B&P’s Shadorma and Beyond – The Circular Poem – December 12, 2015

Hello, Bastet here for a new episode of B&P.

(First of all, I’d like to remind everyone that at the side of the page here you will find an updated glossary of all the poetic forms and techniques we introduced since we began writing this post.  We felt that this might be a useful instrument to our readers during their writing efforts. The forms or techniques often link up to the post where they were first introduced, or lacking that to an outside source (for example –  Shadow Poetry).)

Today we’re going to look at the Circular Poem.

The Circular Poem can be a structural poem … that is it’s really literally circular like this circular poem written by Jack Brummet at All This Is That:

Or it can be a poem that begins and ends with the same line without any particular requirements within the body of the poem – in some forms, the goal is to change the meaning of the poem so that though the last line is exactly the same line, the meaning is different. Sometimes, like on Poetry Soup, they’re poems that include the word circular.

Today we’re going to look into one of the many variations of the Circular Poem.  I first came across this variation reading a blog written at Jane Dougherty Writes  a few weeks ago where Jane, a very talented poet,  challenged her readers to try the form.  I found it very stimulating indeed!

So the circular poem we’re going to try is Jane’s variation of the form as described here in her words:

“A circular poem is one that goes round full circle.

The last word of the first line rhymes with the first word of the following line and so on until you end up back at your first line.  

Lines can be any length, it’s the rhyme that’s important.”

Here is the poem I wrote taking up the gauntlet adding a closing poem in hay(na)ku:

Reflections at a Water Fountain

tumbling water splashing
dashing an autumn leaf in cold water
[alter of mystic autumn rites]
ignites my imagination:
all life issued …
spewed – from water but, oh, the change
strange – and somehow, humbling
tumbling water splashing

*

falling
water splashes
autumn’s red symbol

reflecting I saw
life’s evolution
unfold

© G.s.k. ‘15

Now for a little inspiration, you can use the video at the beginning of our post or this photo, or perhaps you’re an artist or photographer and wish to use it to inspire your work.  Whatever works for you is fine by us.

A Hubway station in East Cambridge. (John Phelan/Wikimedia Commons)

Of course, if you prefer you may want to write a shadorma (3-5-3-3-7-5 – haiku type syllabic poem) … or a combination of shadorma and a circular poem … be creative but most of all … have fun!

Once you’ve completed your post, please remember to link up with us on this page and to tag: B&P’s Shadorma & Beyond as well as Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie, then link up with our Mr. Linky app below.

Have a great week … and happy writing.