Hi everyone!  Grace here, hosting another poetry form—the Golden Shovel. This form was first introduced to us by De Jackson in a dVerse post back in 2016, and it’s a wonderful one to revisit. Let’s try our hand at this engaging and versatile form.

The Golden Shovel is a contemporary poetic form created by Terrance Hayes as a tribute to Gwendolyn Brooks, We Real Cool.  This is the link to the poem, We Real Cool.  The poetry form invites poets into a creative dialogue with an existing poem – honoring it while creating something entirely new.  This form is in the tradition of the cento, or erasure, but with a lot more flexibility.

How It Works

– Take a line (or lines) from a poem you admire.
– Use each word in the line(s) as an END word in your poem.
– Keep the words from the original line in order. When finished, you will be able to read down the right margin, and have the original chosen line intact.
– Give credit to the poet who wrote the line(s). You may also want to include a link to the original poem, so we can see your inspiration.
– The new poem does not have to be about the same subject matter, but it can be in a similar vein, if you choose. Or not.

Note:  The number of words determines the number of lines.

Here’s a quick example, using Carl Sandburg’s first line from Fog:

Original line: The fog comes on little cat feet.
Golden Shovel poem:

Writing in Clouds of Gray
(after Sandburg)

Oh, how the
fugue of fog
tilts her. She comes
to the page on
timid fingers, little
curlicue cat
metered feet.

What Makes This Form Special

*It blends elements of cento and erasure, but with more flexibility
*The new poem can diverge in theme, tone, and voice from the original
*It creates a conversation between two poems—the old and the new
*It’s both structured and (free): short or long, simple or complex

At its heart, the Golden Shovel is not just technique – it’s homage.
It carries forward the voice of another poet while reshaping it through your own lens.

So here is the prompt:  Write a Golden Shovel poem.
*Choose a line from a poem that resonates with you.
*Build your poem so each line ends with a word from that line.
*Keep the words in order, forming the original line down the right margin.
*Let your poem move in its own direction.  Surprise us!
*Include attribution (after [poet])

Source:  The Poetry Foundation

New to dVerse? Here’s how to join in:

*Write the Golden Shovel 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.
*Please link back to dVerse from your site/blog.
*Have fun!