Teaching Voice and Form Through Walt Whitman: A Guide for Online Writing Coaches
Walt Whitman remains one of the most influential figures in American poetry, offering an expansive body of work that continues to inspire both readers and writers. For online creative writing coaches, Whitman’s poetry provides an accessible entry point into discussions of voice, rhythm, form, and the expressive possibilities of free verse. His legacy offers more than a historical reference—it is a practical resource for helping poets at any level experiment with their craft and develop a distinct poetic identity.
First published in 1855 and revised many times until his death, Leaves of Grass exemplifies a poetic voice that is both intensely personal and broadly democratic. Whitman employed long, flowing lines, cataloging techniques, and inclusive language that embraced a wide range of subjects, from the natural world to the human body, from labor to love, from individual experience to collective identity. His poems resist rigid structure, instead favoring a free verse style that allows language to move with the rhythm of thought and speech.
For creative writing coaches, Whitman’s approach can be used to guide clients in loosening the constraints of traditional form. Many developing poets, particularly beginners, struggle with the pressure to rhyme or conform to specific meter. Whitman’s poetry demonstrates how rhythm and structure can emerge organically through repetition, variation, and syntax rather than strict formal patterns. His work invites poets to trust their voice, to follow the movement of a motif through language without forcing it into predetermined shapes.
One way coaches can use Whitman in a session is to introduce his style through close reading. A passage from “Song of Myself,” for example, offers multiple entry points for discussion. Lines like “I celebrate myself, and sing myself / And what I assume you shall assume, / For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you” can serve as a starting point for examining Whitman’s inclusive tone, his use of repetition, and his conversational syntax. Coaches can then ask clients to reflect on their own experiences and attempt a short passage in which they “celebrate” themselves, using a similarly open, flowing structure. This encourages students to write with confidence and without self-censorship.
Whitman’s poems often list people, professions, sensations, and images in a manner that builds momentum and emotional resonance. Coaches can guide students in creating their own catalog poem by choosing a central theme—such as a place, a moment in time, or a physical experience—and listing associated details without concern for narrative coherence. The goal is to accumulate imagery and voice, trusting that meaning will arise through accumulation and rhythm.
Whitman also offers a model for encouraging writers to explore large themes without becoming abstract. His writing merges the philosophical with the tangible, often grounding broad ideas in physical sensation or everyday scenes. Instructors might encourage clients to write a poem that addresses a significant idea—such as freedom, death, or love—but to do so by anchoring the poem in specific, concrete imagery. This exercise helps writers avoid generalizations and cultivate a sense of immediacy and presence in their work.
For more advanced clients, coaches can introduce the concept of persona and voice by examining how Whitman constructs his speaker. While the “I” in Leaves of Grass appears autobiographical, it also functions as a symbolic voice representing a broader human experience. Writers can be encouraged to experiment with a poetic “I” that blurs the line between self and collective identity. A writing prompt might ask them to speak in a voice that encompasses not only their personal perspective but also the imagined voices of others around them. This can lead to explorations of empathy, perspective, and multiplicity within a single poem.
Walt Whitman provides a rich resource for online creative writing coaches. His rejection of strict poetic form, his embrace of individuality and universality, and his commitment to direct, expansive language offer lessons that are especially well-suited to online instruction. Coaches can guide clients in reading, imitating, and adapting Whitman’s methods in a variety of ways that foster personal voice, emotional honesty, and stylistic experimentation. By drawing on Whitman’s example, instructors can help poets move beyond technical concerns and into a deeper engagement with language and expression.
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