How to Write Shakespearean Style Love Poetry

If anyone knew how to write a love poem, it was Shakespeare. A Shakespearean love poem, also known as a sonnet, is just the style of poetry to emulate, if you want the ladies to beat down your door. It won't be easy, though. The rules of the sonnet are unflinchingly rigid.

Difficulty:

Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Pen
• Paper

1. Decide who you are writing your poem to. Are you just writing it for yourself? Or are you writing it to give to another person? If you're writing it to give to your wife, girlfriend or significant other, you're going to want to spend a lot of time perfecting it.

2. Pick a subject. Think of who you are writing to, and that may make it easier to pick something to write about. Ask yourself what that person's interests, hope or dreams are.

3. Memorize the form of a sonnet before you start writing. There are four lines to a sonnet; three quatrains and a couplet at the end. Your first line will rhyme with your third line, your second with the fourth, and so on, so tht the format looks like this: ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG. The two last lines, known as the couplet, will rhyme with each other.

4. Write your sonnet in iambic pentameter, which is the meter, rhyme and rhythm pattern used in every Shakespearean Sonnet. You can find a thorough explanation of iambic pentameter by following the link in the Tips section of this article.

5. Read over your sonnet several times. The first draft often needs revision. Have someone else read it for you, unless you don't feel comfortable sharing a private poem with anyone other than the intended recipient.

6. Give your sonnet to the intended recipient.

Tips & Warnings

• For more information about how to write in iambic pentameter, see the related eHow article, "How to Write a Poem in Iambic Pentameter." http://www.ehow.com/how_2072972_write-poem-iambic-pentameter.html

• Read as many Shakespearean sonnets as you can get your hands on. Not only will they put you in the right frame of mind, they'll also help teach you what a sonnet should sound like. Shakespeare's sonnets are also some of the most beautiful poems ever written.

• The best sonnets use metaphors to build an argument for something. Consider this when you sit down to write your sonnet.

Resources

• Shakespeare Sonnets.