Good evening, Poets!

Sanaa here aka adashofsunny with another exciting round of Poetics, there is a chill in the air, the scent of fallen leaves, and a certain romance in the early darkness. October belongs to candlelit rooms, black lace, old songs, and windows glowing against the night. It is a month caught between endings and beginnings—a little melancholy, a little magical, and just dark enough to make you wonder what might be waiting beyond midnight.

Today, we are going to have fun and write deliciously spooky poems inspired by a playlist of songs.

Halloween Poetry Playlist Prompt — 13 Songs, 13 Hauntings

Choose ONE song of your liking from the playlist and write a poem. Let the music determine the mood, imagery, setting, and voice. The poem doesn’t have to retell the songs; instead, use each one as a doorway into a different Halloween world.

• “Season of the Witch” — Donovan
  Prompt: A night when everyone in the city seems to be hiding something. Write about glamour, suspicion, and the feeling that the ordinary world has become slightly enchanted.

• “I Put a Spell on You” — Nina Simone
  Prompt: Someone discovers that desire can become a kind of spell. Write about obsession without ever naming it.

• “Witchy Woman” — Eagles
  Prompt: Describe a mysterious woman entirely through the eyes of someone who cannot decide whether she is dangerous or irresistible.

• “Black Magic Woman” — Santana
  Prompt: Write about a woman whose presence feels like dark magic. Never explain what she has done—only describe its effect.

• “People Are Strange” — The Doors
  Prompt: Walk through a familiar city on Halloween night and slowly make everything seem unfamiliar. What happens when the streets begin to look back?

• “Spellbound” — Siouxsie and the Banshees
  Prompt: Two people meet somewhere they should not be. The night seems to recognize them before they recognize each other.

• “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” — Bauhaus
  Prompt: Write from inside an abandoned mansion after midnight. There is no obvious ghost—yet every room suggests someone has only just left.

• “Season of the Witch” — Lana Del Rey
  Prompt: Give Halloween a decadent, romantic atmosphere. Moonlight, perfume, velvet, cigarettes, old houses, and a beautiful stranger who feels slightly unreal.

• “The Killing Moon” — Echo & the Bunnymen
  Prompt: The moon becomes an omen. Write about a night when fate seems to be waiting for someone to make one irreversible choice.

• “Halloween” — Phoebe Bridgers
  Prompt: Write about Halloween after the costumes come off—the strange melancholy of returning to ordinary life when the night has revealed something you cannot forget.

• “Running Up That Hill” — Kate Bush
  Prompt: Make a supernatural bargain. What would you exchange with the darkness if it could give you one impossible thing?

• “Nightmare” — Halsey
  Prompt: Write a poem about becoming the monster everyone expected you to be—and discovering that you like the transformation.

• “This Is Halloween” — The Nightmare Before Christmas
  Prompt: End the series with Halloween itself as a living creature. Let the streets, pumpkins, shadows, ghosts, and moon speak in one collective voice.

New to dVerse? Here’s how to join in: 

• Write a poem (in any form) in response to the challenge.
• Enter a link directly to your poem and your name by clicking Mr. Linky below
• and remember to check the little box to accept the use/privacy policy.
• You will find links to other poets and more will join, so please
• do check back later to read their poems.
• Read and comment on other poets’ work– we all come here to have our poems read.
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