Free flowing verse or carefully assembled, edited, prose- which is better for u?

[kon jean]

It's odd but often the poems that just role off the tongue and onto the page are in my view better and more popular with others than ones I spend quite along time pondering and rewording. Which approach works best for you?

[Henry P]

use your first ideas and keep the best words and lines but always consider what you have written carefully and improve anything which isn't clear or fresh or powerful

[kon jean]

^ Perhaps but the guy who wrote the lyrics while walking to a performance and sung it straight off. (well so he says) And they are potent words indeed.

[GerardMcKeown]

I think it's best to play around with both. Structure can feel hindering but it can improve your flexibility in the long run.

You also learn about the effect structure can have on uncluttering what you're trying to say.

[mrbloom]

Ultimately, the best poetry one writes will not be written in one go. On occasion it is, but most of the time, good poetry, or prose, takes tons of editing. Unless you've done it for thousands of hours, and edited thousands of times, you aren't going to produce good first drafts - really. Even if you think they're good.

I agree with Gerard that structure can hinder flexibility, but its still something which is important to have a basic understanding of. Most of us would argue that strict forms are now archaic (I would put myself in this camp), however, I still practice writing them every day because they influence free verse so strongly. It's important to understand the past to excel in the present.