Tutorial: A sonnet

Image via Wikipedia"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day" is probably the most well know start to a sonnet in the who English language. Recently, though, I have been playing with this form in the vain attempt to win a certain contest. :) Here's a quick guide on how to put one together.

The general form is like this abab, cdcd, efef, gg with ten syllables per line. This is the classic English sonnet. There are other types with other syllable requirements.

So, to start . . .

When will I publish another book
How will I ever overcome this merciless block.
Writing as ever has me hooked,
It would be better than punching a clock.

Alright, there are already a few problems with this quatrain. The first line is only nine syllables. Since I'm doing English sonnet, I need ten. The tough part is finding a one syllable word that makes sense in the line. Revised:

Tell me, will I publish another book ?

Better, but this is an example and not a literary master piece. :) Next line has thirteen syllables. We need to cut some, maintain sense, and not take too many. Revised:

How will I overcome this horr'ble block?

Noticed the contracted horrible. This is because I needed the word and there were too many syllables. Some words you can contract. Contractions are your friend. This brings the count to ten. The next line needs to rhyme with book, but I accidentally used hook. I may have to change the whole line now. Revised:

The excitement of writing, my breath took.

I had to revise the whole thing, but I think I like it better. You have to be careful with big words. At first I tried "euphoria" but that has four syllables, leaving me only six to get the rest of the job done. Excitement is still long, but it frees up a syllable. If I'd needed and extra, you could have bet euphoria would have been in there.

The next line is right on meter wise and fits the theme. Here's the revised quatrain:

Tell me, will I publish another book ?
How will I overcome this horr'ble block
The excitement of writing, my breath took.
It would be better than punching a clock.

The next two quatrains are in the same form with the same meter. However, the do not rhyme with any of the rhymes in this quatrain or others. All of the rhymes are internal to their specific quatrain. Here's my next one, but I will spare you the editing process:

Day after day I type my precious words,
Wondering who will e'er want to read them.
Anxiety my flow of work disturbs.
A constant fight, an internal mayhem.

Two things about this quatrain. Notice the use of the contract e'er to fit my idea in. Every time I use that I feel like Shakepeare. :) I also rhymed words with disturbs. It is know as a sound alike rhyme and I found it in my handy rhyming dictionary. There is a link below for the free one I use. And the next quatrain:

Slowly I ease my tension on the keys,
Wanting only to write with heartfelt joy
From my writing I find my constant ease
All my soul to write these words I employ.

You may also notice that a lot of grammar is turned around to get the point across. Too many restrictions on the poety, and you are sunk. I like twisting the forms, though, because it makes the work more interesting to speak aloud. Now for the icing on the cake that defines the sonnet: the ending couplet that pulls it all together.

A writer is what I e'er long to be.
It never once fails to make me feel free.

And that, I think sums up the poem and my feeling. Now the entire sonnet. Read it out loud and feel it's rhythm:

Tell me, will I publish another book?
How will I overcome this horr'ble block?
The excitement of writing, my breath took.
And would be better than punching a clock.
Day after day I type my precious words,
Wondering who will e'er want to read them.
Anxiety my flow of work disturbs,
A constant fight, an internal mayhem.
Slowly I ease my tension on the keys,
Wanting only to write with heartfelt joy.
From my writing I find my constant ease,
All my soul to write these words I employ.
A writer is what I e'er long to be.
It never once fails to make me feel free.

So, that's sonnet writing in a nutshell. This is actually the easiest compared to a roundel and an ode. I haven't tried the others yet. :) I hope that this was helpful to some. This could certainly be slanted toward writing fantasy, horror, and sci-fi themes. I've already written Ode to the Undead Wizard, so it can be done!

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