Poet Explains How to Wow Your Valentine in 5 Easy Steps

Give your lover something that will really count - It won't cost you a dime

JACKSONVILLE, FL - Jan. 17, 2006 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- As soon as
Santa stockings and gift wrap go on sale, out come the boxed
chocolates and teddy bears stitched with red stuffed hearts. Florida
author Kay Day (A Poetry Break, 2005; ISBN 0-9717641-0-7) says senders
of valentines should ask themselves a simple question. Is it better to
woo a lover with a mass-produced gift, or is something you make
yourself more impressive?

*(PHOTO: Send2Press.com/mediadesk/0106-kayday_72dpi.jpg)

*(Photo Caption: Cover of "A Poetry Break" by Kay Day.)

Day, who edits the writing resource site, www.creativewriter.us, says,
"If you'd like to really surprise your lover, write a poem. It's not
that hard-you're expressing personal thoughts that will be read by a
single person. A poem doesn't absolutely have to rhyme, and since it
is personal, no editor will whack you on the head if it sounds a
little less than stellar. One thing's for certain: the person who
receives the poem will love it."

Day's poetry collection won top honors for poetry books from Florida
Writers' Association, the largest such organization in the state.
"Some of the most popular poems in the collection are those I wrote
for my husband," she says. "I wrote them to him and ended up including
them in the book."

There's always the option of tacking the poem onto a mass-produced
gift, just to be on the safe side. If you do opt to put pen to paper,
Day offers 5 easy steps to take the pain out of process for valentine
writers:

1. Begin by putting thoughts on paper. Write 4-6 sentences that
will mean something to the recipient. Recall a special day you spent
together, or a unique aspect of your lover's personality. Mention
something you said to one another. Do you have a wish for each other?
Select thoughts that mean something to both of you. Write your
thoughts in single lines rather than in paragraph form. Keep it
simple. Ask yourself what really matters.

2. End each line with a word that eases flow to the next line.
Words to most often avoid at the end of the line are articles (like
'a' and 'the'), prepositions (like 'of,' 'in,' 'from'), and passive
verbs like forms of 'to be.'

3. Take the first copy of your poem and put it away for at
least 24 hours. Do not peek.

4. After the 24-hour wait, when you're ready to refine the
poem, read it aloud. You'll hear words that clunk. Take them out or
change them. Do not force a rhyme. Forced rhymes sound smarmy.

5. Check your poem for spelling. You don't want to call your
'lover' your 'bother' by mistake. Write or type the poem on a piece of
nice paper. Choose a private moment and preface your gift-giving by
saying, "I made something special for you."


"The gift of time is the most genuine gift you can give a person,"
says author of over 500 published articles and poems. Day advises
proceeding with caution. "Once you've penned a poem for your
valentine, be very careful. Poetry is addicting to both readers and
writers."

For more information about poetry, visit:
http://kayday.net or http://creativewriter.us.


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NEWS SOURCE: Kayday.com / Kay Day