Exceptional a how-to, why-do, and to-what-degree-boo Making a Sestina by Bill Schott Teach Me Something (2) writing prompt entry

There are many idiosyncrasies involved in sculpting a patterned poem. When there are so many, sometimes poets will make adjustments to keep their original thoughts above the need to fold into a format.  Sonnets, for example, evolve from Petrarch to Wyatt, Spenser to Shakespeare, and on to the modern forms which shed syllabic and staging tenants.  Haiku have dozens of forms which, we are told, represent different moods and purposes for the poetic variances.  All these forms are mentioned to lead us to the sestina.  According to Google: “a sestina is a fixed verse form consisting of six stanzas of six lines each, normally followed by a three-line envoi. The words that end each line of the first stanza are used as line endings in each of the following stanzas, rotated in a set pattern.” The best way I have found to begin this poem is to cultivate the “end words” that will be used and reused in the poem. There will only be six end words which will appear at the end of each sestet, or six-word stanza. First, choose a subject. Let’s say COWBOYS. Next, find six words that connect with this subject.  Let’s decide on these words: lasso, cattle, saddle, dusters, lonesome, and brand Since these will be the last words in the poetic lines, begin by assigning each a number.  1  lasso 2  cattle 3  saddle 4  dusters 5  lonesome 6   brand There will be six six-line stanzas and an envoi. The first will be as the example above, while the succeeding stanzas will rearrange the end words like this: LAST word, FIRST, second to last, second, lower middle, and upper middle.  So, the framework will look like this, reading top to bottom, column by column: 1     6     3     5    4     2     1 2     1     6     3    5     4     2 3     5     4     2    1     6     3 4     2     1     6    3     5     4 5     4     2     1    6     3     5 6     3     5     4    2     1     6 Then, we assign the end words to the numbered order:    1             2             3            4              5            6          envoi  lasso          brand        saddle      lonesome     dusters       cattle        lasso   cattle          lasso          brand       saddle          lonesome   dusters     cattle  saddle        lonesome   dusters    cattle            lasso           brand       saddle   dusters       cattle          lasso        brand           saddle        lonesome dusters   lonesome   dusters      cattle        lasso            brand          saddle       lonesome   brand         saddle        lonesome   dusters      cattle           lasso         brand  Place the stanza end words in order, then the envoi can take on a few different formats. The easiest one, which I am using here, is 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 on the three last lines. The even numbered word would be the end word, and the odd numbered word will appear somewhere in the line.  lasso-cattle saddle-dusters lonesome-brand So, the next step is to fill in the lines with words that make sense and support the subject -- cowboy.  The use of syllable count is varied, but mostly eight or ten syllables. Meter can be used or not, and varied lengths of lines is also an option.    spins his trusty rope into a lasso   rings a certain cow among the cattle   cinches the strained line onto his saddle                        the sand and sediment tests his dusters   a man upon a horse may seem lonesome    the sight alone on horseback is his brand                                                                                                                  the time has come to institute a brand    he forms a working loop with a lasso    the cow-eyed steer may feel a bit lonesome    observed by useless kin -- other cattle    cow pies jump and splash against his dusters                                     cannot reach the cowboy in his saddle   he pulls the iron bar from his saddle   to heat the bent initial for the brand     the fire's heat challenges his dusters    the tension tests the strength of his lasso     observed by tethered fire-hating cattle                                                                                                                all leaving the cowboy further lonesome  the shadow of our cowboy seems lonesome   man alone within a stream of cattle                                                                                                       humanity above and in his saddle                                                                                                                                   the keeper of the heated stick to brand                                                                                                                  the hold of the neck-embracing lasso                                                           behold the vested cowboy in dusters  the sandy desert falls from his dusters     like the desert he still remains lonesome     on the horn of his saddle hangs a lasso                                                            the lasso that hangs from his saddle                                                                                                            charred on his boot is the ranch's brand                                                                                                                          which also appears on the sides of cattle  so few cowboys to stay with the cattle  so few cowboys to wear their dusters  so few cowboys to issue the brand the cowboys so truly are lonesome no one to sit alone in a saddle no one to circle and tass a lasso he tosses the lasso towards the cattle upon his saddle attired with dusters the cowboy with lonesome as his brand Once the initial poem is written, work to make it better before posting. Sometimes you may choose to change an end word. That’s fine, remembering that they all change in each stanza and continue to make sense.   Writing Prompt In this round of Teach Me Something, the theme is writing. Ex: How To-- Craft great comedy, horror, true crime, suspense thriller, etc., or some aspect of it. Write effective dialogue, character/plot development, world building, etc., or some aspect of it. Write specific forms of poetry or poetic devices (eg. alliteration, assonance, consonance) Use literary devices (eg. irony, foreshadowing) Grammar/mechanics (eg. Use of commas, hyphens, italics, word choice, spelling tips for tricky words) Assignment: **Choose a topic you know or have experience with **Write a tutorial or tips for others to learn about or improve some facet of their writing **Your title or subtitle should say what that topic is **Recommended word count: 100-1000 words Author Notes Image from Google

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