The first step to writing a poem is figuring out what you like about poetry. Is it imagery? Format? Rhyme? Start by sampling a few poets. Maya Angelou, William Wordsworth, Frank O’Hara ...

The first-century Greek poet Lucillius was known for his mastery of the short poem format known as an epigram. He wrote more than 100 of them, usually satirizing his subject in a few witty lines.