48 Writing Assignment: Sound Poem

Directions

Write a poem that has rhythm or musicality in it. You may write it in first-person point of view (I, me, my, we us, etc.) or third-person point of view (he, she, it, they, etc.). Here is a list of poem suggestions:

  • Write about a wild animal in nature like Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem “The Eagle.”
  • Write about an accident or event like Robert Frost’s poem “Out, Out–.”
  • Write a poem that has a specific beat like William Blake’s poem “The Lamb.”
  • Write a poem that uses enjambment like John Keats’ poem “Endymion.”
  • Write a poem that rhymes. However, be careful. You don’t want it sound forced or poor in quality.

You get the idea, right? Brainstorm a list of your own ideas, a variation of one of the above, or use one of the above ideas.

Show Don’t Tell

Remember to use specific nouns and strong action verbs. Remember to use your senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. Remember to include literary devices like assonance, consonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhythm, meter, end-line stop, enjambment, caesura. Of course, poets use less words than fiction writers, too.

Line Breaks

Follow the traditional line breaks and format that most free-verse poets use. Make the line breaks where there is punctuation, an end of a phrase, or the end of a sentence unless you are deliberately using enjambment.

Final Draft Instructions

Follow these instructions for typing the final draft:

  • The poem must be typed in a Microsoft Word file (.docx).
  • It must have one-inch margins, be single-spaced, and typed in a 12 pt. readable font like Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial.
  • Don’t allow the auto-correct in Microsoft Word to capitalize the first line of each poem. Use conventional English rules to write your lines.
  • In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example:

Jane Doe
ENGL 1465–Creative Writing
Due Date
Writing Assignment: Sound Poem

  • Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title. Capitalize the first word and each important word in the title.

 

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Introduction to Creative Writing by Lumen Learning is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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