Pretty Ugly Words

Form: Ya Du

Number of Lines: 5

Rules: As the Than Bauk is to the Haiku, then the Ya Du is to the Tanka and consists of four-syllable lines and a fifth one that can comprise of 5, 7, 9, or 11 syllables. The staircase rule applies to the four lines, and the last syllable of the fourth and fifth line must rhyme, giving a pattern of:


O. O. O. a.
O. O. a. O
O. a. O. b
O. O. b. c.
O. O. O. O. O. O. O. O. c.

Unlike the Than Bauk, this must be a completed stanza, and no more than three stanzas are permitted.