Skip to main content

Poetry Friday -Trimeric Poems


Trimeric Poems
Today it gives me great pleasure to share a Trimeric Poem. A poetry form I have recently discovered. A poetry form I really like...

The poem begins to build seamlessly as you go, due to its expectation for the writer to repeat lines used in the first four line stanza in order to launch each subsequent three line stanza.  

The Trimeric poetry form was invented by Charles A. Stone, and the rules are quite straightforward :

A Trimeric poem consists of 4 stanzas
The first stanza has 4 lines
The other three stanzas have 3 lines each
The first line of each 3 line stanza is a refrain of the corresponding line in the first stanza (so 2nd stanza starts with the second line, third stanza starts with the third line, etc.)
No rules apply for line length, meter, or rhyme. I've coloured coded my poem so you can see how the structure has been informed.


Inkblot

I was born into a world of blotting paper
Ink wells and fountain pens
A left handed writer
In a writing minefield

Ink wells and fountain pens
Held the indigo liquid
Providing shape to letters and words

A left handed writer
Forever wary of smudges
Afraid of blots and blobs on pristine pages

In a writing minefield
I remained forever trepidacious
-And then along came the ballpoint pen

Alan j Wright








Comments

  1. A new form for me--will have to give it a try! My older sister is left-handed, and although her teachers tried to get her to write with her right hand, they failed and she came home with smudges too. Your ending made me smile.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I feel a strong connection to your sister's experience Buffy. They tried to change me too. They failed quite miserably. Serves them 'right.'
      Hope you find joy in trying this poetic form.

      Delete
  2. Oh, I'd like to try this form. What fun you've made it, Alan. And that ending is a zinger!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Glad youl ike it Linda. Love the idea of a zinger line. Poet's are advised to end just as strongly as they begin, so your comment encourages me.

    ReplyDelete
  4. A new form to try! Thanks for your clear explanation of the form (Yay for color coding!) and for a great mentor poem. As others have already noted, that ending line is perfect.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad you like the colour coding Molly. I just felt it was necessary when 'showing; the structure. It is said a poet must begin and end strongly, so the fact readers like the final line is most gratifying.

      Delete
  5. Me, too! Me, too! I think I'll try this today with a poem about the black swallowtail caterpillar that is transforming itself into a chrysalis via butterflyhood.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Love the fact that you already are in rehearsal Mary Lee. Go get those words!

      Delete
  6. Great poem! Perfect build up to that final line. I've not heard of this form. I'm looking forward to giving it a try. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Kimberly. Hope you enjoy 'making' a Trimeric poem as much as I did.

      Delete
  7. This is a new form for me, too. I'd like to try it. Thanks for sharing it and your poem. It will be a great mentor text to use.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My pleasure Kay. You humble me with your mention of a mentor text. Good luck with Trimeric trial.

      Delete
  8. Delighted to learn of this form, too! And, I've always been a sucker for dip pens, so I love this subject of your poem as well. Nicely done - Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I appear to have pleased you on both counts Robyn. How good is that?

      Delete
  9. This is so much fun! Love it! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So glad you like it as a poetry form. I like it too. A lot. I am currently writing more poems in this style in my writer's notebook. It is a most engaging structure.

      Delete
  10. Another T form for the AtoZ Challenge next year! Woo-hoo!
    My husband is left-handed, and used fountain pens for years. He somehow got the knack of turning his hand. Never wanted me to use his pens so I wouldn't ruin the nib's flow for him! I think he bought a special lefty nib.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Pleased to have been of assistance Donna. Rather than turn my hand, I write from beneath. Lefties tend to be mostly 'pushers' or 'hookers.' I'm not too sure what to call what I do. I can understand why husband doesn't want you to use his fountain pen. They do become shaped in a particular direction after time spent with a writer of a particular persuasion. Not sure about lefty nibs. Interesting...

      Delete
    2. https://blog.gouletpens.com/2017/09/lamy-oblique-and-left-handed-nibs-whats

      Delete
    3. Thanks For the follow up Donna. I will check it out. Every day we chip away at our ignorance...

      Delete
  11. Fun poem Alan, I love your "writing minefield." My daughter is left handed but fortunately didn't have to deal with fountain pens, but she's an artist so she has worked with pen holders with nibs and of course scissors. Thanks for sharing this new trimeric poem form, Kay McGriff left a link to your post as she tried this form out this week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the alert Michelle. I have been away for a few weeks and then noticed your comment. Glad you liked the poem. I am enjoying this form and have written several other Trimeric poems since 'Inkblot.'

      Delete
  12. 2 years later, I am reading your poem, Alan, because Kat Apel sent me one for the 2020 Summer Poetry Swap. I love the color-coding on yours and the way you let your thoughts flow. I loved the fountain pen era. While those pens left many smudges of black in on my fingers, I enjoyed the foray into calligraphy. Thanks for reminding me of those days.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Life Cycle -A football poem by Bruce Dawe

This poem by Australian poet Bruce Dawe epitomises the unique connection sporting tragics have to their preferred football teams, -an almost tribal allegiance. Each season supporters stare down the twin imposters- victory and defeat. They remain both loyal and hopeful of eventual triumph. This poem refers specifically to Australian Rules Football, but it's themes are universal. I share this poem on the eve of the 2017 Grand Final to decide the Premiership for this football season. My team, the Richmond Tigers have reached the play off to decide the ultimate victor. They have not contested the Grand Final match for 35 years. My hopes fly with them. This poem links two of my great loves -football and poetry... Life Cycle When children are born in Victoria they are wrapped in club-colours, laid in beribboned cots, having already begun a lifetime’s barracking. Carn, they cry, Carn … feebly at first while parents playfully tussle with them for possession of a rusk: Ah, he

Poetry Friday: The Safety Pin Poem

Poets not only write poetry, they also read poetry. In order to be able to write poetry, one must read it. Lots of poetry in fact...  I want to share a short little poem by Valerie Worth. I bought Valerie's book, 'All The Small Poems And Fourteen More,' while living and working in New York, some time back. It remains a personal favourite.  I love the way the poet shines a special light on everyday objects, transforming them into something unique and worthy of attention. Her close observations elevate her poems into the special category.  Each poem in the collection celebrates earthly wonders. From eggs to garbage, from potatoes to pockets, each object is given special attention in the form of short poems employing keen observations.  Valerie Worth demonstrates through her poems she totally understands the saying-'ideas exist in things.'  The poem I have chosen to share with you (one of my personal favourites) is titled, 'Safety Pin'. S af

Opposite Poems

O pp o s ite P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not e