A while back I read a fascinating discussion between two poets. Since then I have been thinking about quatrains as rooms and trying to visualize what a couplet would be. A covered porch, a gazebo? Here is the discussion below:
What kind of structure feels most natural to you? Or do you experiment with multiple forms? Why or why not? Has your structure changed over time?
For this prompt, take a poem you’ve written and reorganize it into first quatrains or then into couplets. Think of this process as creating spaces—either covered patios or indoor rooms. See what the affect of the extra line space affects the pacing. Which feels fits the poem better? Think about why and possibly even write down these differences to clarify this for yourself.
Analyze a set of four or five poems all related on a theme and edit them specifically for structure. See if the restructuring changes the overall feel.
If you wish, you can try to use this as a writing prompt: consciously write a poem as if you were building a structure with each stanza of quatrain as a wall/support or each couplet a covered walkway moving the poem along. What do you see? What is upheld by your structure? Where do you end up?
Bonus prompt: using sound associations of the word “monostrophe,” address a poem—in one stanza—to a monster. Good luck!