Some of you will be put off or intimidated by anything considered 'freedom restricting' feeling that the only 'real' poetry is free verse - that meter, feet, form, rhyme is constricting.  This in itself is a limiting attitude, and I find often is a comment too quickly hidden behind.  All poetry has some kind of rhythm or pattern, yes,  even well written 'free verse' has its subtle form.  "There is no such thing as formless poetry."  

I enjoy good free verse but it is surprising how so many staunch free verse poets are not aware of their own use of meter, rhyme or feet.  Some poems just flow naturally, others must be guided...some poets want to learn how to guide their own works without 'working them over' or squelching the 'soul' of their poetry.  Being aware of the basics of the art of poetry will not destroy the soul of your poetry, it may just bring it out or raise it to new heights.  It is equally surprising how many 'poets' call their sentences, paragraphs and general essay writings, free verse.  

The term 'free verse' is (over) used so loosely that essays and even articles on as mundane a subject as the problem of animals and rubbish bins are easily passed as free verse.  I once submitted an article, reformatted to stanzas, broken up into sentences , punctuated sparsely, titled, 'Of Cats, Mice and Rubbish Bins'.   It was accepted as 'true free verse' received positive critique and I was commended for my progress in writing free verse.  The two sites I submitted to were serious poetry sites.  I enjoyed my little experiment, but my confusion reached multi-leveled heights.  I reinstate here, that I do enjoy good free verse, however its definition is elusive and its over (excusive) use is abusive.

Absorbing at least the basics of the art into your own soul will eventually release even more of your own natural talent and will make creating good poetry a little easier.  Perhaps not effortless, but definitely easier.  Once the rules are deeply understood, then you can bend them with confidence! - 'tosca' (forum moniker)

 Exercises (self inflicted)

I've decided to put up examples of private homework I have been doing and hope you don't think it is something I do with all my poetry.  NO, no, NO!   Just now and again I feel the urge to work into something, be it an exercise in meter/feet or form.  Typing this for a web page helps anchor the information into my brain.  I am also doing it just in case someone else may benefit from my efforts.  Feel free to grade my homework...home page has the contact link.

This one is an exercise in trochee monometer with a slight variation to  third and seventh lines which are amphibrach.  (After deciding to practice a monometer poem, the curiosity about the breakdown came after the fact.)  Sometimes a silly little poem teaches much.

Pillow

Ah, to ease the failing faint heart,

sighing to slip to dreams afar.

Whither weeps the wearied eyes

of softly lamenting sad little fool?

None better knows than friend, her pillow

there sleeps restless burdened sorrow,

there gathers silent spills so tearful,

of softly lamenting sad little soul.

Breakdown:  I am a little unsure if my analysis of this poem is correct and would appreciate educated opinion as to lines 4 and 8.  Although technically both lines have 10 syllables, depending on view point, one could think it is 5 pairs of stressed/unstressed feet, hence pentameter, etc.  I am very rusty over this area.  I am thinking:  each amphibrach has 3 syllables which counts as one foot each, so 2 amphibrach , 1  trochee and 1 iambus makes a tetrameter (4 feet).  Am I correct?  (Not that it is crucial to the poem, just a curious mind...)

Numbers in ( ) have the syllable count. 

     /   X     /     X   /   X    X      /

1. Ah, to ease the failing faint heart, (8)   trochaic tetra (variation is inverted to iambus)

      /    X   X   /    X      /      X /

2.  sighing to slip to dreams afar.  (8)  iambic tetra (variation is inverted to trochaic)

      /     X      /      X     /    X    /

3.  Whither weeps the wearied eyes  (7)   trochaic tetra  (note eyes is a 'long' one syllable word, hence takes the same time to speak as 'afar', which is 2 syllables)

     X    /  X    X   /  X     /   X  X    /

4.  of softly lamenting sad little fool?  (10) still tetra but with 2 amphibrach, 1 trochee, 1 iambus

       X     /   X     /        X      /       X   /  X

5.  None better knows than friend, her pillow  (9) tetra with 1 amphibrach, 3 trochee

       /       X       /     X     /    X     /   X

6.  there sleeps restless burdened sorrow, (8) trochaic tetra

      X       /  X       /  X      /   X    /  X

7.  there gathers silent spills so tearful,  (9)  tetra  with 1 amphibrach, 3 trochee

     X   /  X    X   /  X    /    X  X    /

8.  of softly lamenting sad little soul. (10)  still tetra but with 2 amphibrach, 1 trochee, 1 iambus

For me, breaking this down, finding the musical mathematics (a very rhythmic science, you know) helped me find what 'bothered me'.  Pouring over (nicer words for 'analyzing') the above breakdown, showed me visually what the patterns were and where.

All this helped me really write what I felt...what was inside.  There is no corruption of the 'soul' of a poem by doing this when you consider that words merely represent mental energy, impressions and feelings.  Not all of us can achieve 'the best' the first time around a poem insists on becoming words...words on paper or floating on air.

So following is the version I feel most comfortable with.  A third stanza just cascaded out and only took minutes - most likely because I was fully into the modus of the poem.  This often happens to me, that a poem tells me where it wants to go after I opened the door a wee bit.  (The third stanza wanted to be first and so I let it.)

How can one please the unwilling heart  (9)

that finds no peace at another's hearth?  (9)

Never neared nor trusted new fire, (8)

yet ever regretful, poor lonely fool. (10)

Oh, how to ease the failing faint heart, (9)

that yearns to slip to dreams afar? (8)

Whither weeps the wearied wet eyes (8)

of softly lamenting sad little soul?  (10)

None better knows than comforting pillow, (10)

there sleeps restless burdened sorrow, (8)

there spills tears in silence gathered  (8)

of softly lamenting sad little soul. (10)

So, what inspired this poem?  The thought of someone whose heart was once crushed and whose fear of failure prevents any venture to another's hearth, yet is miserable in the self-imposed solitude.  There are those who trust only what they know -  fear, sadness, unhappiness becomes the familiar friend.  Fear of happiness, fear of fear yet self pity and yearning to escape to the dream world.

Quick Reference Page (various basics)  

This is 'quick' compared to volumes on the various subjects here!

Form - "There is no such thing as formless poetry.  As soon as words start appearing on paper, they take on a pattern." (The Craft of Writing Poetry, Alison Chisholm)  In Lewis Turco's The New Book of Forms, there are more than 250 forms listed and is growing as poets devise unique forms or adapt existing forms.  The poet must not adhere strictly to form, in fact it is advisable to allow latitude (unless writing in a form for didactic purposes).  A poem that adheres exactly to a form without the least movement away from and expected rhyme or stress pattern threatens to be dull.  However, beware.  

There is a world of difference between deviation for a purposeful effect and the poet who is incompetent to handle a particular form.  If you have ever felt dissatisfied with a word or flow and left the poem as it was in spite of your inner warnings (because you cannot come up with a better replacement to serve intent AND craft), then your poem's flaws will leap out to the reader, so obvious that it has not been handled correctly.(Any good library or an internet search will help you find more on this subject.  Click here for a sampling of a few classics listed further down.

A book that I found immensely helpful beyond 'poetics' that was written for 'real world poets' is Perfect Words, by Kay Day (see links)  With her kind permission, here is an excerpt from her chapter Falling into Form:

"I wanted to write a very personal poem.  After thinking about it, I realized the perfect container was the sonnet.  I had no idea of the repercussions....I'd written in free verse for most of my adult life; the entire body of my published work was in free verse....Sometimes, one simple action can change the rest of your life.  That's what penning a sonnet has done for me.   I'll be working in formal poetry now, and not because I don't respect free verse.  I could never part with poets like Dickey, Whitman, and Rich.  If anything, experimenting with form has made me aware of how truly difficult free verse can be, mostly without benefit of elements like rhyme and meter.  But I've rediscovered something I loved early on, and almost lost, not because I didn't love it, but because I ignored it for a very long time."

Blank verse  -  lines of unrhymed iambic pentameter

Free verse - "rhythmical but non-metrical, non-rhyming lines. These may have a deliberate rhythm or cadence but seem to disappoint the reader's expectation for a formal metre, such as iambic pentameter." (University of Toronto)  Key here is "rhythmical".  Good free verse has its own subtle rules - subtle rhythm and  syntactical ambiguity.  Often annotated by the use of line-break it is capable of complex effects.  Free verse is often confused with blank verse.

How is it distinguished from prose?  There is no easy answer to that, as the thin line between free verse and prose/essay is very fine indeed.  Poetry, whether  free or rhymed is written in stanzas rather than paragraphs.  A verbose poem may sound less like poetry than a tightly written piece of prose.  Poetry and prose have much in common.  Both present an idea or story/moment, communicate a message.  Poetry moves the emotions as can prose.  In fact, deciding whether a piece is free verse or prose is a subjective decision that is best based on a wide read experience.  Extensive reading of both will make recognizing free form much easier.  

It is not the subject matter nor the vocabulary that decides, but rather:  if you can put it into paragraph form and it makes more sense and reads more naturally, then it is most likely a piece of prose trying to look like free verse.  If you can break it into stanzic lines (one stanza or more) and it has a subtle flow of its own, it is most likely unrhymed/free verse.  If it is trying to be 'free verse' but hiccups erratically and cannot seem to make up its mind, if the rhythm is non-existant or likewise erratic - it is most likely prose or prose trying to be poetic.

Free verse is the most common form of modern poetry and is most likely one of the most misunderstood/abused (abused as in calling anything unrhymed 'free verse').  Here is the area where many self styled poets like to hide and smugly protest the loudest against other forms of poetry.  Much so called free verse poetry is better left in the private sphere rather than being forced upon the public.  Writing good free verse is one of the most difficult challenges of writing poetry.

Here an excerpt from The Craft of Writing Poetry by Alison Chrisholm (see links):  

"Free verse should never be regarded as the easy option by a writer who has no interest in the rhyming or rhythmic structures of poetry.  In fact, it is more difficult to write a good free verse poem than you may think, because you need to establish your writing as poetry without the supporting presence of rhyme...By letting the piece you are writing dictate to you whether it should be a rhymed or free verse poem, you are unlikely to make a mistake in this basic area of choice.  Keep your mind open and keep your options open.  Let the poem surprise you by its preference for full, slant or absence of rhymes...A piece which has its roots as a continuous prose passage and ends up as a poem will always make you feel that is has been forced into a 'container' of the wrong shape."  And if I might add, the reverse is worse.

Visiting  many private poetry forums, I am often amazed at the poetry released on the workshop forums, albeit these forums are meant to  be w o r k   s h o p s.  Often poems begging for revision, best turned into short stories, or need to be decided upon what they want to be, are those posted by stubborn writers who simply want to show their 'works' and receive flattery, not constructive critique by experienced peers.  Usually these posters lack the courtesy to acknowledge the time a reader took to comment on their poem.  On one forum recently, I was amused by a response to a comment:  "I don't feel it necessary to comment on my works or responses".  Another, "I don't need critique."  Then don't post at a workshop forum.  Send your poetry to your mother.  She will love whatever you write.

Form, a few classics 

Couplets - Simply a pairing (couple) of lines.  May be used throughout a poem (aa, bb cc) or in referring to stanzas of pairs of lines.  Any line length, metre, or rhyme (or not).  Often used in humorous verse. Rhymed couplets are a bit restricting because of close proximity to the rhyming words.  Still, a fun try.

Quatrains - A group of four lines, often a complete poem or stanza of a poem.  As with couplets, any metre, length etc. is used.  Some established form patterns are quatrains.

Ballad Stanza - A quatrain, usually in iambic metre, 4 feet in first and third lines, 3 feet in second and fourth lines, the later rhyming.  Shorter lines often indented (x,a,x,a with 'a' the rhyming lines).

Pantoum - A Malayan verse form first used in Europe at beginning of 19th century.  Series of quatrains with lines of any length or metre.  Stanzas are not limited.  Lines 2 and 4 are the rhyming repetons and become lines 1 and 3 of the next stanza and so on (a1,b1,a2,b2,  b1,c1,b2,c2,  c1,d1,c2,d2, etc.).  In modern contemporary pantoums, rhyming is an option and lines 2 and 4 of final stanza are the 3 and 1 lines of the first stanza, etc.  (a1,b1,a2,b2,  b1,c1,b2,c2,  c1,d1,c2,d2, etc. until final stanza x1,a2,x2,a1 with x representing the point the pantoum is rounding to its end.)  The final stanza may be a couplet instead of the contemporary quatrain giving a pattern of a2,a1.    

See 'Romantic Poetry' and 'Mélange' for a few of my pantoums and 'Links' for great links on pantoums for more indepth information and examples.   A pantoum produces a haunting effect and is best suited for such themes, though some feel it is an obsessive and innerving form.  The contemporary, western version usually does not rhyme, though successful rhyming supports the haunting effect of the form - it is an advanced challenge.  Click here for excellent examples of pantoums:  Ann Johnson, Miriam Sagen, The Windchime Walker (a unique site that offers much insight from unexpected directions!)

Villanelle - There is a close affinity between the pantoum and the villanelle, in fact, working on the later definitely assists learning the former.  The villanelle was originally a 'round song' from the French countryside and is also a haunting form with regular refrains and only 2 rhymes throughout the poem.  Classically, it consists of 5 tercets and ends with a quatrain (19 lines).  The 1 and last lines of a stanza rhyme alternate as the closing line of each stanza.  The last stanza - the quatrain - are the two couplets that together form the ending quatrain.  The second lines rhyme (this last is a titbit not clearly stated in much information of the villanelle which may lead to the understanding that it is not mandatory).  Today, variations of the classic form are accepted as I was recently informed, hence, non-rhyming second lines are considered not classic but an accepted variation.  If you write one, the key here is to identify your variations as such.  I've written 3 variations.  See 'Mélange'.  This is also a challenging and for me, enjoyable form.  One day I plan to 'puzzle out' a classic villanelle.

Petrarchan Sonnet - Named after the Italian poet, Petrarch and was introduced in England around the 1500's.  The English (or Shakespearian sonnet) developed from it.  The melodic cadence of the Italian language produces more rhyming options than in the English.  14 lines of iambic pentameter with a 'turn' between the octave (8 lines that open the poem) and the sestet (final 6 lines).  The octave sets the development and starting mood of the sonnet and the sestet serves to present a shift in thought or a new perception.  The octave:  a b b a a b b a and the sestet may rhyme c d e c d e or c d c d c d.  The beauty of the sonnet lies in the close repetition of the octave and carries the sound value of the 3 to 6 lines resulting in the baab pattern reflects, yet offsets the original a b b a.  Sonnets are another classic returning to popularity and contemporary poetry.  Its rigid pattern has been adapted considerably.

Shakespearian Sonnet - more correctly, the English sonnet.  Shakespeare was not the first to use this form, but most notably, was the most prolific.  Because of the characteristic of the English language and comparatively less rhyming  possibilities than found in the Italian language, the English sonnet is based on 7 different rhymes rather than the 5 typical of the Petrarchan Sonnet.  The 'turn' in the poem occurs much later than in the Italian form.  After 3 quatrains, a final couplet either sums up or offers a new twist to the sonnet.  This abrupt closing with the couplet is in marked contrast to the fluid style of the Italian sestet.  Iambic pentameter, but the octave is:  a b a b c d c d e f e f g g.

Spenser is known for his chain-rhymed adaptation of the English sonnet:  a b a b b c b c c d c d e e  (never has been popular as the advantage of the extra 2 rhyming sounds is lost).

Limerick - from serious classics to the silly, or put another way, from lyric to joke, the limerick offers levity and is an enjoyable form for many would-be poets.  The classic limerick was developed in Limerick, Ireland and has 5 lines of a a b b a as has many nursery rhymes (Hickory Dickory Dock).  Today, limericks may be of longer lengths, still using the basic iambus and two anapaests for each of the 'a' lines and one iambus and one anapaest for the 'b' lines.  Much latitude is allowed and often they are a bit naughty!

One of mine:  (a shire is a county)

There once was a man from a shire  

who simply could not afford her.

He let her be leased,

and then they had peace,

and lived in a style that pleased her!

There once is the iambus, was  a man, is the anapaest, and from  a shire is the

second anapaest.  Third line:  He let her is the anapaest, be leased is the iambus.

Triolet - Only 8 lines long, this form also originated in France.  1 line appears at L 4 and L 7 and the L 2 is the repeton in the last line.  Only 2 rhymes:  A B a A a b A B.  Usually, iambic pentameter or tetrameter is used.  (The 1 line is a repeton that is often varied through punctuation, which can shift meaning.  Variations on the A lines:  

Smooth water flows and whirls, curls 

smooth water.  Flows and whirls curls

Smooth water flows and whirls curls  

Smooth water flows.  And whirls curls     

Smooth water flows and whirls.  Curls   etc.

An interesting form for humorous or more serious themes.

---------

Syllabic Poetry (syllabic count forms)

Depends on a repeated pattern and count of stressed or unstressed syllables and not on rhyme or repetition of similar sounds.  This is the traditional style of Celtic and Japanese poetry.

normative syllabics - same number of syllables per line

quantitative syllabics - count varies in each line within the first stanza which sets the pattern for all following stanzas

variable syllabics - lines vary at random, however, the poet decides on the rules and limits, such as number of lines and length, repeating them within the poem

--------

Clogyrnach - Welsh and just one example of many.  It may be of any length, relays on syllabic count and rhyme and interestingly, often in midline.  6 lines of 8,8,5,5,3 and 3 syllables.  Finally 6 syllables may be written as 1 line.  Rhyme pattern:  a a b b b a

Haiku - A widely popular Japanese syllabic form.  A tercet of 5 syllables in L1, 7 in L2 and 5 in L3.  A Haiku examines nature...or the universe.  In its brevity, it captures an element of the seasons and evokes a mood with the final line as a commentary or reflection on the first two lines, yet is open ended, implying continuity of reflection.  Much information on this and other Japanese forms can be found on the internet.

Not a very good one, but a spontaneous one for the purpose of example:

Winter air freezes (5)

frost visits, graces windows - (7)

temporary art. (5)

My thoughts on . . . 

Words are what we learn externally from society and education (self or otherwise)...we are not born with a vocabulary.  Words are the 'medium' to communicating what we mean.  Hence, those who smugly shun use of dictionaries or a thesaurus should invest deeper thought over the subject.   Those too, are merely an extension to an individual's vocabulary and learning process.   Your vocabulary and use of it is what your society has taught you.  Why not expand it (improve)?     Or is 'true' poetry only when we use just the vocabulary we use in daily speech?  Now, isn't that limiting?

Words.  Wonderful vehicles to convey thought.  If the eyes are the mirror of the soul, then words and how we use them mirror the images of thought.  I wonder at a society that laughs at the individual who enjoys the richness of a language and uses it.  Nervous laughter.  I wonder at an individual who is satisfied to continually use a limited vocabulary, the same clichés over and over for all situations of 'conversation'.  Low standards have become the norm.  I wonder at a society that encourages an educational system to lower their standards, the very institutes that in past generations encouraged citizens to reach a little higher, encouraging the masses.  

'Class' has little to do with it.  I've known the rich who are poor in words and the poor who are rich in words.  No longer are 'classes' (education, self or institutional) for the upper class.  This excuse has died out.  The art of word usage is reachable by all, most especially in these times.  There is no shame in it.  On the contrary.  Reach a little higher.  Soar.  Dare to be different.

Criticism on the subject does not mean I plead for perfect language usage (or typo-free e mails or other such quick communication as on forums)  that would be impossible and unnatural.  I think the points I wish to make are clear enough.  Improvement and awareness - two key words.

Personal, trivial pet word peeves:  American English use of 'guys' for all.  This by a society that has seen the uselessness of sexist words such as poetess,  stewardess  and - rightfully - encourages the use of Ms.  I find it odd that the very individuals who are all for non-sexist words, almost to the point of hysteria, address their female acquaintances as 'guys' yet bristle at the term 'ladies' or 'girls'.  Can anyone answer that?

I once explained to a (girl) friend that in Spanish, a bus full of women is still referred to in the masculine if only one male (the driver) is present.  Oh, how incensed she was!  Yet a group of mixed company or a group of girls are - for her - 'guys'.  She didn't appreciate my point.  What is wrong with addressing a group with you all (not ya'll - though a charming American southern use) or all of you if the plural use of the 'you' is uncomfortable?  Do you want coffee?  Do you all want coffee? Does everyone want coffee?  Coffee, anyone?

More trivia peeves:  non specific words used in all situations, 'stuff, junk,' leaving the guess work up to the hearer.  Those and others are so commonly used that the justifiable use of 'stuff' and 'junk' has become obliterated and whatever object referred to is devalued somewhat.  British use of 'brilliant' for anything and everything mildly well done to genius accomplishments and the term 'At the end of the day...' (Am. equivalent:  The bottom line...) is also so overly used that I cringe at its use.  Why not develop a cache of different tunes (albeit also much used), such as 'the end result is...', 'the final point...',  'in summary...'  'this means or this results in' etc.  My ears seek variety.  Fortunately, I am not alone.

Textbook speech that excludes all colloquial expressions, condemns all slang and maintains a constant 'stiff upper lip' (cliché, cliché!!) is boring and limiting in itself.  Communication based on 'you knows', 'and uhs', 'ummms', 'know what I mean?'   (No, I don't.  Don't be lazy, TELL me!)  'Yeah's and 'Know wha' meeen?' or worse 'no whuma mee'? 'kinda like' etc. are far more limiting.  Dull.    People who cannot express themselves have little to say.  Boring.

A rich language is so because of the vocabulary available to it.  The mid-road based on a developed vocabulary, sprinkled with a little well placed cliché now and again, and expressions that match the moment is interesting and inspiring. That is a delight to hear.

My first language was German, my second, English, my third, Spanish and I continually try my best in all three.  I have also absorbed a decent (reading-but limited speaking) grasp of Dutch, Flemish, VERY little French, a healthy handful of Italian and a good handful of Arabic that is slowly fading.  I love languages and the sound and richness of them.  

Written language peeves?  My very favourite?  Waterfalls of text that at first sight are daunting - making the reader at first sight want to take a deep breath before diving in - or deciding not to after all.  Important points usually become lost, a reader has to continually try to keep their place. Referring back to a sentence becomes an annoying task.  It is like trying to listen to someone who blurts and spouts without breath, going on and on without pause.  A listener has not a moment to consider.  Paragraphs are the visual pauses between written  thoughts.  Not using them is naive, lazy or inconsiderate.

Then there is the consistently misplaced 'your' for the contraction of you are.  It is 'you're' as in 'You are late for your classes.'   One of the contributing problems is that pronunciation is slurred with 'you're', which it shouldn't be.  It is not 'yer' (one syllable) but 'you' and 're' (two syllables that almost sound like 'you were' without the 'w') and it is 'your' as in yore.  Two different words.  I doubt if pronunciation is even much of an issue in schools today.  What about 'it's' (it is) used to show  contraction or possession?  The possessive form is correctly 'its'.  Its pages are torn.  (The book's pages are torn.) It's about to rain.  (It is about to rain.)  This is less strange, by the way, than 'Its gunna rain, ya know?'.  

I am not referring to typos here, forgetting an apostrophe, but consistent errors where it counts (discounting chat groups, forums, etc.).  I refer to printed material and websites outside of the personal pages realm.

Ah, well.  Perfection is something to strive for but it cannot be achieved - that being a viewpoint as well as a state not for humans. Doing the very best we can is the point.  Yet so many seem not to care even about these simple common errors.  

'You talk funny, ya know?'  You from overseas, huh?'  Yes, I suppose I do (tawk fuhnee).  I say 'about to rain' (as in it will soon commence to rain) or 'it looks like rain', not 'going to rain'.  Going to speak, going to scream, going to order, going to die!  Where is there to 'go'?  I must have this from the German language.  'Gehen '(to go)  is when you use your feet to move from A to B (walking).  We use other verbs to describe action.  When we 'go' using a car, we don't 'go to town', we 'drive to town' (fahren).

And a last one, favourite, colour, neighbour, spelt are (also) correctly spelt.  My spell checker is British.  When I write for a strictly US readership, I use the American English option.

Forgive my flaws in the English text.  Any of the languages I speak betray me as being 'foreign'.  I am told it is charming.  I hope so.  Greetings from Spain.

Top