Most of my English 131 - Intro to Poetry Writing assignments:
(Couplet in iambic pentameter with variations)
/ x ´ / x ´ , / ´ x / x ´ / x ´ / x a
/ ´ x / x ´ / x ´ / x ´ / x ´ / x a
Standard can weigh from ten to twenty ounces.
***
On January 1st, it came to town—
the smoking ban that chased away the butts
of cigarettes from public buildings’ grounds.
The flagpole in Polk Place is now the home
of Tar Heel smokers—students, teachers, and
some other folks who like to watch the smoke.
New blades of grass of half-chewed Camels reign
around the Newport-buds. Saliva-dew.
Is it the best location to light up,
a hundred feet from school facilities?
Before and after: still free to pollute.
The stench of rolled up nicotine now floats
beneath the colors of red, white, and blue.
Ekphrastic Poem
(Quatrain in iambic pentameter)
/ - ´ / x ´ / x ´ / x ´ / x ´ a
/ x ´ / x ´ / xx ´/ x ´ / x ´ b
Julie's hair is red drupes in one tress.
She stands, a Thing in the Forest in her dream
of many colors. And hanging from her dress,
a single sleeve, ruffles colored cream.
***
Combo-Sonnet
(Iambic pentameter with variations, abab cdcd efef gg)
Compressor, hammer, level, pulley—screw!
Gil Grissom didn’t know what to believe.
He went to fetch the rest of the sleuth crew.
A bloody hammer glistened in the nook;
head was made of steel (for efficient bounces).
A deadly weapon… Here, come take a look:
Standard can weigh from ten to twenty ounces.
Julie’s hair was braided in one tress.
She stood, a Thing in the Forest in her dream
of many colors. Now hanging from her dress,
a single sleeve, ruffles colored cream,
was stained in red: nothing’s what it seems.
Unsolved mystery in the world of dreams…
