Pretty Ugly Words

Form: Oddquain


Number of Lines:
5 lines minimum


Rules:
Oddquain is a short, usually unrhymed poem consisting of seventeen syllables distributed 1, 3, 5, 7, 1 in five lines,

Meter:
*No*

Rhyme Scheme:
none


Choices for the poets to make this week: Your poem can be about any topic and here are some variations to consider:

oddquain sequences - poems made up of oddquain stanzas

crown oddquains - a five stanza oddquain sequence

reverse oddquains - an oddquain with a reverse syllable pattern of 1-7-5-3-1

mirror oddquains - a two stanza oddquain sequence of the pattern 1-3-5-7-1 1-7-5-3-1

oddquain butterflies - a “merged mirror oddquain” where the two stanzas of a mirror oddquain are merged together, one of the middle 1 syllable lines is dropped, resulting in one nine-line stanza of the form 1-3-5-7-1-7-5-3-1. Please note that an oddquain butterfly is not an “oddquain” because it doesn’t have five lines, but it is “butterfly” made up of two oddquains that were merged together into one poem.


Example:
Autumn

Fall
leaves floating
downward, spiral dance
of joy begun, welcoming
fall.

Copyright © 2006 Glenda L. Hand