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Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Mystic

Mystic
Yearnings in the
Silence of the night, seeking
Transformation and redemption,
Inklings of what
Comes next.


Note: This was written for a prompt over at Imaginary Garden with Real Toads asking us to come up with our own short poetic form.  I call this a Symmetrical Acrostic.  I approached it like a traditional acrostic, with the letters of the title determining the first word of each line.  I used the title as the first line of the poem.  I then doubled the number of syllables in that word to determine the number of syllables in the next line, continuing doubling on every line until reaching the middle point of the poem, then reversed the pattern to get to the last line.  It actually sounds more complicated than it is.  Here's an example of how this particular poem worked out.

  1. M - 2 syllables
  2. Y - 4 syllables
  3. S - 8 syllables
  4. T - 8 syllables
  5. I - 4 syllables
  6. C - 2 syllables
It was a nice challenge, to be sure. I will keep working at this poetic form trying to perfect it.

5 comments:

Mary said...

I enjoyed the form AND the result! I think it is fun inventing one's own form and giving it a try.

Kerry O'Connor said...

This is a very original take on an acrostic style poem. I think your syllable count has given a strong structure to the whole, and your theme comes across very well.

Anonymous said...

Mary, I loved this form, although I rarely write anything other than free verse. You are onto something here... also, the acrostic was effective, not forced in any way to "fit" the parameters of the second form. Lovely. Peace, Amy
http://sharplittlepencil.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/hiatus-but-first-a-little-chi-chi/

Maude Lynn said...

That's really cool!

Traci B said...

I love acrostics, and this variation on it is a fun challenge. The poem itself is excellent; it flows naturally from one line to the next.