Paradox is an absurd statement but when one thinks over it, one will see the meaning it passes
[11/19, 9:12 PM] Ige: Eg
I look not to look again but I look to look once more
[11/19, 9:12 PM] Ige: Reading this at first, it gives no meaning
[11/19, 9:13 PM] Ige: But by the time you attribute the statement with other lines in the poem, the meaning will be clear
[11/19, 9:14 PM] Ige: This is a line from my poem that talks about a lady who wears exposing cloth

*I look not to look again but I look to look once more*

as guys nao, when we lustfully look over a lady
[11/19, 9:14 PM] Ige: We know how we keep turning our neck backward
[11/19, 9:16 PM] Ige: Another FOS that spices up a poem is metonymy

This involves the use of object to describe someone's position
[11/19, 9:17 PM] Ige: Example

*The khaki man walks gallantly*
[11/19, 9:18 PM] Ige: Here, the khaki man is a soldier
[11/19, 9:18 PM] Ige: Leaving figure of speech
[11/19, 9:18 PM] Ige: In my own view let me share other things that could spice up our writing
[11/19, 9:20 PM] Ige: 1. Avoid *excessive use* of conjunction
[11/19, 9:21 PM] Ige: Too much of conjunction in Poetry will automatically metamorphose your poem to a prose
[11/19, 9:22 PM] Ige: Eg.

I went and saw
But  I couldn't voice out my pen
Not because I was scared but because I was...
[11/19, 9:22 PM] Ige: The excessive use of conjunction here has shrunk the poem to a prose
[11/19, 9:24 PM] Ige: However, to avoid excessive use of conjunction we must learn the important of semi-colon as a punctuation mark
[11/19, 9:24 PM] Ige: Semi-colon can help you link two lines together without using conjunction
[11/19, 9:25 PM] Ige: I went and I saw;
I couldn't voice out my pains
[11/19, 9:30 PM] Ige: 2. Another thing is that: in poetry, inversion is allowed. What's inversion
[11/19, 9:31 PM] Ige: Inversion is the process of altering a sentence in such a way that the active becomes the passive and the passive the active
[11/19, 9:32 PM] Ige: *I must speak this unspeakable*
Inversion
*This unspeakable, I must speak*
[11/19, 9:32 PM] Ige: All these are what makes poems to be unique
[11/19, 9:34 PM] Ige: *I must write about this*
Inversion
*This, I must write*
[11/19, 9:34 PM] Ige: Inversion
*This, I must write about*
[11/19, 9:35 PM] Ige: Lastly
[11/19, 9:35 PM] Ige: There must be coherent in every line and every stanza
[11/19, 9:36 PM] Ige: A poem that lacks coherent will make the reader confuse
[11/19, 9:36 PM] Ige: Thanks for having me tonight sir/ma

ABOUT THE TUTOR

Ololade Akinlabi is a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University, he hails from Ibadan. He was a nominee for Nigeria Writers Award (2017), a two-time winner for Poet in Nigeria (PIN) 10-Day poetry challenge; also, he was a second runner up in Youth shades poetry contest. He was a certificated poet for Commonwealth youth council poetry contest titled: Iamable.