Creative Poetry Exercise

ENGL 495: Multigenre Literacy in Global Context
Poetry: Creative

Complete the following creative writing (poetry) exercises.  

1. Alliteration and Assonance Lists

Create a list of word pairs and phrases that are built around alliteration or assonance. Remember, alliteration is when words in close proximity start with (or contain) the same consonant sound (as in pretty picture). Assonance is when words in close proximity echo vowel sounds (bent pen). Try to come up with at least ten of each.

Great girl. Cute cut.

                Big boy. Filthy fingers.

She set short standards.

Geeky glasses.

What was what. No numbers needed.

Mom must mumble.

Kids cry.

 Lots of pots. Grime time.

 Coy boy. Pug Mug.

My guy. Noisy voice.

A book in a nook. A boat in a moat.

 A bat chased by a cat.

Nice mice.

 

2. Metaphors for Life

Make a list of significant life events – birth, death, graduation, marriage, having children, starting your own business. Next, come up with a metaphor for each of these events. Remember: a metaphor is when we say one thing is another thing. A simile is when we say one thing is like another thing.

Metaphor: Life is a dance.

Simile: Life is like a box of chocolates (as a metaphor, this would be life is a box of chocolates)

Tip: Choose metaphors that are visually interesting. Metaphors for life as a dance or box of chocolates are both concrete and easy for readers to visualize.

Birth – Birth is a bundle of joy.

First day of college – First day of college is cutting the cord of dependence.

First love – First love is butterflies in your stomach and your heart fluttering.

Graduation – Graduation is feeling free from the chains and binds of education.

First job – First job is shooting fireballs over your head, hoping not to get burned

3. Lyrics and Musicality

Choose a catchy song that you enjoy and rewrite the lyrics, but stick to the rhythm and meter. Try to go way off topic from what the original lyrics were about. You can play the song while you work the exercise or search for the lyrics online and use those as your baseline. The idea is to get your mind on the musicality in your writing.

The song I chose was originally "It's Gonna Be Me" by NSYNC.... Sorry this is so morbid but I realized as I thought of "It's Gonna Be Me" it sounded like "I Gotta Pee-Pee"

 

"I Gotta Pee-Pee"

[Lance:] I gotta--pee--pee
[Justin:] Oh, yeah

[Justin:]
It might be hurtin, babe
There ain’t no cryin
You’ve felt it come and go…
How warm the pee, I remember

Made me believe in oddities
No man, no cry
Maybe that's why

Every time I go to the loo
Never seems like I need to poo
Gotta lose the pee again
But I can’t pee like them
Baby, when you finally,
Get to poo someday
Guess what,
I gotta pee-pee

[JC:]
I got so much noise, babe
But to poop out, and to blow
I got time to waste
I cry and cry on the loo, you see
I gotta pee-pee, in the end
You can't cry
So just tell me why

Every time I go to the loo
Never seems like I need to poo
Gotta lose the pee again
But I can’t pee like them
Baby, when you finally,
Get to poo someday (someday)
Guess what, (what)
I gotta pee-pee

[Lance:] I gotta pee-pee
[Justin:] Oh yeah...

[Justin:]
There will be say
The poo’s gone, I’ll pee..
I gotta-gotta-gotta-gotta-gotta

[Justin:] I gotta pee-pee

All that poo
Never seems like I need to poo
Gotta lose the pee
But I can’t do that
When finally (finally)
You get to shove
Guess what (guess what)

Every time I go to the loo
Never seems like I need to poo (to poo)
Gotta lose the pee again (lose the pee)
But I can’t pee like them
Baby, when you finally,
Get to poo someday (poo…)
Guess what, (guess what)
I gotta pee-pee

Every time I go to the loo (oh…)
Never seems like I need to poo
Gotta lose the pee again (lose the pee)
But I can’t pee like them
Baby, when you finally, (finally..)
Get to poo someday
Guess what, (guess what)
I gotta pee-pee

[Justin:] I gotta pee-pee…

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