Good evening, Poets! 

Sanaa here (aka adashofsunny) to accompany you to the realm of Sci-Fi Poetry. We first dived into the subject in 2013 when it was Bjorn’s first-time hosting Poetics. I thought it would be fun for us to try it again! Here is a link to the prompt: Poetics – Sci-Fi Poetre | dVerse 

Photo Courtesy: Person using a computer by Tima Miroshnichenko, Pexels. 

And now, let us board the spaceship and explore Sci-Fi! Are you ready? Let’s go! 

Imagine a world where language isn’t just a tool for communication but a bridge to alternate realities. Where verse doesn’t just describe the world we know, but creates entire universes—planets, technologies, and futures yet to come.  

This is the power of science fiction poetry, a genre that combines the speculative nature of sci-fi with the expressive depth of poetry.  

Today, at Poetics, we are going to explore the allure of sci-fi poetry, why poets are turning to it, and how one can start writing their own verse. 

The Intersection of Two Worlds: Poetry and Science Fiction 

Science fiction poetry sits at the crossroads of imagination and language. The genre invites poets to tackle the unknown—whether it’s advanced technology, the vastness of space, or dystopian futures—with the precision of metaphor, rhythm, and symbolism. 

For poets, science fiction offers endless inspiration. It’s a realm where the impossible becomes possible and where language can stretch beyond its usual boundaries.  

What happens when you write a poem about a black hole? Or a poem imagining the last human on Earth? The answer lies in the evocative power of poetry. 

Why Write Science Fiction Poetry? 

For poets, writing sci-fi isn’t just about crafting otherworldly landscapes—it’s a way of exploring ideas about what it means to be human. It’s about asking questions, probing the limits of our understanding, and pushing the boundaries of what poetry can express. 

Whether you’re exploring the metaphysics of a quantum leap or the fragility of the human spirit in an AI-controlled future, sci-fi poetry allows you to roam freely in the landscape of possibility. 

How to write Sci-Fi Poetry? 

To write science fiction poetry, begin by centering your poem around a speculative concept or an intriguing “what if” question. Imagine a futuristic scenario, perhaps set in space or on an alternate planet. Asking questions like “What if machines developed emotions?” or “What if humanity had to live on a different planet?” can help inspire a central theme for your poem. 

You can also use sensory language to describe its landscapes, sounds, and textures, drawing readers into your imagined setting. Employ similes and metaphors to make abstract sci-fi concepts relatable, perhaps likening a galaxy to a “fractured mirror” or an AI’s memory to “stars flickering in binary.”  

Don’t be afraid to experiment with perspective, either—writing from the viewpoint of an alien, a cyborg, or an artificial intelligence can offer fresh insights into human themes. Sci-fi poetry often explores humanity’s relationship with technology, raising questions about identity, memory, and emotion in a world reshaped by advancements. 

Consider the following three examples of Sci-Fi Poetry:

POEM-ROCKET BY ALLEN GINSBERG

I am another Star. 
Will you eat my poems or read them 
or gaze with aluminum blind plates on sunless pages? 
do you dream or translate & accept data with indifferent droopings 
of antennae? 
do I make sense to your flowery green receptor eye sockets?  
do you have visions of God? 
Which way will the sunflowers turn surrounded by millions of suns? 
This is my rocket my personal rocket I send up my message Beyond 
Someone to hear me there 
My immortality 
without steel or cobalt basalt or diamond gold or mercurial fire 
without passports filing cabinets bits of paper warheads 
without myself finally 
pure thought. 

IO BY CETO HESPERIA 

I circle her, forever her attendant, 
but somehow, I know she circles me 
I am so small in her presence, 
a thousand times greater than I, 
a thousand thousand, unknowable and vast, 
and all are drawn to her. 

She is second only to the Sun but to me she is everything. 
So many circle her, but she lets me be the closest, 
She sings her sweet magnetic song as we dance. 
She laughs and sings to me, calling me her sweet little one, 
her tempestuous fireball, her favourite possession. 

There is something electrical between us, 
a loop of hot plasma wraps around me, binding me to her

 
She has never touched me, 
not directly 
our love is motion and distance and dancing. 
As she moves, as I move, something moves inside me; 
a great churning of heat and rock and metal, pulled tight by her voice. 
It grows as we move together 
a desperate tectonic pressure just beneath my skin 
barely contained, straining towards her.
She sings, and we dance 
she watches me, and I twist in my lust 
she sings and we dance 
heat and rock and metal 
our love is fire and brimstone 
sulphur and iron 
and she sings 
and we dance 
and it spills out of me 
my breath electric 
a violent eruption from my lungs 
a fervent volcanic release of pressure. 

For a moment I am sated 
and I feel the very air is stained by my lust, 
a ring around her marking where I have been, 
where she has taken me. 

But I have marked her too, in my way; 
there is a hot auroral glow upon her cheeks 
as she watches me dance beneath her 
and I know she feels my heat. 
I circle her, forever her attendant, 
but somehow, I know she circles me. 

PERIHELION BY TOBY MACNUTT

For this comet’s path I chose it, carved it 
to be our temporary castle. In the act of opening 
I let its secrets leak out into the starlight, 
exposing this pocked and hissing water-ice 
as blue as your seven elder sisters. 
I shaped it to us till it shone. It is not terraformed 
(this is no earth) but transfigured: a chiseled, burnished fluid. 
You descend, shimmering darkly. 
The scent of you, of alien metals, diffuses 
into my atmosphere of breath and frozen dust. 
And of desire: you, nebula-born, you empyrean beauty, 
I would see you nova-bright and radiant, 
pulsing, brilliant with every cosmic hue. 
Yet I have tumbled through so many skies, 
and found none to be your match. I have no stars to give. 
I hold out my empty hands. As solar wind strokes the ice-wall 
into light, into life, my reaching fingers glitter with their gift: 
We are the void. (I touch your cheek.) 
We hold the stars already, 
and we burn, we burn. 

Each of these poems bring us a unique mix of wonder, introspection, and the distinct possibility of the unknown that science fiction poetry thrives on. 

Toby Macnutt’s Perihelion is a deeply imaginative piece. The poem places the speaker on a comet, shaping its path to be a temporary sanctuary. Macnutt uses tactile imagery—such as the “pocked and hissing water-ice”—to evoke a visceral setting that contrasts fragility with the vastness of space.  

It combines lyrical language with celestial concepts, capturing a blend of yearning and impermanence, reflecting Macnutt’s fascination with both space and inner emotional landscapes. 

Ginsberg Versus Hesperia 

Allen Ginsberg and Ceto Hesperia both explore science fiction poetry through cosmic themes and speculative imagery, yet their approaches and tones differ. Ginsberg’s work, such as “Poem-Rocket,” uses an existential and satirical lens, often embedding questions about humanity’s place in the universe with a blend of humor and critique. His style is spontaneous, raw, and marked by a Beat sensibility that questions traditional societal norms through a cosmic scope. 

Ceto Hesperia, on the other hand, creates science fiction poetry with a more intimate, almost romantic relationship to the universe. Her writing often centers on personal reflections woven into grand, scientific images, imbuing celestial bodies with emotional resonance. While Ginsberg’s verse can feel more chaotic and questioning, Hesperia’s language is meditative, focusing on the connections and distances between entities in space. 

For today’s Poetics, I’d like you to write a science fiction poem. It can be about anything! You can write about post-apocalyptic dreams or indulge in time travel reflections. What about interstellar messages? I am aiming for this prompt to have no predetermined limit or boundary. So, feel free to go with your muse. On your marks, get set … go!

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

• Write a poem 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 in order to read their poems. 
• Read and comment on other poets’ work– we all come here to have our poems read.