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Form: A minimum of four quatrains of long meter (iambic tetrameter) rhyming either abab or abxb Theme: Someone or something seen through a window. Method: Begin with a 300-word prose draft. When the prose reflects your best response to the theme of glimpsing something whose meaning takes time to unfold, you can look through the prose for phrases and comparisons worth keeping and begin to devise a tetrameter poem that takes the prose to a higher plane. Restrictions: Limit yourself to one adjective per quatrain. Use only literal symbols -- object literally present in the scene, chosen for their ability to hint at meanings beyond themselves. Readings: David Ferry, "Seen Through a Window" (for theme
and method)
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