Stephanie Says So

Monday, April 25, 2022

Day 25 ~ Diatelle Poem

Okay – this poetry challenge is almost over. It’s been lots of fun. I hope you have been enjoying yourself. I think you’ve proven you are all up for a new challenge – I have only shared this poetic form twice in the ten years I’ve been doing poetry month. So, I figure maybe it’s time to use it again. Ya’ ready????

Writing a DIATELLE POEM can be a bit tricky – it’s still all about counting syllables (remember, there IS a syllable counter online if you need it) and about rhyming CERTAIN lines SPECIFICALLY with other lines. If you DON’T follow it precisely, you won’t get the desired result – you’ll get a poem, no doubt, just not a “Diatelle Poem” which is today’s poetry form.

It’s a fairly new form created by Bradley Vrooman. So since I STILL haven’t even attempted this form yet (that’s kind of embarrassing), I’m using Bradley Vrooman’s poem as an example, with the syllable count per line in blue and the rhyming pattern in red to make it easy to see the format. I hope to get back to add in one or two of my own. In the meantime, let’s see what you come up with ~ I’ve included a pretty nifty chart to help with the details:

It looks best if you can center it – kind of has a diamond shape because of the order of the syllable count, which is: 1-2-3-4-6-8-10-12-10-8-6-4-3-2-1,

And it has a VERY SPECIFIC RHYMING PATTERN – every line that ends with the "A pattern" – needs to rhyme with each other. The same for letters B and C ~ here is the pattern to follow:

A-B-B-C-B-C-C-A-C-C-B-C-B-B- A

So, you can see it will be a bit trickier than those we have done in the past – but I bet it’s one you probably haven’t heard much of before – that’s what I was going for – something new.

I created a little pattern box to help you sort it all out – see below –

Bradley Vrooman’s Example:

Smooth Sailing

Walk (Syllable count 1 - rhyme: a)
With me (2 - b)
And simply (3 - b)
With arms around (4 - c)
Each other's waist, happy (6 - b)
Moving about the day, as bound (8 - c)
As ever can be, with true love abound (10 - c)
Lay with me all day and all night, my world you rock (12 - a)
Passion’s fire, a desire induced by sound (10 - c)
Pure as light, each spectrum surround (8 - c)
Hypnotized as can be (6 - b)
Love that’s profound (4 - c)
Spoken free (3 - b)
With me (2 - b)
Talk(1 - a)

- written by Bradley Vrooman

Diatelle Poetry Chart ~ match the ending rhyming words with the same color (grey columns are because NONE of the lines end in that number of syllables).

		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
1	A
2	B
3	B
4	C
6	B
8	C
10	C
12	A
10	C
8	C
6	B
4	C
3	B
2	B
1	A

The above example uses Caps at the beginning of each line. There is no rule on if or when to use them. Just do what works for your poem. Cheers!!

GOOD LUCK!! Whatcha’ got?

PLEASE REMEMBER ~ any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission, other than sharing it as an example in a lesson or to read it to someone. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments of this blog or elsewhere online as a result of this challenge. They are the creative property of the person who writes them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them without their permission. It is understood that they own the copyright to them as soon as they write them and especially as soon as they post them. Thanks so much!

Also, if you choose to post your poems on your own blog ~ that’s awesome. But PLEASE don’t just copy and paste my daily instructions, but rather post your poem on your blog or your FB wall or wherever AND LINK BACK TO THIS BLOG POST for others to come here to read the instructions. I’ve spent considerable time researching the poetry forms and writing them up to share with you. Thanks for respecting my work and the work of others.

Sunday, April 24, 2022

Day 24 ~ Haiku

Well, let’s keep things simple today ~ it’s about time we did some Haiku poems!! Pretty much everyone knows how to write one but here are some interesting details . . .

Haiku is a popular and well-known form of poetry that started in Japan in the sixteenth century.

It usually centers on a nature theme, but you can make one up about anything.

Haiku poems don’t rhyme but they do follow a pattern.

They are very short, structured poems with three lines and a total of 17 syllables. The lines in a haiku follow a set pattern:

Line 1: 5 syllables

Line 2: 7 syllables

Line 3: 5 syllables

You need to pay attention to the number of SYLLABLES, not words.

Here are a couple of examples:

A soft, gentle breeze

Tickles leaves in my front yard

And I know He’s there.

Golden ball of fire

Slips behind the horizon

A desert goodnight

(Photo courtesy of Bob Murray of Scottsdale, AZ - used with permission)

And as a “heads up” for Tuesday (Apr.26) start glancing at the book spines on your shelves because we will be doing “Book Spine” poetry where you stack up books flat on top of each other with the spine side showing in a way that the titles make up a “poem” ~ like this:

I Dare You
The Double Cross
Counting the Cost
Don’t

PLEASE REMEMBER ~ any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission, other than sharing it as an example in a lesson or to read it to someone. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments of this blog or elsewhere online as a result of this challenge. They are the creative property of the person who writes them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them without their permission. It is understood that they own the copyright to them as soon as they post them. Thanks so much!

Saturday, April 23, 2022

Day 23 ~ Tetractys Poem

This is kind of a cool poetry form. I’ve only used it once before during poetry month and that was about 3 years ago. It’s called a Tetractys poem. It has some mathematical components to it if you want to write more than one stanza so don’t just read the initial instructions and rush off to write one – read to the end and decide if you want to write more than one verse. I have only used this form once myself (back in 2019) and being out of town and busy with family I’m going to use the poem I made up then for my example. .

This poetic form was created by Ray Stebbing and consists of 20 total syllables, with no need for a title and no need for rhyming (although you can rhyme if you wish) arranged in the following fashion:

NOTE: For the first one syllable line strive to use an interesting word; not just the article “A” or “The”

Line 1 ~ one syllable

Line 2 ~ two syllables

Line 3 ~ three syllables

Line 4 ~ four syllables

Line 5 ~ TEN syllables

So, that’s the basic outline, but things get more interesting than that! This could be a magical poem for you! The ancient Greek mathematician, Euclid of Alexandria, felt the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 were magical because they add up to TEN. And there are your first ten syllables. The last ten syllables all fall on the same line, 5.

And that can stand alone as a complete Tetractys poem.

However, there can also be Double and Triple Tetractys poems, etc. simply by reversing the process.

Here’s an example of the form for more than one verse:

X•X

X•X•X

X•X•X•X

X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X

X•X•X•X

X•X•X

X•X

(and if you want a third verse, flip it again)

X•X

X•X•X

X•X•X•X

X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X•X

(You can make as many verses are you wish as long as each subsequent verse

is reversed from the previous one in terms of the syllable count).

Here is my example:

Love

As true

And sweet as

Ours can only

Grow with forgiveness, humor and patience

Over the years we have experienced

Loss of our son

Happiness

Sadness

Love

Friday, April 22, 2022

Day 22 ~ Acrostic and/or ABC Poem

Day 22, 2022 ~ Acrostic and/or ABC Poem“30 Poems in 30 Days”

#NationalPoetryMonth ”

Most people have heard about and even written an “acrostic” poem. It’s a rather simple pattern and can be quite fun to do. You can choose any word to be your base – a word or name that you write down the left-hand side of your paper, one letter under another. See farther down below to also get the “skinny” on ABC poems.

And PLEASE keep reading to the end if you have never heard my poetry story about Fiona and the Snake Poem from when I was teaching English in China ~ super cute. Just sayin’

SO, it only takes a few steps to get started with an ACROSTIC POEM ~

1. Choose a name or the object of your poem.

2. Write that name or that word down the left-hand side of your paper vertically, generally using all capital letters.

3. Start each sentence of your poem with the capital letter on that line.

4. No need to worry about rhyming or counting syllables or anything.

5. Each line can be whatever length you choose, from one word to a longer sentence.

Example:

One word/line acrostic for the name “Susan” (Yes, I know this is a lame example, but it’s just an example. I know you can do better):

Super

Unique

Sweet

Understanding

Nice

Or, use the first letter as the beginning of a sentence instead of a single word.

ABC Poems are basically the same thing EXCEPT it is a TWENTY-SIX line poem where every line starts with the next letter of the alphabet, in order. Every example I have seen, the word (or a tense of the word) EXCEPT has been used for the letter “X” (up to you, but it’s a common choice for the line that “starts with the letter X”

In 2016 I went to China to teach English at an “English Camp” during their winter break. I have shared this before but I really can’t let this poetry form pass without sharing this delightful experience once again. I had a 14-year-old student named “Fiona.” I explained how to write an acrostic poem and suggested to the students that they choose a favorite animal for their poem. I gave additional details and then they got busy.

Soon they were showing me their poems. They did a wonderful job. Then Fiona turned in her poem:

Snow is falling down.

No one wants to stay outside.

A little girl stands at my front door.

Knocks it with a little cry.

Early afternoon, she falls asleep in my room.

I read it and told it that it was a lovely poem but it had nothing to do with a snake. She replied, “But I wrote ‘snake’ down the left-hand side.”

So I explained that the poem also needed to be ABOUT a snake if that was the word she chose. She said, “Okay,” took the paper back, added a few words, and turned it back in…

Here is what she added to that last line of “Early afternoon, she falls asleep in my room … and then she turned into a snake.”

I loved it!! Love her!! I laughed so hard. It is a cherished memory. And now, you can enjoy it too. Cheers!!

Whatcha’ got?

PLEASE REMEMBER ~ any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission, other than sharing it as an example in a lesson or to read it to someone. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments of this blog or elsewhere online as a result of this challenge. They are the creative property of the person who writes them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them without their permission. It is understood that they own the copyright to them as soon as they write them and especially once they post them. Thanks so much!

Photo credit - Pixabay

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Day 21 ~ Cinquain Poems [3 ways]

Cinquain Poems [3 ways] for “30 Poems in 30 Days” for #NationalPoetryMonth 2022

Okay, so bear with me today as this might be a big long BUT – we will be writing one of my all-time favorite poetic forms ~ Cinquain ~ I have shared this poetry form with a couple of variations every year that I have run this poetry challenge because I love it so much!

Although I have enjoyed and dabbled in poetry (some rhyming and some not) all my life, it wasn’t until I attended a poetry workshop in the late 90s and was taught a few specific poetry forms, starting with cinquains, that I realized how fun following a specific poetic form (like those I have been sharing with all of you each day this month) can be.

Here is the poem I created that night which pretty much started me down my current poetry path:

Comfort

Feeling secure

Where judgment has no place

Wrapped in the safety of your arms

Husband

That night I was taught just one way of doing cinquains: using a specific number of syllables per line with exact requirements – (subject, description, action, thoughts/feelings, and back to subject with a different word) and thought that was it, but have since learned there are more ways to write a cinquain poem.

In years past, I usually share “Cinquain – pattern 1” and then the next day, “Cinquain – pattern 2,” and thought that was it, but I keep finding additional varieties so I think I’ll try to give the directions to the three most common and also a link to help you pick and choose the style you want, or better yet, try them all out. Good idea?

Cinq is French for FIVE

The DICTIONARY says a “cinquain” is a short poem consisting of five, usually unrhymed lines containing, respectively, two, four, six, eight, and two syllables.

From poets.org: Cinquain: Poetic Form we read that the cinquain, also known as a quintain or quintet, is a poem or stanza composed of five lines. Examples of cinquains can be found in many European languages, and the origin of the form dates back to medieval French poetry.

So, basically, here is what I call Cinquain pattern 1:

This short five-lined poem doesn’t have an actual title; rather, the FIRST line (two syllables in this case) becomes the title.

It does not rhyme and in this version, you count the number of SYLLABLES per line and each line has specific requirements. The first line has 2 syllables; each line increases by 2 syllables until the last line, which returns to 2 syllables.

RESIST the urge to add words - follow the pattern - you'll be surprised at your results!!

1^st line ~ two syllables – the subject (or title) or your poem

2^nd line ~ four syllables that describe the title/subject

3^rd line ~ six syllables that express action

4^th line ~ eight syllables that express a thought or feeling

5^th line ~ two syllables that show a synonym for the title (restates your subject from the first line using a different word)

Here’s a second example of that form:

Poems

Feelings expressed

From down deep in my heart

So you know who I am I’ll sing

Word Songs

~~~~~~~

AND here is Cinquain pattern 2:

It has basically the same format except that instead of counting syllables per line, we are counting WORDS per line:

1^st line ~ one word – the subject (or title) or your poem

2^nd line ~ two words that describe the title/subject

3^rd line ~ three words that express action

4^th line ~ four words that express a thought or feeling

5^th line ~ one word synonym for title (restates your subject using a different word)

Here's an example of this style poem:

Service

Helping others

Let’s work together

Bearing one another’s burdens

Love

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cinquain pattern 3: ~ Poem with five lines.

There are a certain number of words in each line, with SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS PER LINE:

Line1: A noun (basically, THIS is your title)

Line 2: Two adjectives

Line 3: Three "-ing" words

Line 4: A phrase

Line 5: Another word for starting noun

Babies

Sweet, precious

Laughing, babbling, crying

If only they stayed little

Adorable

No doubt, other variations exist – but this should do it for now on CINQUAINS!! Enjoy!

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Day 20 ~ 5W’s Poem

Y’all are doing great!! Today we will do a favorite of mine – simple, direct, and very useful.

The 5 W's Poem

This is an obvious poem. It can be sweet, silly, romantic, or serious, etc., depending on how you respond on each line. Since you are basically just answering questions, it’s a very simple poem to start out with.

This poem answers the 5 W’s: Who, What, Where, When & Why.

The only question of this nature that it does not address is “How.”

These poems have no need to rhyme, nor are the lines any particular length, meter, or subject. So, it’s a pretty simple poetry form to follow:

Line 1: Who (or what) is the poem about?
Line 2: What action is happening?
Line 3: Where does the action take place?
Line 4: When does the action take place?
Line 5: Why does this action happen?

There is no need for a title to this poem because the first line tells what it is about and serves as the title as well as part of the poem:

EXAMPLES:

A certain 17-year old I know
Questions everything.
At home, at school, at church,
when he doesn't understand.
Because that's what people do who want to change the world.

My children
Laughing, wrestling, creating
Tumble through the living room
Every day after school
Because they feel safe and loved

Our loving Heavenly Father
Prepared a plan of Happiness,
In the heavens,
Before the world was,
So we could return and live with Him.

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Day 19 ~ Rhyme Royal Poem

Y’all are doing great so far!! Today we will explore7-lined poems called “septets.” Even though a septet can be a poem of any form or meter as long as it has seven lines, let’s STRETCH ourselves and explore a SPECIFIC type of septet: a RHYME ROYAL. This is actually the most common form of septet poetry and the only 7-lined poem to have its own special name.

A Rhyme Royal was popularized by Geoffrey Chaucer and it began to be called “royal” because James I of Scotland used it for his own verses.

It has VERY SPECIFIC guidelines, which are:

SEVEN LINES, each having EXACTLY TEN SYLLABLES in them.

There is also a SPECIFIC rhyming PATTERN: a·b·a·b·b·c·c

The ending rhyme pattern can be the tricky part, but give it a try!

An example can be found in William Wordsworth poem, “Resolution and Independence”

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45545/resolution-and-independence

So your topic can be anything as long as the poem is 7 lines long and each line has 10 syllables in it and the ending rhymes follow the pattern a·b·a·b·b·c·c

And if that makes you crazy, just write any ol’ septet, which is a seven-lined poem of any form you choose, including free verse.

Here is an example:

Being with my family is the best.

Laughing, crying, and playing together.
We have such fun when we are on quest.
Loving and supporting one another.
Father and mother, sister and brother.
Families can be eternally bound.
This is the way true happiness is found.

And here I have broken it down by lines and ending rhymes:

1. Being with my family is the best. A
2. Laughing, crying, and playing together. B
3. We have such fun when we are on quest. A
4. Loving and supporting one another. B
5. Father and mother, sister and brother. B
6. Families can be eternally bound. C
7. This is the way true happiness is found. C

Okay, YOUR TURN!! Cheers!!

Stephanie Says So

Monday, April 25, 2022

Day 25 ~ Diatelle Poem

Sunday, April 24, 2022

Day 24 ~ Haiku

Saturday, April 23, 2022

Day 23 ~ Tetractys Poem

Friday, April 22, 2022

Day 22 ~ Acrostic and/or ABC Poem

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Day 21 ~ Cinquain Poems [3 ways]

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Day 20 ~ 5W’s Poem

Line 1: Who (or what) is the poem about?
Line 2: What action is happening?
Line 3: Where does the action take place?
Line 4: When does the action take place?
Line 5: Why does this action happen?

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Day 19 ~ Rhyme Royal Poem

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Line 1: Who (or what) is the poem about? Line 2: What action is happening? Line 3: Where does the action take place? Line 4: When does the action take place? Line 5: Why does this action happen?

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Search This Blog

Follow Me on Pinterest

About the Books I Review

Total Pageviews

About Me

Followers

Blog Archive

BLOG AWARD

Line 1: Who (or what) is the poem about?
Line 2: What action is happening?
Line 3: Where does the action take place?
Line 4: When does the action take place?
Line 5: Why does this action happen?