The Delivery     Printer Friendly Page

* Our  thanks to Elizabeth Thomas for her contributions to this page

Selecting poems for your audience
 How to deliver your poems
 Do
 Don't
 Sounds to be wary of
 When a poem has more than one voice  

Selecting poems for your audience

·        Try to determine what kind of audience you will be reading for;
pick appropriate poems.

·        Academic poems ( those with rapid, elusive images, or which make
reference  to obscure works of literature with which average listeners
would not be familiar) should be read only to other academics

How to deliver your poems

·       Pay attention to your delivery.  Practice out loud. After spending hours
perfecting your poems, it would be a shame to deliver them poorly.  Writing
a poem does not guarantee that you will, by some miracle, deliver it meaningfully.
The reading of a poem should be a good experience for the listener as well as
the poet, so don’t miss the chance to read well.

·       Drink lots of water the DAY BEFORE your reading. Water hydrates. Do not
substitute coffee, soda or milk. You may continue to drink water the day of the
reading * (but remember the call of nature)

·      Eat lightly. Avoid dairy products. *

·        Just prior to reading (when physical setting permits) shake off your
nervousness before you get to the podium. Rolling your head/neck,
cracking your knuckles, or stretching in front of the microphone tells your
audience that you are nervous. * It’s ok to be a little nervous; it will provide
the adrenalin needed for a good performance.

·       * Before you are called to read, breathe deeply, evenly, and slowly for several
minutes. Inhale to the count of ten. Visualize the air going down your throat
and into your diaphragm. Watch your stomach expand (a sign that you are
breathing properly); exhale slowly breathing out all the air. Doing this several
times has a way of focusing you and ridding you of distractions. *

Some Do’s

  • Practice a poem until you are very familiar with it, then mark where pauses come
  • Print your poems in large type; they are easier to read
  • Wear comfortable shoes and clothing *
  • Bring a small bottle of water with you to the podium *
  • Bring your poems to the podium in a notebook or a neat sheaf of papers
  • Determine the order of poems before you are called to the podium
  • Lay your poems on the podium where there is light and they will be easy to see
  • It is good to know beforehand whether you will be using a microphone. * If so, know
    whether it is at a podium or on a stand. Practice to meet the situation. A microphone
     on a stand  will require that you hold your poems, the podium will provide you a surface
  • Adjust the microphone so it is level with your mouth and about an inch away
  • Stand straight, hands out of pockets * (if you have memorized, otherwise they
    will be occupied holding your poem)
  • Look from page to the audience to check that the mike is not in your way
  • Smile and sweep the audience with your eyes leveled at the back most row
    (this gives the illusion that your are making eye contact with each person)
  • Begin to read, but don’t rush (pauses are always longer in your mind than they
    appear to the audience)
  • Keep your place using your finger; move your finger to keep your place or
  • Use a bright highlighter to mark places where you are comfortable lifting
    your eyes to look at the audience. Highlighted words help eyes track back
    to where they need to be     *
  • A good idea: memorize the first and last line of your poem. This makes
    for a strong start and a strong ending     *
  • Deliver lines, when possible, while looking up; look to the page for more, then
    look up to deliver again (this method is referred to as ‘look and say’)
  • Pause when appropriate to let your listener savor the image just delivered
  • Pause for several seconds between poems (good time to take some water)
  • When you have finished reading, look up and smile, then return to your seat

Some Don’ts

  • Poems don’t need long introductions, only enough to give listeners what they need to know.
    Let the poem stand on its own merits.
  • Don’t ever say that you wrote the poem this afternoon.  Most good poets
    will not read a poem aloud until they have shared it with their writers’
    group and revised it a dozen times.
  • Do not apologize for your work or presentation *
  • Do not tell the audience that you have never done this before *
  • Don’t play with hair, pocket coins, your nose, or a paperclip *
  • Don’t be tempted to read every poem you ever wrote. Leave the listener
    a little hungry for more of your work
  • Don’t be  insensitive to others who are reading by reading beyond your allotted time
  • Don’t drop your voice as you deliver the last line of your poem

Sounds to be wary of

  • P’s and b’s (plosives) tend to make a popping sound. Try to deliver these
    sounds if possible a little further from the microphone. Practice
    ( 'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers' or ‘The bad boy made the big black bear bleed’)
  • S’ and f’s (sibilants) need to be articulated well. There are exercises that can
    help with this (‘Susan Simpson strolled sedately, stifling sobs, suppressing sighs...’)
  • Remember, an 'a' before a word beginning with a consonant sounds 'uh' not like the 'a' in favor
    a     becomes (uh) regrettable incident.
    Before a word beginning with a vowel, the 'a' changes to 'an' , for example,  (an) unfavorable event.
    To simplify, 'a' most always sounds 'uh'.
  • Use this link to other exercises that will make you a better reader (300+ tongue twisters)

When a poem has more than one voice

Choose a head position for each voice (center, left, right) Use this position when
speaking in this voice (be consistent)