Lanturne Poetry
A lanturne or lantern poem is a relatively new type of descriptive poetry which originated from Japan. Similar to a Haiku, the lanturne poem has a fixed syllable count on each line. Both forms of poetry are very short; challenging the writer to express their ideas with the exact words necessary to say what they are intending to say. The lanturne poem uses five lines with a syllable structure of one, two, three, four and one syllables per line. Some writers consider this form of writing a visual experience and will center their piece to appear like the shape of a lantern. This adds another challenge, to both use the “right words” to speak their truth and words with enough characters to make the visual appearance seem perfect.
Film
Silence
Whispering
Encouraging
Dreams
Fire
Burning
Destruction
Unstoppable
Rain
Owl
Wisdom
Taking Flight
Casting Shadows
Night
Cough
Raspy
Worsening
Bloody Spittle
Death
Since this is the first time I’ve attempted this type of poetry, it appears that I have some work to do if I want to achieve that perfect lantern form. My first one looked decent, but the second two look like mushrooms and I’m not really sure about that last one. Regardless, it was fun to try it out.
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How exciting it is to embark upon a new form of poetry. You really did quite well on this, Ralph. I see a lantern in each poem. I can see it takes a lot of thinking to write a Lanturne poem. Marvelous work!
It is good to try our hand at new forms of poetry, Ralph. Thanks for intrioducing us to the “launtern/lantern.” You did well, but I can see how getting a perfect lantern shape would take some perseverance. The trick seems to be the last two lines, going from a four syllable line to a one syllable line. You need the four syllable word to be as short as possible and the one syllable word to be as long as possible.
Good job.
Nicely done Ralph, and I guess all these forms require practice and experience. I enjoyed the journey and words certainly can evoke feelings and sentiments in simplicity. Cheers!