This unique form is a combination of two poetry forms that we have featured before: the cinquain, and the haiku. This form uses the five-line form of the cinquain and the seventeen-syllable count of the traditional haiku. Originally created by Denis M. Garrison, the form has no meter or rhyme scheme, though there are other strict rules for its construction that must be followed. A cinqku must always have 5 lines and a perfect seventeen-syllable count. The lines typically follow a 2,3,4,6,2 format. There is no title requirement on the second line.
Rules of the Cinqku
- It is a poem of 5 lines
- Each line has a set number of syllables
- The first line is 2, second is 3, third is 4, fourth is six, fifth is 2 again
- There is no rhyme scheme or meter
Example Cinqku
by Trish Shields
Friday:
work week done.
Expectant kids
want it to last—too bad:
Monday
Read more examples here.
