Stave Stanza

Type: Stanzaic; rhyme; repetition; isosyllabic.

Description: A variation on using couplets to construct a sestet. The form consists oa a refrain line which is the last line of each stanza, therefore the last couplet of each stanza also rhymes. Lines should be isosyllabic.

Schematic: aabbcC ddeecC ffggcC etc

Stanza Length: 6 lines

Poem Length: 18 + lines

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Echo Sonnets

Type: Structure, meter, isosyllabic, rhyme, refrain

Description: The echo sonnet, created by Jeff Green, is similar to the kyrielle sonnet in that it consists of three quatrains and a heroic couplet. The last line of each quatrain (A2) and the couplet is the refrain line which can be a repeated whole line, phrase or end word. The first line of the first quatrain (A1)also repeats as the first line of the couplet. The form has a rhyme scheme and is preferably composed of lines of iambic pentameter.

Rhyme Scheme: A1bbA2 accA2 addA2 A1A2

Line Length: Decasyllabic

Poem Length: 14 lines

Example:

The Bridge of Dreams by Jeff Green

Each night inside a dream you walk with me
To lands where past and future fade away
Where everything is lost in just one day
The clouds have built a bridge across the sea

I learned to live a dream so we could be
The walkers on that road to everywhere
A perfect life that lovers seldom share
The clouds now carry us across the sea

With head upon the pillow I am free
To hold you as my own for evermore
We'll be together on that distant shore
The clouds have built a ship to cross the sea

Each night inside a dream you walk with me
Upon the bridge of ships that's crossed the sea

Resources:

http://allpoetry.com/list/59666-Echo-Sonnets

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Bowlesian Sonnet

Type: Metric; Structure; Isosyllabic; Rhyme Scheme

Description: An English style sonnet in that it is three quatrains and a heroic couplet, but the quatrains are Italian rather than Sicilian in their rhyme schemes. Pivot somewhere between lines 9 and 13. Created by William Lisle Bowles

Schematic: abba cddc effe gg

Meter: iambic

Line length: pentameter

Form Notation:

xXxXxXxXxa
xXxXxXxXxb
xXxXxXxXxb
xXxXxXxXxa

xXxXxXxXxc
xXxXxXxXxd
xXxXxXxXxd
xXxXxXxXxc

xXxXxXxXxe
xXxXxXxXxf
xXxXxXxXxf
xXxXxXxXxe

xXxXxXxXxg
xXxXxXxXxg


Poem Length: 14 lines

Example:

Bereavement by William Lisle Bowles

Whose was that gentle voice, that, whispering sweet,
Promised me thought long days of bliss sincere!
Soothing it stole on my deluded ear,
Most like soft music, that might sometimes cheat.

Thoughts dark and drooping! 'Twas the voice of Hope.
Of love and social scenes, it seemed to speak,
Of truth, of friendship, of affection meek;
That, oh! poor friend, might to life's downward slope

Lead us in peace, and bless are latest hours.
Ah me! the prospect saddened as she sung;
Loud on my startled ear the death bell rung;
Chill darkness wrapt the pleasurable bowers,

Whilst Horror pointing to yon breathless clay,
'No peace be thine,' exclaimed, 'away, away!'

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Brace Octave

Type: structure, rhyme, stanzaic

Description: an eight-line stanza form with end of line rhyme scheme. There is no meter or line length requirement

Schematic: Rhyme: abbaabba
abbacddc

Poem Length: octave

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Blues Stanza

Type: structure, meter, repetition, rhyme, stanzaic

Description: a three-line stanza rhymed AAa The second line is a variant (incremental repetition) of the first-line, usually written in iambic pentameter. It is not unusual for the whole poem to be a complaint or lament. Lines are normally broken by a caesure between phrases

Schematic: xX xX xX xX xA
xX xX xX xX xA
xX xX xX xX xa

Meter: iambic pentameter

Stanza Length: 3 lines

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Ballad Meter

Type: structure, meter, rhyme, stanzaic. Description: Ballad measure is a four-line stanzaic form usually rhymed abcb and consisting of alternating tetrameter and trimeter lines. Normally it is accentual-syllabic, such as iambic meter, though they can be podic with variable numbers of unaccented syllables. Schema: xX xX xX xa xX xX xb xX xX xX xc xX xX xb Stanza Length: quatrain.
© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Ballad

Type: refrain, structure, meter, rhyme, stanzaic.

Description: Short narrative poem compromising of quatrains. Usually written in ballad meter of alternating iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter. The rhyme scheme is usually alternating lines. Ballads have a refrain stanza.

Schema:

xX xX xX xA (Refrain)
xX xX xB
xX xX xX xA
xX xX xB

xX xX xX xc
xX xX xd
xX xX xX xc
xX xX xd

Stanza Length: quatrain.

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Balassi Stanza

Type: structure, rhyme, stanzaic.

Description: A nine-line stanzaic form where the lines are grouped in three-line sets with syllable counts 6, 6, and 7. The first two lines of each set is a couplet. The third, and longer line, carries the main rhyme in the third, sixth and ninth line of the stanza. Created by Balint Balassi.

Schema:

xxxxxb
xxxxxb
xxxxxxA
xxxxxc
xxxxxc
xxxxxxA
xxxxxd
xxxxxd
xxxxxxA

Poem Length: 9 lines

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Awdl Gywydd

Type: structure, meter, rhyme, stanzaic.

Description: Pronounced ‘owdl gow-widd’. Seven syllable quatrains with end rhymes and couplet binding. Welsh origin.

Schema:

xxxxxxa
xxaxxxb (a can be 3rd or 4th syllable)
xxxxxxc
xxcxxxb (c can be 3rd or 4th syllable)

Mid-line rhymes a and c can be various forms of rhyme but the end of line rhyme b should be perfect rhyme.

Stanza Length: quatrain.

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Alternating Quatrain

Type: structure, rhyme scheme, stanzaic.

Description: Four-line stanzas rhymed abab. They can conform to other rules, such as having lines of iambic pentameter (Sicilian quatrains), but they need not even be metered as long as they rhyme.

Schema: Rhyme: abab

Stanza length: quatrain.

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Alcaics

Type: structure, meter, stanzaic

Description: This form is Greek. It is a quatrain form, described in technical terms of meter, the first two lines of each stanza consists of an acephelous iamb, two trochees and two dactyls, the third line is composed of an acephelous iamb and four trochees and the last line is two dactyls and two trochees. The form is unrhymed.

Schematic:

X Xx Xx Xxx Xxx
X Xx Xx Xxx Xxx
X Xx Xx Xx Xx
Xxx Xxx Xx Xx

Meter: mixed

Line length: between 9 and 11 syllables

Poem Length: unlimited

Example:

Good Morning Mister Christopher Basleget
How goes the Day in Bathampton Somerset?
Drum beats sound Loudly Mangled like Mumerset
Winningly playing the Congo Bongo

by Jeff Green

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.

Ae Freislighe

Type: Structure, metric, rhyme, stanzaic

Description: Accordingly is pronounced ‘ay freshly’. This is an Irish syllabic quatrain stanza form. The simplified version for English language poets is as follows. Each line consists of seven syllables. Lines 1 and 3 of each quatrain ends with a triple syllable rhyme. Lines 2 and 4 of each quatrain ends with a double syllable rhyme. The poem traditionally ends as it began, either the first syllable, word, phrase or line (in Gaelic this is known as a dunedh).

Schematic:

xxxx (xxa)
xxxxx (xb)
xxxx (xxa)
xxxxx (xb)

Stanza length: Quatrain

© Jem Farmer 2008, all rights reserved.