Poetry & wordplay21 categories
Fast critique, no praise
You want an honest read and not a compliment sandwich.
Critique this poem as an editor with two hundred submissions to get through. No praise, no opening compliment, no closing encouragement. Quote the weakest line and say exactly what is wrong with it. Name one thing the poem is doing that you have seen many times before. Finish with one sentence on what this draft needs next, not a list. 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.Check which ambiguities are workingWhen you're not sure whether a line is rich or just unclear.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.
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