Week Six: The Décima

On By Adam AstraIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

**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

Online Resources

Decima – Wikipedia
The Decima –  Puerto Rican Cuatro Project
Decima – Writer’s Digest
Decima Poem Lesson – American Collection
Vicente Espinel – Wikipedia

The Miltonic Sonnet

On By Adam AstraIn creative writing, poetic forms challenge, poetry, Poetry Challenge, writing1 Comment
52 Forms Revisited: this post has been revised and streamlined with refreshed links and new original content (November 2025)

John Milton (1608-1674)

The Miltonic Sonnet is named after the 17th century English poet, political writer, and civil servant, John Milton. With the publishing of his epic poem Paradise Lost, widely regarded as one of the greatest works written in the English language, Milton solidified his reputation as one of the greatest English poets of his time. Milton’s work would go on to influence Romantic poets such as William Blake and William Wordsworth.

Photo caption: A wood engraving from the 19th century depicts a blind John Milton dictating his influential epic poem “Paradise Lost” (Fortuné Louis Méaulle / Wellcome Library) 

Milton’s Sonnet

Starting with the then-popular Petrachan sonnet (named for Italian poet-scholar Petrach), Milton made several changes to make the form his own. He took the sonnet out of the category of love poem and brought it into the spheres of politics, religion, and social issues. He also introduced enjambment (the technique of carrying one line through into the next), while at the same time removing the break between the first and second stanzas, thus tightening up the form. By removing the volta (also known as a pivot, or turn) after the octave (first eight lines) and varying the rhyme scheme of the sestet (proceeding six lines), he further reshaped the form.

The following poem—one of Milton’s most famous—demonstrates these contributions to the evolution of the sonnet:

“When I Consider How My Light Is Spent”*

When I consider how my light is spent,
    Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
    And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
    My true account, lest He returning chide;
    “Doth God exact day-labor, light denied?”
I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need
    Either man’s work or His own gifts. Who best
    Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best. His state
Is kingly: thousands at His bidding speed,
    And post o’er land and ocean without rest;
   They also serve who only stand and wait.”

*provided courtesy of Poetry Foundation

Requirements of the Form

Structure

– Fourteen lines
– No spaces between parts (written as a single stanza)
– Lines contain enjambment
eg: Who best / Bear His mild yoke…His state / Is kingly…

Content

– Occasional (celebrating an event), political, and religious subjects
– Unlike other sonnets, does not have a distinct volta (or pivot) after the eighth line

Meter

– Iambic pentameter (ten syllables per line, unstressed-stressed pattern).

Rhyme Scheme

– First eight lines (octave): abbaabba
– Preceding six lines (sestet): often cdecde, but variable

An Original Miltonic Sonnet

The viral image haunted every screen—
A photograph too horrid to ignore:
A pair of bloated bodies on the shore.
In Congress followed yet another scene
Of bickering and washing white-hands clean.
No older than The Virgin when she bore
The Savior that they claim to so adore,
The budding mother wonders what they mean.
As children hungry, dirty, sick and scared
Are torn away and locked in concrete halls
Lay weak with worry, overwhelmed with fear,
The value of their lives is weighed and tared;
As Washington debates the costs of walls,
Who dares to speak of Christ’s compassion here?

Notes on My Original Sonnet

I challenged myself to write a sonnet that was true to the Miltonic themes of politics, religion, and current events, and found in the issue of immigration a combination of all three. The line “children hungry, dirty, sick and scared” was taken from this BBC News article and served as the fulcrum of this poem.

Online Resources


Sonnet Examples – Poetry Through the Ages
Miltonic Sonnet – Poetry Magnum Opus
John Milton – Wikipedia
Petrarchan Sonnet – Wikipedia

Fifty-Two Form Poetry Challenge: Introduction

On By Adam AstraIn creative writing, original poetry, poetic forms challenge, poetry, Poetry Challenge, writing18 Comments

Wordsmiths and Versifiers,
Rhymesters and Sonneteers,
Bards and Balladeers…

Welcome to the Fifty-Two Form
Poetry Challenge!

The Challenge: Fifty-Two Forms in Fifty-Two Weeks.

In preparation for this challenge, I’ve collected as many unique poetic forms as I could find, giving each a number. Over the next 52 weeks, I’ll randomly select one form each week and make my best attempt to write an original poem, taking care to follow the chosen form’s particular conventions. I’ll share what I’ve learned along the way, with lots of links to further resources that I’ve found useful.

In each weekly post, I’ll provide an overview of the selected form, including a brief history, specific form requirements (meter, rhyme, syllable-count, etc.), and a few tips and techniques I found useful when working in the form. Each post will conclude with an original poem.

What you’ll need to play along:

– A list of at least 52 unique forms. I suggest collecting as many as you can (why not?). Robert Lee Brewer’s List of 168 Poetic Forms for Poets is a great place to start. Assign a number to each form you collect.

– A way to randomly select a number from 1 to 52. You can use an online random-number generator or fifty-two slips of paper in a ten-gallon hat. Have fun with it!

About the Author

I am not a professional writer or even a published poet. I am not a professor, scholar, or literary historian, and I speak with little authority on the subject of poetry as a whole. I do, however, consider myself an earnest enthusiast and lifelong student of poetry. As an undergrad, I had the extreme privilege of studying creative writing under former Kansas Poet Laureate Kevin Rabas at Emporia State University, and poetry under another Kansas Poet Laureate, the wonderful Eric McHenry, at Washburn University in Topeka.

As a songwriter, I’m especially interested in the intersection between music and poetry, and I’m excited to explore all the possible ways I may find to incorporate aspects of what I learn through this process into my songwriting endeavors. I believe all things are enhanced by the clarity, power, and imagination that a poetic perspective can bring.

This is my first attempt at such a lengthy challenge, and will also be my first time regularly publishing online. I embark on this adventure on the day of my 36th birthday. Please wish me luck, courage, and fortitude!

References and Acknowledgements

Robert Lee Brewer’s List of 168 Poetic Forms for Poets for The Writer’s Digest [updated 4/1/25] served both as an inspiration for the project and an essential online source of reference information and examples.

Edward Hirsch’s 700+ page A Poet’s Glossary is an exhaustive and equally indispensable source of both information and inspiration. Hirsch’s How to Read a Poem is also highly recommended.

Both aspiring and long-practicing poets would do well to keep a copy of Mary Oliver’s concise and gracefully crafted A Poetry Handbook close at hand.

On a more personal note, a special thanks to Eric McHenry for his invaluable guidance and enthusiastic support.