Inspired by the Oulipo writers’ group and concrete poetry, we encourage our fellow students to search for new word constellations.
→ To write the poem, they use three given words and follow the rhyme scheme AABBCC. The noun must be placed in the first line, the verb in the third, and the adjective in the fifth. All other words are up to them.
→ Now the poem is modified and its meaning is abandoned:
1. A vowel is chosen and every noun that does not contain this vowel is replaced by a noun with the vowel (i.e. mad becomes jade, if the chosen vowel is “e”).
2. An alliterative adjective is found for each noun and placed before it (i.e. “feisty fox,” or “racing rat”).
3. For each verse, a number is rolled. That number determines the word that stays. Everything else is crossed out.
The remaining words are transferred to a sheet of paper, but keep their position within the poem’s structure.