How to write a poem?

[Fingers]

anyone have any tips on how to write a poem.

[CoHo]

Why do you want to write a poem?

[Fingers]

explore my creativity, somthing new, serenade girls with lyrics

[Sackanaka]

Read several diversified styles of poetry and see which one appeals to you best, or try them and see which one feels most comfortable to emulate.
From there, I would suggest thinking of a theme/moral/emotion you want to focus on. Write a few words out that seem to "fit", and you can just put them on paper (or screen, since typing may actually be easier) and edit as you see fit.
Personally, I like rhyme scheme and a strict meter, 'cuz it's much more fun to play with. When dealing with rhyme, it's easy to come up with rhyming words and shaping the rest of the words to it, but it's important not to get caught up on the rhyme itself, especially since imperfect rhymes, pulled off "naturally", have their own appeal.
If going for a style which doesn't have a strict structure, just be careful not to write for the sake of "sounding mystical", since it seems to be the same damned trap that every beginning poet falls in and makes them feel as if they've mastered poetry. I say this because while the intention of one of these poems may have been arduously organized, there's little to show for it if the same kind of work could've been reproduced by an amateur. I'm not saying that all of this unstructured poetry is amateurish, but it is very difficult to jump right into the style without falling into this trap.
Opening up a dictionary/thesaurus page is optional, as it could be a double-edged sword; you want to focus on the poem as a whole, not on the peculiarity and uniqueness of a few words. While diction is important, its significance seems to truly shine when used in a thoughtfully syntactic arrangement.

There was something... Pinsky said in a book I let a friend borrow. I think it went something like, "A poem should be more than just an intellectual discussion; the reader can do that without poetry. The poem should show the reader something altogether unique in approach."
Or something like that. I think the point was to make sure you want to write a poem, not something else that can be reproduced through another literary means.
But alas, art forms are inevitably subjective across a macro enough scale :/

[Shai Gar]

girls arent the type to be bowled over by poems

[Fingers]

of course its not my only tool of enticing ladies, but its nice, its old fashioned, and it only works if you can pull it off with great timing, and don’t look like a wuss bag.

[Hustler]

of course its not my only tool of enticing ladies, but its nice, its old fashioned, and it only works if you can pull it off with great timing, and don’t look like a wuss bag.

Poetry is a dead end road. That said, if you must know, try starting with this book: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0030769809/qid=1116711176/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/103-5833656-7261415?v=glance&s=books&n=507846.

[Fingers]

its a bit pricey $67.95

[Fingers]

I reckon hip hop is the evolved form of poetry, now now, don’t get all mad at the comparison, I’m not talking the garbage 50cent crap, there is some quality stuff out there, so even if my poetic skills suck, at least I may be able to write a nice rap to wow the girls.