Poetry & wordplay21 categories
Check which ambiguities are working
When you're not sure whether a line is rich or just unclear.
Find every ambiguity in the poem below and sort it into one of three piles: - **Productive**: the reader holds two meanings at once and the poem is better for it - **Resolvable**: the reader briefly hesitates then settles, costing nothing - **Broken**: the reader picks the wrong reading, or cannot pick, and the poem stalls For each, quote the phrase and state both readings explicitly. Include grammatical ambiguity (unclear pronoun reference, dangling modifiers, which noun an adjective attaches to) as well as semantic ambiguity. For the broken ones only, suggest a fix that removes the confusion without removing the mystery. Be blunt about which category each falls into. Do not call something productive to be kind. Poem:
Making it yours
- Paste your own material where the prompt asks for it. Everything above that line is instruction, not content.
- Delete any rule that does not apply to you. A shorter prompt that fits beats a thorough one that does not.
- If the answer comes back vague, add a line saying what you do not want. Constraints work better than encouragement.
Honest critique. Reads that name the weakest line, the stale image, and what the poem is actually about.
Related prompts
Critique this poem with no praise at allWhen you want an honest read and not a compliment sandwich.Find the clichés I've stopped noticingA read-through for stale images before you send a poem anywhere.Tell me what this poem is actually aboutWhen the draft is circling something you haven't admitted yet.Is this image a cliche?Checking one image before you build a whole poem on it.What is this poem actually about?The draft is circling something you have not admitted yet.Fast critique, no praiseYou want an honest read and not a compliment sandwich.
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