Jumblers and scrabblers are well-versed in the art of the anagram, a technique that uses the shuffling of a given selection of letters to find new words. Anagrams can be a lot of fun, so it’s no surprise they are used in many popular word games and puzzles.
Key Features of the Anagrammatic Poem
Content: Always titled, and only letters featured in the title can be used
Form: The anagrammatic method can be combined with existing poetic forms (such as the haiku, sonnet, etc.) or used to create new ones.
The Cywydd llosgyrnog is the second Welsh form of this challenge and includes many of the features you come to expect from a Welsh form including: strict syllable count, both end rhymes and internal rhymes, and an extremely difficult-to-pronounce (and spell) name!
Using this handy online Guide to Welsh Pronunciation, the best I can suss out as far as the pronunciation of this form would sound something like “kuh-with th-laws-gurr-nog,” but please understand this is only an educated guess.
Requirements of the Form
The Cywydd llosgyrnog form prescribes no restrictions in content or meter, but there are various other requirements that must be adhered to rather strictly.
Form
– Consists of any number of single six-line stanzas (sestets)
Syllable Count
– Lines 1, 2, 4 and 5 contain eight syllables – Lines 3 and 6 have seven syllables
Rhyme
-End rhymes (lines 1-6): aabccb -Internal rhymes (lines 3 and 6*): ac *generally falling on syllable 3 or 4
When I stop to watch the deep blue Evening descend and the last few Fading hues of daylight’s dream Diffuse into the sloping plains A peace upon my mind again Falls like rain into a stream
The Minute Poem is a modern form of unknown origin. Despite it’s name–and fortunately for us–the Minute Poem is not a poem that you must write in 60 seconds. Rather, it’s a poem consisting of exactly sixty syllables. Further requirements in length, meter, and rhyme help this form stand out and make for a fun and fairly simple challenge.
Lucky for us, the Minute Poem counts syllables, not seconds.
Requirements of the Form
Form
– Consists of three quatrains (four-line stanzas) for a total of twelve lines
Meter
– Strict iambic (unstressed-stressed)
Syllable Count
– Eight syllables in the first line of each stanza – Four syllables in the proceeding lines of each stanza
Rhyme Scheme
– aabb/ccdd/eeff
Requirements Breakdown
1-xxxxxxxa 2-xxxa 3-xxxb 4-xxxb
5-xxxxxxxc 6-xxxc 7-xxxd 8-xxxd
9-xxxxxxxe 10-xxxe 11-xxxf 12-xxxf
An Original Minute Poem
I often sleep through summer’s storm
I often sleep through summer’s storm when nights are warm and thick with dreams or so it seems
the quilt pulled high covers my eyes as lightning flies like moon in shroud of creeping cloud
I wake to find the darkened road the flowers bowed the sagging sky the river high
**Special Announcement: This week’s post will feature a bonus original poem from poet and singer-songwriter Brandon Barnett!**
Meet the Décima
The Décima poetic form is widely used in poetry and song throughout Spain and Latin America, though the requirements may vary somewhat by region. People who write and perform décimas are often referred to as decimistas or deimeros. The form is also known as the espinela in Spanish, after the creator of the modern version of the décima, writer and musician Vicente Gómez Martínez-Espinel.
Photo caption: Spanish writer and musician Vicente Gómez Martínez-Espinel
Regional Variations
A few regional variations are listed below. Pick your favorite, or try them all!
Puerto Rico: Consists of a 10-line stanza, with 8 syllables per line (octosyllabic) and an abbaaccddc rhyme scheme
Italy: The decima Italiana is a 10-line poem, with 8-syllable lines and an ababcdedec rhyme scheme
Ecuador: Here the décima is a 44-line poem made up of a quatrain and four ten-line stanzas. It’s nearly identical to the glosa poetic form
Poetry and Song
The song form of the décima usually consists of 44 lines and is often improvised. Much like the “freestyle rap battle” of modern hip-hop, Decimeros often challenge one another with dueling songs as a way to show off the composer’s wit and skill.
Requirements of the Form
The requirements listed below are for the Puerto Rican poetic form:
Form
– Single 10-line stanza
Content
-Subject matter varies widely, but common themes include philosophy religion, and politics. Satirical décimas are often humorous.
Syllable Count
– 8 syllables per line
Rhyme Scheme
– abbaaccddc
An Original Décima Poem
After Maria
The cameras flash, Trump fakes a smile; He holds his breath, swallows a growl, And throws a roll of paper towels. Empathy missed by a mile For Puerto Rico, enchanted isle. No concern for the common health of neighbors in the commonwealth; Once slaving for the hacienda, Victims of encomienda, They fight to own a sense of self.
*An Original Décima Poem by Special Guest, Brandon Barnett*
We never knocked on rust-streaked doors but entered like the bums we were with hair so ragged–greased like fur– and alcohol from every pore
The only word we spoke was “more!” with glassy eyes on shining things refulgent suds the evening brings and singing out in harmony
But all that now is far from me Though oft-recalled with mem’ry strings
Astra Poetica 