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Home » Blog » 132 Best Poetry Prompts and Ideas to Spark Creativity

132 Best Poetry Prompts and Ideas to Spark Creativity

poetry essay prompts

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Many great minds considered poetry to be the superior form of art. It transcends mortality and the transience of human life and becomes an eternal monument of people’s existence and creativity. Poetry that was written hundreds of years ago can still mesmerize, astonish, inspire, move, horrify, and elevate us.

There is an unlimited number of themes that can be used to produce great poetry. Inspiration can find its way in a myriad of ways, so this is a chance for you to get your creative juices flowing. Poetry prompts can be of great help when you are trying to find your poetic voice, or trying to step outside your comfort zone. We hope that these ten sets of themes will bring the best of your writing skills.

Ideas for poems about different types of emotions

It is no wonder that the first set is dedicated to emotions. Poetry is almost synonymous with people’s emotional footprint. These 10 prompts cover a wide range of human emotions, so dive in deep!

  • Write a poem about a moment when you felt overwhelmingly joyful. Try to convey this emotion by depicting the setting, the time, and what prompted this strong feeling of happiness and joy. Was it a personal success? Perhaps a wish you’ve had for years finally came true. Whatever it was, draw from your own life experience.
  • Sadness is a complex emotion that all of us have felt. Sadness often gives birth to the most poetical literary pieces because many people have experienced grief, or unhappiness at a certain point in their life. Write about the cause for your sadness. Perhaps you experienced a loss of a loved one, perhaps it was a professional failure.  Oftentimes, people feel sad when they had their trust betrayed by a person they considered a friend.
  • When was the last time you felt truly angry? Think of a moment when you suffered injustice at your workplace, or you were deceived by a person you love and trust. Writing a poem about anger can be a powerful poetic expression and a way to deal with your anger.
  • Write a poem about a time when you felt scared. It can be told from a perspective of a frightened child, or, perhaps, an adult afraid for his/her life. Sometimes fear is connected to certain expectations and uncertainties about the future.
  • Imagine that you feel very proud. What prompted this feeling of pride? Being proud is usually the result of an accomplishment on a personal or a private level.
  • Write a poem about a time in your life when you felt brave and powerful. Describe the circumstances that led to this outburst of bravery in a personal, or professional setting. Let the reader feel the confidence and resolution in your actions through the power of verse.
  • Alienation is a feeling that can be soul-crushing. All people experience some moments in life when they feel as if they don’t quite fit in, or are overlooked. The feeling of alienation is often linked to the feeling of low self-worth. Write about how you managed to overcome this feeling and who, or what helped you in the process. Many people will recognize themselves in a poem about personal alienation.
  • Another poetry prompt about an emotion is writing about anxiety. In these modern times filled with busy schedules, it is more than expected that people would feel anxious. Take a deep look within and try to discover the source of anxiety in your own life. Sometimes it is the workplace, sometimes it’s your love life, but sometimes people have existential crises that lead to anxiety due to life’s uncertainty and complexity.
  • Pessimism is a theme widely explored in poetry. People often feels pessimistic due to a variety of problems in their lives. Writing a poem about pessimism may inspire people to try and find another way to look at the world by seeing things in a new perspective.
  • On the opposite side of the specter is optimism. A poem about being optimistic often falls in the category of carpe-diem poems, or poems about seizing the day and making the best of every opportunity that presents itself in our lives. Write poetry about a bright time in your life when you felt that every new day offered a new chance to become better, happier, and more successful.

Ideas for poems about love

For many people love represents the meaning of life. With its so many forms, love is an eternal spring for inspiration all over the world and across generations.

  • A mother holding her baby for the first time is one of the most intense human experiences. Try to capture the deepest connection between two human beings that happens instantly. Find a new way to depict the unconditional love that is born with the birth of the baby.
  • Write a poem about love between siblings. Siblings, especially when they are younger, sometimes have strange ways of showing their love for one another. Write about the big and small gestures that describe the loving connection between brothers and sisters.
  • Do you believe in love at first sight? Describe the setting, the time, and the situation in which two strangers meet and instantly develop strong feelings of affection. You can write it in a form of a dialogue, or use love letters. You can also give their personal perspectives in different stanzas.
  • The theme is “a marriage proposal.” Imagine that this poem is written by a person who is planning to propose to their partner. List all the reasons why you think that these two lovers are perfect for each other.
  • Love stories are never absolutely perfect. Write about a fight between two spouses. Describe the circumstances and the reasons for experiencing anger towards the person you love. Present both sides of the argument. Try to find an elegant solution to the fight and end the poem with a reconciliation. 
  • Not every fight ends in making peace. Unfortunately, some love stories end in divorce. Write about the complex feelings that the two ex-lovers experience in the process.
  • Unrequited love can be horrible and depressing. The world’s greatest literature includes poem about unrequited love. Try to draw from either personal experience, or from people who are close to you. How did you try to win the other person over? What was the major obstacle? Were you disillusioned about love afterwards?
  • Write a poem about the one who got away. Start by describing the first date, the first kiss, the first fight, and the last fight before the end of the romance. Write about the expectations you both had from the relationships, the red flags, the disappointment, and the lost love.
  • Write a poem about the love between your grandparents. How did they show their affection for one another? Which small love gestures did you enjoy witnessing as a child? What did you learn from seeing how much they still care for each other? Try to portray the respect and devotion of a long-lasting relationship.
  • Talk about love in general. Write about the reasons why it is a vital part of human’s experience. Meditate upon your own experiences regarding different kinds of love. Write about the ways in which love makes us better people. Find different ways to depict the manner in which love enriches our souls.

Ideas for poems about life in general

Life is mysteriously beautiful, complex, difficult, and painful. You can show your appreciation for it, by writing on at least one of the following ten prompts.

  • Growing old is an important part of the life cycle. Some people fear the inevitable end so much that they don’t live their life to the fullest. Others are older and wiser, so they happily pass their knowledge and wisdom to the future generations. Write about your own experience, or how the old age of family members has affected your own life.
  • Write a poem about a specific accomplishment in your life and how it has improved you as a person.
  • The main theme of the poem is “the life cycle.” Everything which is born eventually dies, and the cycle starts again.
  • Write a poem about the experience of a couple who is expecting a baby. Write about the overwhelming emotions, love, affection, and care that the future parents feel.
  • There are many obstacles in life, and facing them is an important aspect in a person’s life. Write a poem about the potential hardships in life and how they affect people’s lives.
  • Write a poem from a child’s point of view. Remember how you used to perceive the world and how you tried to explain things to yourself using child’s logic. The poem will depict the sweetly naïve child’s perceptions of the world.
  • Write a poem about hope. Life is hard and complex as it is, so hope is often our driving force. Think of a time when you were hopeful.
  • Write a poem about a usual, boring day. Find poetry in the monotony of life.
  • Write a poem about travelling to a foreign country. Capture the essence of changing scenery, and dwell on the way travelling makes us more open-minded.
  • Think of a time when you were badly hurt. Write a poem about how you dealt with the pain.    

Ideas for poems about death

People from every culture and generation in the world have been obsessed with understanding death and what comes after it. It brings, sadness, nostalgia, wisdom. These ten prompts can stir your imagination and inspire philosophical thought about the most mysterious concept in the world.

  • Write a poem about the fondest memory you have of a person who had passed away. Why is this memory so special? How did you feel when this person died?
  • Death is often personified. Write a poem addressing Death as a person. What is it that you would like to tell him? What would you want to ask him?
  • Imagine that you are Death and you hate your vocation. How do you justify your actions? You can use a lighter tone for the poem.
  • Write a poem about a person who had a near-death experience. What happened to them? How did they survive? Did they change for the better after it?
  • Write a poem about a real or an imaginary genocide.
  • Write a poem about a person trying to deceive Death and reach immortality.
  • Write a poem about the death of a pet. What did you do to help you deal with the loss?
  • Imagine that you have only a day to live. What would you do?
  • Write a poem about the first time you understood the concept of death.
  • How do you want to be remembered after you die? Write a poem about how your death is going to affect your loved ones.

Ideas for poems about philosophy

People are gifted with intelligence, wisdom, and the power to think in abstract ways. People’s quest to understand the meaning of life and the world surrounding us is a fantastic basis for writing poetry.

  • Write a poem about what you perceive to be the meaning of life.
  • Friendship is a type of human connection that makes people happier and healthier in every possible way. Write a poem about your best friend, or somebody you’ve lost.
  • The thirst for knowledge is a concept that defines us as a human race. Write a poem about the eternal quest for knowledge.
  • Imagination is a distinctly human quality. Write a poem about the role imagination plays in creating art.
  • Write a poem inspired by the Machiavellian quote that the goal justifies the means.
  • Write a poem about people’s ancient desire to explain the natural phenomena by inventing elaborate mythological stories.
  • Write a poem about the good and the bad aspects of humility.
  • Patience teaches us a valuable lesson about controlling our desires. Write a poem about a time when you had to be patient when you wanted something.
  • Write a poem about the benefits from daily meditation.
  • Write a poem about perfection. Think of the combination of aesthetics and ethics and how perfection can be achieved.  

Ideas for poems about everyday things

Sometimes the most poetic compositions are created out of the simplicity of life. These ten prompts can help you find poetry in the smallest of things around you.

  • Write a poem about your everyday little rituals.
  • Write a poem about raindrops slowly falling down the window glass while you’re thinking about your life in general.
  • Write a poem about a relaxing walk in the park. Use natural imagery, but also try to depict the noises you hear: rustling, splashing, chirping, etc. 
  • Write a short poem about the simple pleasure one gets from eating a juicy piece of fruit.
  • Pets are an important part in our lives. Write a poem about the joyfulness from playing with your pet.
  • Everybody makes mistakes, so write a poem about apologizing to somebody for something you’ve done.
  • Write a poem about a sunny morning when you went out and bought some flowers from a flower shop.
  • Eating a dessert might be the most relaxing and enjoyable part of dinner. Write a short poem about eating a delicious dessert.
  • Write a poem about a time when you didn’t have electricity due to a heavy storm, so you had to read a book using a candlelight.
  • Think of an activity that relaxes you before falling asleep and write a poem about it. Perhaps the activity can be listening to Mozart!

Ideas for poems about time

Time, even for scientists, is one of the most interesting concepts. Its abstractness has served as an inspiration for many philosophical and literary works. The following prompts can guide you into writing poetry about different complexities of the notion of time.

  • Write a poem about a childhood memory that still brings you joy when you think about it.
  • Write a poem about the modern age we live it. What is positive and what is negative about living today
  • Think of a lost opportunity because the timing wasn’t right. Write a poem about the importance of using every opportunity, which is difficult because people often find excuses for their failures.
  • Write about a person who has wasted his/her youth. This person feels immensely remorseful.
  • Waking up after having spent a few months in a coma can make people reevaluate their life choices and decisions.
  • Write a poem about a time in the past when you experienced an epiphany – a sudden realization of great truth.
  • Write about the development of the human life, starting from the time a person is a toddler.
  • Describe the sunset and use it as a metaphor for the end of a person’s life.
  • Describe the sunrise and link it metaphorically to the concept of birth.
  • Write a poem about an antique clock.

Ideas for poems about different forms of art

Poetry has always been regarded as one of the most sophisticated aspects of human existence. As a form of art, it is inevitably connected to other forms of art. These ten prompts can inspire pieces that combine different artforms.

  • Write a poem about the feelings that overcome you while listening to your favorite music.
  • Write a poem about a Shakespearean play.
  • Write a poem about a mysterious painter.
  • Write a poem from the perspective of a ballet shoes.
  • Describe the images and stories painted on a Grecian urn.
  • Imagine that you are a famous painter looking at a freshly finished piece. Write a poem about the painter’s perceptions of a painting.
  • Write a poem about a day spent in a museum.
  • Write a poem about a film character that you admire.
  • Write a poem that will instruct actors on the manner that they should act, which is similar to prince Hamlet’s speech to the players.
  • Write a modernized version of a famous speech taken from a Renaissance play.

Ideas for poems about historical events

Historia est magistra vitae. Indeed, history teaches us about life. Numerous works have been written celebrating historical events, so this is your chance to use verses to do the same.

  • Imagine that you lived in the period of Alexander the Great. Write a poem about him.
  • Write a poem about the hardships in World War I.
  • Write a poem about life in the industrial revolution in England.
  • Write a poem about Martin Luther King.
  • Imagine that you are an archaeologist who makes a startling discovery in Egypt.
  • Imagine you saw the apple falling on Sir Isaac Newton’s head.
  • Write a poem about Queen Elizabeth I. She was an exceptional monarch that deserves literary praise.
  • Write a poem about the trial of Galileo Galilei.  
  • You are Alexander Bell, the person who invented the telephone. How is the world different because of you?
  • Write a poem about Archimedes and his “eureka” moment.   

Ideas for poems about religion and spirituality

If something truly separates us humans from the other forms of life on this planet, it is spirituality. The belief in a higher power is a distinctively human quality. Delve deeper into your own beliefs and spirituality and put your religious experience into words.

  • How can you restore the faith in God in somebody who seems to have lost it? How can you help this person find his way again?
  • Imagine that you are one of the three Magi following a star to Bethlehem.
  • Write a poem about a moment you felt that you are one with nature.
  • Describe your feelings after meditation. Write about the setting, your surroundings, and the feelings that come rushing in.
  • Write a poem about the afterlife. It doesn’t have to your own perception. It can be inspired by major religions.
  • Think of a religious temple you’ve visited. How did it make you feel? Where was it? Is it real, or imaginary?
  • Everybody has experienced personal hardships. Write a poem about a difficult period in your life and about your prayers to overcome it.
  • The death of a close family member, or a spouse can be the most traumatic experience in a person’s life. Write about your relationship to God after you lost somebody you loved. Did it change?
  • Write a poem about temptation. Did you give in to the temptation? How did you feel after that?
  • Imagine that you are God for only a day. What would you do with your power?

Ideas for poems about family life

The family life is in the core of a healthy society. Family ties can bring you joy, sadness, love, pride, etc. Use the following prompts to express your understanding of family life.

  • Write a poem about a child who gets a puppy as a Christmas present.
  • Describe a family trip to the ZOO. The tone can be lighter, and it can be told from the children’s point of view.
  • Write a poem about a family summer vacation. Draw inspiration from from jumping into the water, sunbathing, building sand castles, exploring cities’ architecture and culture. A summer vacation brings the best in every family, so you could go back to your own childhood in order to depict a realistic representation of the feeling.
  • You are celebrating Christmas with your extended family. Write a poem about the conversation around the dinner table.
  • Imagine that you are a mother, or a father expecting a child. You have created a new heartbeat in the world. Try to depict the wonders that surround procreation.
  • You are planning a surprise birthday party for you father and you’ve invited all of his close friends into his home.
  • Write a poem celebrating your parent’s 40-year anniversary. Tell them why this is a special event for you, how much they’ve touched your life, and how much affection you have for them.
  • Imagine that you are stuck with your sibling in an elevator for two hours. What are you going to talk about?
  • Write a poem about leaving the home you were born in and moving to anew place. Try to portray the strong feelings of nostalgia and the memories that arise from packing your life in card boxes.
  • Write a poem about an ill family member. Use your verses to make them feel better and to bring hope that everything will turn out alright in the end.

Ideas for poems about nature and travelling

Nature is a powerful and mesmerizing force that sustains us. We are a part of nature, and nature is within all of us. These ten prompts can serve as an inspiration for you to create an homage to this planet.

  • Write a poem about the beginning of spring and the new cycle of life. Use natural imagery, colors, and active verbs that would signify the awakening of nature.
  • Think of a city that you haven’t visited yet, but you really want to. Why is it so? Is it because it is exotic? Is it because of its architecture? Perhaps, you are more interested in the people and their culture.
  • Write a poem about a natural phenomenon. Are you astonished by it? Is it devastating for people? Focus on the power of nature.
  • Imagine that you are a raindrop and describe your journey.
  • Many poems have been written about the Sun and the Moon. Try to find a different angle when writing about them.
  • Write a poem about meeting an interesting/mysterious/funny person on a train in a foreign country. How did you start the conversation? How long did you talk? Did you explore the city together?
  • Imagine that you are on top of Mount Everest.  How do you feel? Who are you with? How can you inspire other mountaineers to conquer the highest mountain peak?
  • The ocean, unlike the earth, can’t be conquered by humans. The ocean is too powerful and people are it his mercy during every voyage, regardless of the length. Write a poem about the respect people should have for this large body of water.
  • Write a poem about the change of seasons and the passing of time.
  • Imagine that you’ve been granted to power to fly for a month. Where would you go? Why? How do you think your life and perceptions will change after that month?

Ideas for poems with supernatural elements

Human’s imagination is limitless and astonishing. Centuries ago people would come together to tell stories, often incorporating supernatural elements in their accounts. By doing so, they were able to cause catharsis. Mythologies were created because people couldn’t explain natural phenomena. The fight between personifications of good and evil have been of great interest for millions of literature lovers. Here are 12 prompts to help you get started.

  • Imagine that you are moving into what others believe to be a haunted house.
  • How far would you go to save a loved one? Would you make a deal with the devil?
  • You are sage who gives advice to people you believe have kind hearts.
  • You are a dragon defending your family from human invaders.
  • Write a poem about a princess locked in a high tower and who isn’t allowed to look at the real world outside her windows.
  • You find a magic ring in your grandmother’s old casket. You can heal whomever you want on the expense of another human being.
  • A man who presumably has died at sea returns on Halloween to his old house to visit his grieving mother.
  • You have the ability to communicate with trees and gain wisdom.
  • Write a poem from the point of view of a werewolf.
  • Write a poem about the three Fates who decide on the fate of a baby.
  • Imagine that world is slowly disappearing and nobody could explain how. Offer a solution to the problem.
  • You have the ability to foretell the future. You see a great tragedy on a large scale that is to happen in a month. What do you do to stop it? Can you really alter the future with your actions?

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100 Poetry Prompts

by Melissa Donovan | Jan 24, 2023 | Poetry Prompts | 10 comments

poetry prompts

100 poetry prompts to motivate and inspire you.

My first love in writing was poetry. In my early teens, writing poetry was a creative and cathartic way to explore my ideas and vent my emotions. Writing poetry was accessible — all I needed was some paper and a pen. It didn’t even require a huge investment of time. I scrawled words onto the page as fast as they flew through my mind, often writing a poem in just a few minutes. It was an exhilarating and satisfying way to express myself.

In time, I learned that poetry had many benefits beyond personal expression. I found myself searching for the perfect meaning, rhyme, and meter in my word choices. I counted out syllables and contemplated line breaks. I experimented with form and structure.

It wasn’t just about dumping my thoughts and emotions onto paper anymore. Writing poetry got me thinking about language. It made me aware of writing as a craft, not just as a form of self-expression or communication.

To this day, I find that there are some aspects of writing that are best learned through the study and practice of poetry, and poetry prompts can spark an idea that inspires a poem.

After all, the blank page can be intimidating. If we establish some constraints (such as writing a particular form of poetry) or put some guidelines in place (writing about a particular topic), the blank page often becomes less overwhelming.

  • Write a poem about colors without ever naming any colors in the poem.
  • Write a poem that tells a story.
  • Use the following words in a poem: under, thrust, harbor, wind, prance, fall.
  • Write a poem about the following image: an empty stadium with litter strewn about and one sneaker on the stadium stairs.
  • Write three haiku .
  • Write a poem about your first friend.
  • Write a poem that could be the lyrics to a song.
  • Use the following words in a poem: fire, spice, burn, chill, tangled.
  • Write a poem about the following image: an elderly couple lying in lawn chairs, looking at the stars from their backyard.
  • Write a poem in iambic pentameter (each line is five metrical feet, each foot consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable: da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM da DUM).
  • Write a poem about a wild animal.
  • Write a poem that contains dialogue.
  • Use the following words in a poem: waves, cliffs, dance, pound, rise.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a person kneeling at the edge of a lake, peering into the water.
  • Write a sonnet .
  • Write a poem about garbage (waste).
  • Write a poem that has a perfect rhyme at the end of each line.
  • Use the following words in a poem: dirt, squirm, fingers, sprout, shine.
  • Write a poem about the following image: an old, dilapidated barn with a caved-in roof and rotting walls.
  • Write a sestina .
  • Write a poem about the cosmos.
  • Write a poem that contains a surprising twist.
  • Use the following words in a poem: feet, bees, violet, moss, clunk.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a person (or animal) looking out a fogged-up window on a snowy day.
  • Write a blackout poem (start with a page of printed text and selectively black-out words; the remaining, unredacted text is the poem).
  • Write a poem about your country, city, or state.
  • Write a poem that contains no adverbs or adjectives.
  • Use the following words in a poem: hunger, curl, click, drill, run.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a ladder leaning against the side of a massive tree.
  • Write an ode (a tribute to someone or something).
  • Write a poem about your greatest accomplishment, personal or professional.
  • Write a poem that does not contain any rhymes.
  • Use the following words in a poem: cotton, float, foam, fizz, glam.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a bag of groceries sitting on the ground in a parking lot.
  • Write a palindrome poem .
  • Write a poem about your deepest fear, or write about courage.
  • Write a poem that contains six numbers but not the number six.
  • Use the following words in a poem: bow, shoulder, sprawl, whisper, brush.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a table piled with delicious food.
  • Write a tanka (five lines, with the following syllabic pattern: 5-7-5-7-7).
  • Write a poem about dancing.
  • Write a poem that engages each of the five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch.
  • Use the following words in a poem: spin, calculate, lie, march, retreat.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a phoenix rising from the ashes.
  • Write a rondel .
  • Write a poem about your future.
  • Write a poem that uses an ABABB rhyme scheme.
  • Use the following words in a poem: hail, port, send, kneel, salute.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a mountain range seen from a great distance.
  • Write an acrostic poem (the first letters of each line spell out a word).
  • Write a poem about the weather.
  • Write a poem that contains internal rhymes but no end rhymes.
  • Use the following words in a poem: meet, time, basket, neon, puddle.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a wild baby animal crouching in the brush, watching its mother from a distance.
  • Write a concrete (shape) poem (a poem that forms a shape on the page, which can be simple, abstract, or complex).
  • Write a poem about a momentous, life-changing event.
  • Write a poem that has exactly one hundred words.
  • Use the following words in a poem: book, carpet, stick, hide, wander.
  • Write a poem about the following image: an assembly line in a factory that produces home-assistant robots.
  • Write a poem that has at least four instances of repetition.
  • Write a poem about entertainment.
  • Write a poem that contains a running metaphor.
  • Use the following words in a poem: satellite, bunker, can, water, dig.
  • Write a poem about the following image: unusual footprints on a trail in the forest.
  • Write a ghazal .
  • Write a poem about childhood.
  • Write a poem that explores the concept of duality.
  • Use the following words in a poem: motherboard, lava, smolder, flow, sear.
  • Write a poem about the following image: gum, mirror, pen, speak, fan.
  • Write a list poem (for example, a poem that is also a grocery list).
  • Write a poem about the most thrilling experience you’ve ever had.
  • Write a poem that is set in a particular time and place.
  • Use the following words in a poem: lavender, horn, gold, hooves, trot.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a notebook that is partially burnt.
  • Write a prose poem (a poem written in paragraphs rather than in verse).
  • Write a poem about lacking something essential.
  • Write a poem that is abstract or open to interpretation.
  • Use the following words in a poem: barn, skyscraper, bicycle, climb, stack.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a crew of workers eating lunch.
  • Write a poem of three stanzas, each with three lines, and include the number “three” somewhere in the poem.
  • Write a poem about a journey.
  • Write a poem that includes onomatopoeia (words that sound like what they mean — for example, hiss ).
  • Use the following words in a poem: drink, desire, switch, swell, relish.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a polar bear on a tropical island.
  • Write a rondelet .
  • Write a poem about an ordinary day.
  • Write a poem that includes at least three instances of alliteration, including one each of assonance and consonance.
  • Use the following words in a poem: buckle, bend, kick, pot, shift.
  • Write a poem about the following image: an empty raft floating down a river.
  • Write a limerick (five lines with rhyme scheme AABBA and a naughty attitude).
  • Write a poem about building something.
  • Write a poem that contains a pun.
  • Use the following words in a poem: squeeze, type, mission, gate, blast.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a bird soaring through sky.
  • Write a cinquain (five lines, with two syllables in the first line, four in the second, six in the third, eight in the fourth, and two syllables in the final line).
  • Write a poem about gaining something you’ve never had before.
  • Write a poem that is optimistic and hopeful.
  • Use the following words in a poem: airplane, jungle, needle, hike, signal.
  • Write a poem about the following image: a child exiting the library with a stack of books.
  • Write a magic 9 poem (nine lines with rhyme scheme ABACADABA).

Did These Poetry Prompts Inspire You?

Which of these poetry prompts inspired you? Were you moved to write a poem? How often do you write poetry? Do you regularly use poetry prompts? What’s your favorite thing about writing poetry?

Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below, and keep writing poetry.

10 Comments

Yes No Wheel

I love these poetry prompts! They’re really inspiring and I’m looking forward to trying out a few of them.

Melissa Donovan

Thanks! I’m glad you love them!

V.M. Sang

Thanks for this. It’s just what I need. In December I decided to write a poem a day for a year. So far I’ve managed it;some long, some short (haiku, limericks, or just a short 4 line poem). I now have almost 60 poems! My idea is to publish them in 2 books January to June, and July to December so people can read a poem a day. I’ve written poetry since my teens, like you, but sadly, most have been lost. I wrote some more, and just before Christmas, they were released as a book. It made a change from novels.

What an exciting project: a poem a day. I like it!

jo Blackwood

that was a great thought out prompt list thank you for your time and yes inspired and made notes as i went along

You’re welcome! Thanks for commenting.

Emily

I stumbled across these poetry prompts today and am really excited to use some of them to create my own poems. Thank you so much for sharing.

I’m glad these prompts inspired you! Good luck!

Stefani Christenot

I want to try each one of these. YAY!! Love this list, gonna go and journal now. Thank a bunch….

You’re welcome! Have fun!

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How to Write the AP Lit Poetry Essay

What’s covered:.

  • How to Write the AP Literature Poetry Essay
  • Tips for Writing The AP Lit Poetry Essay

To strengthen your AP Literature Poetry Essay essay, make sure you prepare ahead of time by knowing how the test is structured, and how to prepare. In this post, we’ll cover the structure of the test and show you how you can write a great AP Literature Poetry Essay.

What is the AP Lit Poetry Essay? 

The AP Literature exam has two sections. Section I contains 55 multiple choice questions, with 1 hour time allotted. This includes at least two prose fiction passages and two poetry passages. 

Section II, on the other hand, is a free response section. Here, students write essays to 3 prompts. These prompts include a literary analysis of a poem, prose fiction, or in a work selected by the student. Because the AP Literature Exam is structured in a specific, predictable manner, it’s helpful to prepare yourself for the types of questions you’ll encounter on test day. 

The Poetry Essay counts for one-third of the total essay section score, so it’s important to know how to approach this section. You’ll want to plan for about 40 minutes on this question, which is plenty of time to read and dissect the prompt, read and markup the poem, write a brief outline, and write a concise, well-thought out essay with a compelling analysis. 

Tips for Writing the AP Lit Poetry Essay

1. focus on the process.

Writing is a process, and so is literary analysis. Think less about finding the right answer, or uncovering the correct meaning of the poem (there isn’t one, most of the time). Read the prompt over at least twice, asking yourself carefully what you need to look for as you read. Then, read the poem three times. Once, to get an overall sense of the poem. Second, start to get at nuance; circle anything that’s recurring, underline important language and diction , and note important images or metaphors. In your annotations, you want to think about figurative language , and poetic structure and form . Third, pay attention to subtle shifts in the poem: does the form break, is there an interruption of some sort? When analyzing poetry, it’s important to get a sense of the big picture first, and then zoom in on the details. 

2. Craft a Compelling Thesis

No matter the prompt, you will always need to respond with a substantive thesis. A meaty thesis contains complexity rather than broad generalizations , and points to specifics in the poem.

By examining the colloquial language in Gwendolyn Brooks’s poem, “We Real Cool”, we can see the tension of choosing to be “cool”. This raises important ideas about education, structure, and routine, and the consequences of living to be “real cool”.

Notice how the thesis provides a roadmap of what is to follow in the essay , and identifies key ideas that the essay will explore. It is specific, and not vague. The thesis provides a bigger picture of the text, while zooming in the colloquial language the speaker uses. 

A good thesis points out the why as much as the what . Notice how in the above example, the thesis discusses language in the poem as it connects to a bigger message about the poem. For example, it’s not enough to discuss Emily Dickinson’s enjambment and hyphens. A good thesis will make a compelling argument about why those infamous Dickinson hyphens are so widely questioned and examined. Perhaps a good thesis might suggest that this unique literary device is more about self-examination and the lapse in our own judgement. 

3. Use Textual Evidence 

To support your thesis, always use textual evidence . When you are creating an outline, choose a handful of lines in the poem that will help illuminate your argument. Make sure each claim in your essay is followed by textual evidence, either in the form of a paraphrase, or direct quote . Then, explain exactly how the textual evidence supports your argument . Using this structure will help keep you on track as you write, so that your argument follows a clear narrative that a reader will be able to follow. 

Your essay will need to contain both description of the poem, and analysis . Remember that your job isn’t to describe or paraphrase every aspect of the poem. You also need lots of rich analysis, so be sure to balance your writing by moving from explicit description to deeper analysis. 

4. Strong Organization and Grammar

A great essay for the AP Literature Exam will contain an introduction with a thesis (not necessarily always the last sentence of the paragraph), body paragraphs that contain clear topic sentences, and a conclusion . Be sure to spend time thinking about your organization before you write the paper. Once you start writing, you only want to think about content. It’s helpful to write a quick outline before writing your essay. 

There’s nothing worse than a strong argument with awkward sentences, grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Make sure to proofread your work before submitting it. Carefully edit your work, paying attention to any run-on sentences, subject-verb agreement, commas, and spelling. You’d be surprised how many mistakes you’ll catch just by rereading your work. 

Common Mistakes on the AP Literature Poetry Essay 

It can be helpful to know what not to do when it comes time to prepare for the AP Literature Poetry Essay. Here are some common mistakes students make on the AP Literature Poetry Essay:

1. Thesis is not arguable and is too general 

Your thesis should be arguable, and indicate the central ideas you will discuss in your essay. Read the prompt carefully and craft your thesis in light of what the prompt asks you to do. If the prompt mentions specific literary devices, find a way to tie those into your thesis. In your thesis, you want to connect to the meaning of the poem itself and what you feel the poet intended when using those particular literary devices.

2. Using vague, general statements rather than focusing on analysis of the poem

Always stay close to the text when writing the AP Literature Poetry Essay. Remember that your job is not to paraphrase but to analyze. Keep explicit descriptions of the poem concise, and spend the majority of your time writing strong analysis backed up by textual evidence.

3. Not using transitions to connect between paragraphs

Make sure it’s not jarring to the reader when you switch to a new idea in a new paragraph. Use transitions and strong topic sentences to seamlessly blend your ideas together into a cohesive essay that flows well and is easy to follow. 

4. Textual evidence is lacking or not fully explained 

Always include quotes from the text and reference specifics whenever you can. Introduce your quote briefly, and then explain how the quote connects back to the topic sentence after. Think about why the quotes connect back to the poet’s central ideas. 

5. Not writing an outline

Of course, to write a fully developed essay you’ll need to spend a few minutes planning out your essay. Write a quick outline with a thesis, paragraph topics and a list of quotes that support your central ideas before getting started.

To improve your writing, take a look at these essay samples from the College Board, with scoring guidelines and commentary. 

How Will AP Scores Affect My College Chances?

While you can self-report AP scores, they don’t really affect your admissions chances . Schools are more interested in how you performed in the actual class, as your grades impact your GPA. To understand how your GPA impacts your college chances, use our free chancing engine . We’ll let you know your personal chance of acceptance at over 1500 schools, plus give you tips for improving your profile.

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Writing Prompts & Exercises

The time is now.

The Time Is Now offers three new and original writing prompts each week to help you stay committed to your writing practice throughout the year. We also curate a list of essential books on writing —both the newly published and the classics—that we recommend for guidance and inspiration. Whether you’re struggling with writer’s block, looking for a fresh topic, or just starting to write, our archive of writing prompts has what you need. Need a starter pack? Check out our Writing Prompts for Beginners.

Tuesdays: Poetry prompts Wednesdays: Fiction prompts Thursdays: Creative nonfiction prompts

Get immediate access to more than 2,000 writing prompts with the tool below:

Opposite Effects

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In her groundbreaking 1962 book, Silent Spring , biologist Rachel Carson foretold of “a spring without voices.” Documenting the harmful effects of chemical pesticides used in the agricultural industry, her book sparked an awakening to the environmental crisis in the 1960s and 1970s and launched a movement that brought about the founding of the Environmental Protection Agency. “The history of life on earth has been a history of interaction between living things and their surroundings,” she writes. “Only within the moment of time represented by the present century has one species—man—acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world.” Write an essay that begins by examining how the environment, whether natural or manufactured, has molded you. Then consider how you have modified your surrounding environment—the nature of your world.

Feeling Lucky?

With Saint Patrick’s Day around the corner, you might be feeling as if luck is everywhere you look: in four-leaf clovers, Shamrock Shakes, horseshoes, a rabbit’s foot, and the number seven. Or perhaps everything is just a coincidence, or predetermined by destiny. In a 2008 Guardian essay critiquing Victor Hugo’s 1862 novel, Les Misérables , Adam Thirlwell writes: “In this gargantuan novel, everything seems utterly improbable. Every plot operates through coincidence. Normally, novelists develop techniques to naturalize and hide this. Hugo, with his technique of massive length, refuses to hide it at all. In fact, he makes sure that the plot’s coincidences are exaggerated.” Thirlwell notes Hugo’s classic novel straddles the ideas of lucky coincidence and predetermination. Based on your personal beliefs about luck, coincidence, and destiny, write a story in which a plot unfolds according to a series of consequential encounters, discoveries, and mistakes. How do your own convictions about these ideas affect your characters’ decision-making and the overall philosophy of your story?

The Thing With Feathers

For one year, fans of Flaco the Eurasian eagle-owl enjoyed watching him fly freely around New York City and become, for many city dwellers, a feathered symbol of liberation. Released from his cage at the Central Park Zoo by a vandal, zoo officials were initially concerned for his survival, but Flaco quickly learned to hunt prey and move about the city. His fans grew, and for them, Flaco began to represent resilience and the ability to embark on a new chapter of life, a gesture at the potential of rewilding. Sadly, Flaco died in February after apparently striking a building on the Upper West Side. This week, write a poem that incorporates a subject that signifies qualities of freedom and hope for you personally. Consider strengths and weaknesses, and address both in your poem.

Regional Representation

A new immersive installation by artist Cauleen Smith uses scent, sight, and sound to explore the work of the late poet Wanda Coleman, widely considered the unofficial poet laureate of Los Angeles. Smith turned to Coleman’s work to help reacquaint her with the city after a sixteen-year absence. “L.A. is a shy one, a real one, and a terrible beauty,” Smith writes in the liner notes to an EP in the listening room of the exhibit. “You can’t really see how gorgeous it is in a drive-by, you have to sit with the banality, the horrors, the wildness of the city until it begins to become legible.” Select a poet who writes about your town, city, or region, and write a personal essay that reflects on their perspectives and your own. How can reading another writer’s observations and emotions about your hometown provide a refreshing lens to what might otherwise seem familiar?

Strangers in a Strange Land

When a group of strangers gathers in one setting, whether in a horror story, mystery, or in real life, the situation makes for a great premise. In The Extinction of Irena Rey (Bloomsbury, 2024), the debut novel by author and translator Jennifer Croft, eight translators from eight different countries arrive at an author’s house located in a primeval Polish forest to begin their work when the author disappears. As they investigate the author’s whereabouts while attempting to continue their work, rivalries and paranoia begin cropping up. Write a story that revolves around a group of unacquainted people, all confined in one location. Experiment with different modes of dialogue, setting description, and point of view. How will their secrets be revealed?

“Because curfews of / Because strip search at the checkpoint into / Because grandmother’s undergarments splayed on / Because two men with guns on the way to / Because grandmother saves plastic Coke liters to / Because the water could without notice be,” writes Jessica Abughattas in her poem “Litany for My Father” published by Split This Rock. The poem consists of twenty-two lines, which, all but the last line, begin with the word “because” and end abruptly, as if in mid-thought. The lines build into a powerful expression of loss and a sublimated sense of intense sorrow, how powerless one can feel in grief. Write a poem that makes use of omission or erasure in this way, taking into consideration how the format might influence your subject or theme. How does this repeated absence of words achieve emotive force?

Subcultures

In a recent essay in the New York Times Magazine , Mireille Silcoff explores the evolving concept of subcultures and how teenagers today are primarily engaged with subcultural aesthetics (such as Preppy, Messy French It Girl, Dark Academia, and Goblincore) popularized on social media, “a fleeting personal pleasure to be had mainly alone.” Silcoff argues that there is no longer a shared experience and work to get into a scene, and that “subcultures in general —once the poles of style and art and politics and music around which wound so many ribbons of teenage meaning—have largely collapsed.” Write a personal essay about a subculture you were engaged with long ago or more recently. Detail your introduction to the scene, the behaviors, styles, and accessories that accompanied it, and its positioning within society at large. How did this sense of belonging inform who you are today?

Maggot, Humvee, Peg, Swap-Out, Baggy Eyes, Creaky, Fast Forward, Extra Eye. These are all nicknames of characters found in Barbara Kingsolver’s Pulitzer Prize–winning novel, Demon Copperhead , whose title itself is the nickname of Damon Fields who narrates the coming-of-age story set in the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia. In an early chapter of the book, Damon talks about how prominent nicknames are in his town and that even his mother no longer uses his real name. “Some name finds you, and you come running to it like a dog until the day you die and it goes in the paper along with your official name that everybody’s forgotten,” says Damon. Write a short story in which a group of characters have colorful nicknames for each other. Start with a list of names and consider the power dynamics at play for those who use and bestow the nicknames.

Follow the Language

“I wanted to think freely, let my mind wander, follow ideas (and phrases) wherever they might go,” said the late poet Lyn Hejinian in a 2020 interview for the Wheeler Column at the University of California in Berkeley, where she was a professor and John F. Hotchkis Chair Emerita. “For a while—but not for very long—I used poetry to express my adolescent angst and longings, but very soon I recognized the banality and the limits of that. It wasn’t self-expression I was seeking but loss of self.” Inspired by Hejinian , who died at the age of eighty-two on February 24, write a poem that avoids a preconceived intention of style or thematic experience, and instead allow these elements to emerge as you let your mind wander. How might language, in the abstract as the material of your thinking, lead to a new mode of expression or representation?

More Than Chores

Doing laundry, washing dishes, grocery shopping, vacuuming, running out to the bank—do the chores ever end? Perhaps not, but there are small delights and incidental pleasures to be found in all the errands to be completed: a breath of fresh air, the feel of a tidy home, running into a friend, an interesting exchange with a stranger, or a long-forgotten memory that surfaces. This week write a personal essay that focuses on a single mundane task you regularly carry out and expand on the activity by looking at it from a variety of angles. Consider who taught you how to complete the chore, obscure observations, bodily movements, happenstance, and societal relevance. Can the chore become more?

Rediscovered Classic

Our Daily News series reports a recent New Yorker article telling the story of how a bartender in Manchester came across a novel from the 1930s and tracked down the rights for the book in order to get it back in print. Thanks to Jack Chadwick’s discovery , Caliban Shrieks by Jack Hilton will be republished in March by Vintage Classics in the United Kingdom. This week write a short story in which your character comes across an out-of-print book and finds adventure while tracking down the whereabouts of its author. Do plot points from the mysterious book come into play in your tale?

Drawing on a wealth of botanical vocabulary, Canadian poet Sylvia Legris explores themes of nature in her new book, The Principle of Rapid Peering , forthcoming in April from New Directions. In the book, the title of which is derived from early-twentieth-century ornithologist Joseph Grinnell’s study on the behavior of birds around food, Legris categorizes birds as either “those who wait passively for food to approach them” or rapid-peering active-seekers “whose target[s] of desire [are] stationary.” She writes: “The rapid-peerer’s eyes turn / as the head changes position. // The eyes focus the beak, / the instrument of capture. // ... The head follows the feet, / quick moves, to, fro. // Feet with an intelligence of texture, / bark, branch, gravel, soil.” Browse through nature guides or encyclopedias in search of unique animal attributes, specifically looking for evocative terminology with potentially expansive interpretations. Then write a poem that both touches on the term’s original meaning and imagines a new interpretation connecting to a personal experience or memory.

Happy 2,000th!

To celebrate publishing our two-thousandth writing prompt, spend some time this week jotting down a list of the most significant milestones of your life so far. Reflect on both traditional milestones, such as school or education-related achievements and relationship or family developments, as well as other hard-won goals that might be related to creative pursuits or something considered unconventional. You might also choose to focus on an important event that occurred unexpectedly and set your life in a new, progressive direction. Write an essay that expands upon one or more of these milestones. In what ways has your outlook on life evolved over the years, from before the event, immediately after, and then many years later?

The One That Got Away

While the origins of the phrase “the one that got away” may come from the sport of fishing, and how the biggest and best would-be catch seems to always escape, the phrase can also refer to a past love, one that was lost to the whims of fate. Oftentimes this lost love is a source of regret or nostalgia, as is the case in Katy Perry’s song which takes the phrase as its title and reflects on a relationship from the “summer after high school.” Write a scene in a short story that sees one of your main characters recounting a lost love. Does the character encounter something that reminds them of their long-ago amour or does the reminiscence set off a further chain of consequences?

Cosmic Connection

“You have changed me already. I am a fireball / That is hurtling towards the sky to where you are,” begins Dorothea Lasky’s “Poem to an Unnameable Man” from her 2010 collection, Black Life . The poem’s speaker regales their addressee with the projected story of their intense connection, as Lasky incorporates cosmic imagery, a confessional tone, and grandiose language combined with an intimate, idiosyncratic voice. This week write a poem that traverses the galaxy and addresses someone or something you feel tethered to, as if you’re “hurtling towards” them. As you write, play around with figurative language that points to both sizable and smaller, nuanced observations.

Dreamy Wisdom

“Why do we dream? Because it’s the only mechanism our brain has for sorting through all the myriad associations it discovers and deciding which ones are potentially of value,” says Robert Stickgold, professor and director of the Harvard Center for Sleep and Cognition and coauthor of When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep , in his TEDx Talk on the purpose of dreams and how sleep sews together the pieces of our memories. Write an essay that begins with the description of a dream you’ve had recently, recounting it in as much detail as you can remember. Then expand and explore how the conflicts and emotions brought up by your dream might be connected to another time in your life when you experienced something similar. What do you think your brain was trying to figure out?

Fortnight of Festivities

This year’s Lunar New Year begins on February 10 and celebrates the year of the dragon. Festivities vary in different cultures, however in Chinese traditions, they begin with the first new moon of the year and culminate with the full moon two weeks later. The two-week period allows for time to travel and visit with family, celebrate and gather with friends, set a new tone for the year, anticipate the forthcoming spring season, and make merry with food and drink. Write a story that takes place during a two-week stretch of time, perhaps revolving around a festive event. How does the restrictive length of time create a sense of urgency or tension?

In Equal Measure

“In writing the sonnets of frank , the form was a rescue raft, a lifeline, the safety net beneath the trapeze act. I liked how it equalized every event, relationship, song, or story that the individual sonnet might take on,” says poet Diane Seuss in a 2022 Publishers Weekly interview with Maya C. Popa about her Pulitzer Prize–winning collection, in which she explores with brutal frankness her personal history and themes of death, illness, addiction, and love. Inspired by Seuss, write two fourteen-line sonnets with vastly different subjects. In using a specific form to create a sort of equalizing force between topics, how do the minor victories and upsets of mundane occurrences find balance with the heavier ups and downs of your life?

What does a Bill look like? What about a Michael? As the U.S. primary election season progresses, an innocuous excerpt from Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s 2012 memoir, Can’t Is Not an Option , has resurfaced on social media and news outlets. In the book, Haley writes that when she began dating her husband, he went by his first name Bill, but she decided that he didn’t look like a Bill and found his middle name Michael suited him better, and he became known as Michael. Write a personal essay that revolves around your sentiments about your own given name. Have you ever thought about changing it? Do you think you’ve taken on certain personality traits because of it, or in spite of it?

Voice of Dissent

In his essay published in the Evergreen Review , Younis B. Azeem writes from his viewpoint as a young student newly arrived in New York from Pakistan about the culture of smoking cigarettes. “Among the few indisputable facts of the world, right below gravity and above the moon landing, is that cigarettes will kill you,” he writes. “In America that belief translates into a two-part statement, the second one unsaid, where it’s declared that cigarettes will kill you before anything else does . This right here, this inherent first-world privilege is something that all the best efforts of Big Tobacco cannot undo.” Azeem asserts that in other places in the world, there are hazardous living conditions much more likely to be the cause of death than smoking. Write a short story in which a newcomer posits an unexpected, iconoclastic, or unusual opinion. How does this create a disruption to your other characters’ everyday lives?

Language as Home

“Like a snail with a shell of sticks //  — she loads them on her back — //   Like a camel with a hump of sticks //  — on her back, on her back — // Like a horse with a knight of sticks and a stick for a sword,” writes Valzhyna Mort in her poem “In the Woods of Language, She Collects Beautiful Sticks” published in the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day series. In her description of this poem, Mort explains how an inability to write another poem she was working on made her “feel homeless in language and in poetry” and that writing this poem became “a bit of homemaking” for her. Write a poem that reflects your own process when your mind wanders away from writing and you must find a way back into the home of language. Does it involve the vocabulary of domesticity, construction, or helpful creatures?

The Best Month

In a recent New York Times article titled “January’s Secret: It’s the Best Month,” journalist Steven Kurutz makes a case for the first month of the year. Not usually a fan favorite with its short days and cold weather, Kurutz points out the month’s many unsung advantages: post-holiday relaxation, less crowded streets, the reassuring feeling of getting back into routine, and how the blissfully uneventful stretch of weeks can offer a calming break from social obligations. This week write an essay about your favorite month of the year. Even if it’s one that revolves around a holiday or exciting seasonal offerings, take some time to reflect on the unsung pleasures of the month.

Epiphany is a religious day of celebration commemorating the visit by the Three Wise Men to the baby Jesus with their gifts, observed in January. Originating from the Greek word meaning “manifestation,” in a work of literature, an epiphany generally consists of a different sort of appearance—a moment that seems to suddenly illuminate the truth, one that oftentimes changes the course of a character’s life. Write a scene in a new or ongoing short story in which your main character experiences such a dawning realization. What is the catalyst for this discovery? How does this newfound insight transform their subsequent actions or interactions with another character or a future decision?

Seasonal Sounds

Do you recall cold, quiet nights with the muffled silence of snow and the whisper of the wind, or the banging clang of heating pipes and the constant drumming of a heavy rainstorm rumbling in the winter? Depending on one’s locale, the sounds of the season can present a range of tones, from the euphonic to the cacophonic, from peaceful and calming to abrasive and exasperating. Write a poem that captures the sonic spectrum of your surroundings at this time of year, perhaps experimenting with punctuation, various line lengths and spacing, and onomatopoeia to reflect all the textures of your auditory experience.

Journalist Zahra Hankir’s book, Eyeliner: A Cultural History (Penguin Books, 2023), traces the lineage of eye makeup from its ancient Egyptian origins to contemporary times, zigzagging across a wide-ranging swath of globalism, fashion, and celebrity—from Nefertiti to Amy Winehouse—while relating the implications of the cosmetic accessory to themes of feminine performance and Orientalism. Choose an accessory or stylistic embellishment that has played some role in your own life, or perhaps one that is culturally pervasive or resonant. Consider your relationship to this seemingly frivolous item and write a personal essay about its relevance and connection to your identity. How might you connect the dots to larger social issues and historic moments in time?

About Our Writing Prompts

What is a writing prompt and how do you use one? Whether you find yourself in front of a blank page or stuck in a work-in-progress, writing prompts can offer a spark that ignites your creative thinking and can lead to new writing. Prompts offer guidance, fresh ideas, and direction for writers of all levels of experience. First, choose a prompt for the genre in which you’d like to write, then carefully read it and consider what it is asking you to think about. It could be a specific setting, a writing technique, or an element of an imagined character; a specific poem, story, essay, song, book, or film from which you might take inspiration; or a current event or a topical theme. A writing prompt is filled with endless possibilities—and there is no wrong way to use one to generate new writing!

What makes our writing prompts unique? We have an archive of over 2,000 prompts, all original and offered here and in our weekly newsletter . You’ll find a variety of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction prompts—some inspired by recent and classic literature and other forms of art, current events, and writing practices, and others that offer guidance for a particular form, including sonnets, erasure poetry, flash fiction, lyric essays, and more. For more than fifty years, Poets & Writers has supported creative writers with trustworthy information and inspiration, and our weekly prompts provide a regular dose of encouragement and motivation.

What are the benefits of using writing prompts? Writing prompts can help you get unstuck if you’re in a rut and the ideas aren’t flowing. But even if you’re not experiencing writer’s block, writing prompts can offer a fresh take or a new approach to a work-in-progress. Writing prompts can also provide the motivation to experiment with a new form, try out a new genre, or learn about other writing techniques. And writing prompts are an invaluable tool for teachers who want to encourage and inspire their writing students.

What is this list of Best Books? Best Books for Writers is a list of essential books for creative writers that we curate to support your writing practice. Every week, we add a book (whether new or a classic) with a synopsis and highlights. Included are books on the writing life, anthologies of craft essays, collections of lectures, practical guides with writing exercises, and more.

Poetry writing prompts Every Tuesday we post a new poetry prompt to guide you in your practice. Get to know the work of contemporary and classic poets, as well as a variety of poetic forms.

Fiction writing prompts Every Wednesday we post a new fiction prompt to spark your imagination. Take inspiration from recently published short stories and novels, and of course, the classics.

Creative nonfiction writing prompts Every Thursday we post a new creative nonfiction prompt to help your exploration of this ever-changing genre. These prompts include information and inspiration for a variety of essays as well as memoirs. Discover new writers and their craft, and fresh ways to generate writing inspired by your life.

Need a starter pack? Check out our Writing Prompts for Beginners .

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  2. Needing some poetic inspiration? This prompt is sure to spark something

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  3. 101 Poetry Prompts & Creative Ideas for Writing Poems

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  4. 30 Poetry Writing Prompts to Keep You Busy

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  5. Poetry Writing Ideas for Middle Schoolers

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COMMENTS

  1. 132 Best Poetry Prompts and Ideas to Spark Creativity

    Poetry Writing Prompts. Tumblr Writing Prompts. Creative Writing Prompts for Kids. Creative Writing Prompts for Adults. Fantasy Writing Prompts. Horror Writing Prompts. Writer. Types of Writers. How to Become a Writer. Author. Document Manager. Screenplay Writer. Technical Writer. UX Writer. Google UX Writer. Certifications.

  2. 100 Poetry Prompts

    Whether you’re writing poetry to improve your skills, as a form of self-expression, or just because you find it enjoyable, here are one hundred poetry prompts to inspire you: 100 Poetry Prompts. Write a poem about colors without ever naming any colors in the poem. Write a poem that tells a story.

  3. How to Write the AP Lit Poetry Essay

    Here, students write essays to 3 prompts. These prompts include a literary analysis of a poem, prose fiction, or in a work selected by the student. Because the AP Literature Exam is structured in a specific, predictable manner, it’s helpful to prepare yourself for the types of questions you’ll encounter on test day.

  4. List of Poetry Essay Question stems

    Write a well-organized essay in which you analyze how the poem's organization, diction, and figurative language prepare the reader for the speaker's concluding response. In the soliloquy, King Henry laments his inability to sleep. In a well-organized essay, briefly summarize the King's thoughts and analyze how the diction, imagery, and syntax ...

  5. 2,000+ Writing Prompts and Ideas from Poets & Writers

    Whether you find yourself in front of a blank page or stuck in a work-in-progress, writing prompts can offer a spark that ignites your creative thinking and can lead to new writing. Prompts offer guidance, fresh ideas, and direction for writers of all levels of experience.