Tricubes: Poetic Forms
What are tricubes? How do I write a tricube? Do you have any tricube example poems? You’ve come to the right (and write) place to learn the rules of this mathematical form.
Two poetic forms in the same month! It’s been a while since we've done that. Though with today's form, it's a shame we aren't doing three.
Unlike interlocking rubaiyat, the tricube is a newer form and relatively unknown. Plus, it's fun and easy to learn. This mathematical poem was introduced by Phillip Larrea.
Here are the rules of tricubes:
- Each line contains three syllables.
- Each stanza contains three lines.
- Each poem contains three stanzas.
So we're talking cubes in mathematical terms (to the third power). No rules for rhymes, meter, etc. Just three, three, and three.
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Play with poetic forms!
Poetic forms are fun poetic games, and this digital guide collects more than 100 poetic forms, including more established poetic forms (like sestinas and sonnets) and newer invented forms (like golden shovels and fibs).
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Here’s my attempt at a tricube:
resist
i avoid
dead end streets
like the plague
because i
don't enjoy
backtracking
but the plague
is a street
with no end
Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Editor of Writer's Digest, which includes managing the content on WritersDigest.com and programming virtual conferences. He's the author of 40 Plot Twist Prompts for Writers: Writing Ideas for Bending Stories in New Directions, The Complete Guide of Poetic Forms: 100+ Poetic Form Definitions and Examples for Poets, Poem-a-Day: 365 Poetry Writing Prompts for a Year of Poeming, and more. Also, he's the editor of Writer's Market, Poet's Market, and Guide to Literary Agents. Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.
