This past Saturday, Kentucky Poet Laureate Kathleen Driskell led a craft talk in partnership with KSPS that focused on the art of revising poems. Attendees learned practical strategies for strengthening their work, from identifying the strongest line in a poem to trimming words that don’t serve the piece’s core meaning. Reading aloud, experimenting with phrasing, and paying attention to rhythm and sound were just a few of the techniques Driskell highlighted as ways to make poems more precise and effective.
Even if you weren’t able to attend, these ideas can be applied to your own writing. Take a moment to read a poem you’ve written and ask yourself: Which line holds the most weight? What words can be removed or rearranged? How does the poem sound when read aloud? These simple steps can help unlock new possibilities in your work.
For those who enjoyed these strategies, there’s even more to look forward. On December 6, Driskell will lead a session titled “Meaning-Making Sentences for Our Poems.” She’ll explore how syntax, sound, and form work together to create meaning, offering rhetorical and structural techniques that poets can use in their own work. Whether you’re revising a current poem or starting a new one, this upcoming session promises to provide fresh tools and inspiration.
Mark your calendars and check out the details, plus go ahead and register to secure your spot —this is a chance to dive deeper into craft with one of Kentucky’s leading poetic voices.
Kentucky State Poetry Society 