What's on Your List?
Writing Prompt 4 - List Poems
I love list poems!
There’s nothing more satisfying than the rhythm of a really good list and the break in that rhythm that stops you to bring your attention to a shift.
List poems give me the chance to riff from one thing to another, sometimes drawing connections I hadn’t seen before, sometimes taking myself on an adventure I hadn’t expected.
Isn’t that what we seek out in poetry? The connections? The unexpected?
List poems don’t have a specific tone or topic. You can be as serious or as silly as you want.
Some poems are strictly a list, like this one - happiness.
More sophisticated poems like Biography of Lebron as Ohio use the list technique throughout the poem. Notice how Sean Thomas Dougherty weaves in and out of the narrative voice with lists.
Sick is a fun list poem by Shel Silverstein.
Ideas to start a list poem:
Pick a theme and start there. See where it takes you.
Set a timer for 3 or 6 minutes and write everything you can think of that relates to your theme. Let your words and images associate with new ideas and themes. Let the writing become an adventure.
Make a list describing something or someplace. Use interesting details.
Make a list answering a question. Use concrete images.
When you’re revising, mix up the length and structure of your lines. Play with the rhythm and with disrupting the rhythm.
Let’s see what kind of interesting connections we can make with lists. Post your work in progress in the comments below.