Reading aloud is a great way to revise a poem, listening for the magic. The sounds that make a line sing. As today’s mentor poet Nikki Grimes tells us, poetic devices such as alliteration and assonance help to create that magic.

Tiny Tricks to Make Your Writing Sing

Using words with the same letter or sound in close proximity—whether words with the same/same sounding consonants, or the same long vowel sounds—makes your writing sing. In the following poem, I’ve underlined such consonant pairings, and set a few paired vowel sounds in italics. This is “Sweet Sister” from Legacy:Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance.

Clay creatures, we forget our sisterhood with earth
as if we could survive without her nourishment. Iknow better, but did I always? I thank
her now. Sink your teeth into a peach, and so will you!
Imagine a world without rosemary or rose, even for
a moment. Where would the flavor or the
fragrance be? How we’d miss the quiet pleasure
earth brings to nose and tongue, of
which we are not worthy. Earth, your
generosity deserves to be met with Love’s language.

This simple trick is very effective. It’s especially noticeable in passages that include a list or a series of things, like fruit. In such a passage, I might choose fruits that all begin with the same letter or same sound: Peaches, pears, and pomegranates vs. plums, oranges and strawberries, for example. If I needed a list of flowers, I might choose roses, ranunculus and rain lily; or lady slipper, lavender, and lantana. Such groupings create their own music.

Finally, the most important open secret to creating lyrical language is to listen. Play with word groups and then listen to them. Your own ear will tell you when the words begin to sing. You won’t need anyone else to tell you that!

Today’s assignment: Go back to one of the poems you’ve written this summer. Read it aloud and look for places where playing with the sounds might enhance the music and meaning of what you wrote. 

Bestselling author Nikki Grimes received the Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, ALAN Award for teen literature, Children’s Literature Legacy Medal, NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry, and the Coretta Scott King Award. Recent titles include Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance, Playtime for Restless Rascals, and Garvey in the Dark.

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