Posts Tagged ‘double etherée’

Double, Double, Toil And Trouble: The Double Etherée - Etheree Tutorial Lesson Four

Saturday, January 17th, 2009

Now that you have written a few single etherées and practiced the various permutations and combinations thereof, it is now time to tackle a double. This has twenty lines and forms a diamond shape when well executed.

The configuration is as follows:

 

Line 1: 1 syllable

Line 2: 2 syllables

Line 3: 3 syllables

Line 4: 4 syllables

Line 5: 5 syllables

Line 6: 6 syllables

Line 7: 7 syllables

Line 8: 8 syllables

Line 9: 9 syllables

Line 10: 10 syllables

Line 11: 10 syllables

Line 12: 9 syllables

Line 13: 8 syllables

Line 14: 7 syllables

Line 15: 6 syllables

Line 16: 5 syllables

Line 17: 4 syllables

Line 18: 3 syllables

Line 19: 2 syllables

Line 20: 1 syllable

Tips And Tricks

1. If line 1 has three letters in its monosyllable, try to use 2 -4 letters in line 20. If line 1 were to be 3 letters and line 20, 6 letters, then the desired diamond shape is not achieved.

2. The same applies, roughly, to lines 2 and 19, 3 and 18, 4 and 17, etc.

3. Keep lines 10 and 11, the two 10 syllable lines, as close to the same length as possible.

 

The following is a double that I think turned out fairly well, and, as is often the case, it is a nature poem:

Creatures Of Fantasies: A Double Etherée

Sky
of pure
azure with
delicate clouds
may create wonder
and awe as one’s spirit
becomes aware of beauty
as contained in the formations
resembling creatures of fantasies
ever altering as the summer breeze
or crisp October wind makes infinite
changes in a scene as each ripple
and shadow rapidly transforms
their enchanting abundance
the most inspiring source
of living dreams and
visions to each
astonished
amazed
soul

If I had opted to begin the poem with the word “on,” I would not have ended with soul, but with a shorter word, such as “sky.” One letter can make such a difference.

 

Now, double your toil and trouble -  and tackle one!

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All About Etherées

Tuesday, January 6th, 2009
The etherée is a short poem, the single form of which consists of fifty-five syllables. It was invented in the 1980’s by an Arkansas poet, Etherée Taylor Armstrong. In my venture into the world of poetry-writing, I quickly became fascinated with this form.
 
The etherée does not use rhyme or meter. The single begins with a one-syllable first line, and each line thereafter is increased by one syllable as well as by a couple of letters, thus creating the required triangular shape, for a total of ten lines, the tenth having ten syllables and being the longest line. Punctuation is often not used, but may be employed. The message, of course, must be primary, but a good etherée is also aesthetically pleasing.
 
Etherées may be written in reverse form, starting with a ten-syllable line. A double assumes a characteristic diamond shape, with two ten-syllable lines, while a reverse double appears in a shape resembling an hour-glass.
 
I have also written triples and quadruples. As a reader is exposed to the etherée form in general, it becomes easy enough to determine the various configurations.
 
This is an interesting and challenging form with which to experiment. In future postings, I hope to add tutorial information for poets who are interested in learning to write etherées.
 
 

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Posted in Poetry, etherée, humanitarian poetry, humantarian poetry, love poems, love poetry, nature poetry, spiritual poems, spiritual poetry | No Comments »