Writing Form Poetry

Comfort in the form
The disciplinal of meter
Syllable or line
Helps focus subject and theme
Helps overcome writer’s block

Line count: 5
Form: Tanka is a Japanese poetry form containing 5 lines with 5, 7, 5, 7, 7 syllables. An English variation of this form contains 5 lines of 31 syllables or less, written in short, long, short, long, long line length form. Another variation is a 5-line poem of 31 syllables or less letting the poem dictates the length of the lines.