G
Guest
Guest
Has anyone here written any cinquains?
They can be fun.
What is a cinquain?
They were, believe it or not, invented by American Poet Adelaide Crapsey.
At the most basic level a cinquain is a diamond shaped five line poem or stanza.
The poem has one topic and the details describe the the topic's actions and feelings.
There are different schools of thought about what the "rules" of writing cinquains are.
Here are two variations you might try:
Method One
Line 1 - one word for the topic
Line 2 - 2 words to describes your topic
Line 3 - 3 words that describes the actions relating to your topic
Line 4 - 4 words that describes the feelings relating to your topic
Line 5 - one word that is another name for your topic
Method Two
Line 1 - two syllables
Line 2 - four syllables
Line 3 - six syllables
Line 4 - eight syllables
Line 5 - two syllables
Some other ideas:
Write about a noun. Cinquains generally fail if you try to make them about emotions, philosophies or other complex subjects. They should be about something concrete.
Don’t try to make each line complete or express a single thought. Each line should flow into the next or the poem will sound static.
Cinquains work best if you avoid adjectives and adverbs. This doesn’t mean you can’t have any, but focus on the nouns and the verbs. This almost always works best in a cinquain.
The poem should build toward a climax. The last line should serve as some sort of conclusion to the earlier thoughts. Often, the conclusion has some sort of surprise built into it.
They can be fun.
Kisses.
Warm, Soft
Licking, Sucking, Nibbling
My favorite greeting.
Smooches.
Warm, Soft
Licking, Sucking, Nibbling
My favorite greeting.
Smooches.
What is a cinquain?
They were, believe it or not, invented by American Poet Adelaide Crapsey.
At the most basic level a cinquain is a diamond shaped five line poem or stanza.
The poem has one topic and the details describe the the topic's actions and feelings.
There are different schools of thought about what the "rules" of writing cinquains are.
Here are two variations you might try:
Method One
Line 1 - one word for the topic
Line 2 - 2 words to describes your topic
Line 3 - 3 words that describes the actions relating to your topic
Line 4 - 4 words that describes the feelings relating to your topic
Line 5 - one word that is another name for your topic
Method Two
Line 1 - two syllables
Line 2 - four syllables
Line 3 - six syllables
Line 4 - eight syllables
Line 5 - two syllables
Some other ideas:
Write about a noun. Cinquains generally fail if you try to make them about emotions, philosophies or other complex subjects. They should be about something concrete.
Don’t try to make each line complete or express a single thought. Each line should flow into the next or the poem will sound static.
Cinquains work best if you avoid adjectives and adverbs. This doesn’t mean you can’t have any, but focus on the nouns and the verbs. This almost always works best in a cinquain.
The poem should build toward a climax. The last line should serve as some sort of conclusion to the earlier thoughts. Often, the conclusion has some sort of surprise built into it.
Last edited by a moderator:
There seems to be many different ideas about what the "rules" of cinquains are.
