Dectina Refrain

This form was invented by Marion Friedenthal and named 'Dectina Refrain' by Luke Prater.
The form is written with your syllables going: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10
Your 10th line is comprised of your first four lines all together as one stand alone line in quotation marks.

I have found it common, not to use quotation marks.

Example poem

Rejuvenate

Play

with your

children now,

cherish the time.

Everything is new

to them, and magic too.

Doubt me not, my adult friends,

they can transfer that to you.  No

household or other chore can do that.

"Play with your children now, cherish the time."

(c) Lawrencealot - May 26, 2012

Stress Matrix Dectet

This is a form Invented by British Poet Luke Prater,

it comprises ten lines, ten syllables per line, following the rhyme-scheme/structure

 aBa BcBc DcD

where lowercase are iambic pentameter and uppercase are trochaic pentameter – they alternate the whole way, yielding a perfect ‘checkerboard’ of stressed and unstressed syllables, ten lines down x ten syllables across (=100 syllables completely evenly distributed; the rhyme scheme is also  even/symmetrical mathematically).

Ampersandcastles

The Ages, Dark, concede, recede like tides,

leaving shores to Renaissance sand-castles

built big, with shells and mortar; fairground rides

chitter-chatting dusky-distance rascals.

From beach to fair, knots in my hair, and sand,

shaken out, like doubt of change, the mask-all.

Hey, dance – try throwing shapes! An ampersand?

Just like you, to groove to punctuation.

No ampersand; sniff out a woman’s hand,

claiming back some laddish inclination.

Copyright © Luke Prater (2011)

If the syllabic feet (iambs and trochees) are singled out, and only the stressed syllables are highlighted (and stanza-breaks removed), you can more clearly see the ‘checkerboard’ of stresses and unstresses evenly distributed over the 10×10 (100) -

the A | ges DARK | con CEDE | re CEDE | like TIDES

LEA ving | SHORES to | REN ai | SSANCE sand | CA stles

built BIG | with SHELLS | and MOR | tar; FAIR | ground RIDES

CHI tter | CHA tting | DUS ky | DIS tance | RAS cals

from BEACH | to FAIR | knots IN | my HAIR | and SAND

SHA ken | OUT like | DOUBT of | CHANGE the | MASK-all

hey DANCE | try THROW | ing SHAPES | an AMP | er SAND

JUST like | YOU to | GROOVE to | PUNC tu | A tion

no AM | per SAND | sniff OUT | a WO | man’s HAND

CLAI ming | BACK some | LA ddish | IN cli | NA tion.

Pasted from <http://www.lukeprater.com/stress-matrix-forms/>

Example Poem

Here I have expanded the concept to write a

 Stress Maxtrix Dectet with the diminishing  Hexeverse form concept/

The Experiment

'Twas the tempest thrumming through our culture

restraint forgotten, crowding at the till.

Leaders sought to feed- not kill the vulture.

 Ask not how will I serve, but how my will

best be served if pork be granted voters?

Give them from their own cart; they are the thill

made to pull.  We're simply gift promoters.

 If business pledged what cannot be sustained

government will bail out General Motors

because the Union votes have been ordained.

Envy, greed, and yes, annoyance

have marked our liberty's demise.

Harking this took no clairvoyance.

Largess bestowed is no surprise.

 Bondage first then faith -spiritual,

courage, then liberty; which grows

abundance, before residual

complacent apathy then shows.

Soon we are dependent

and after that we're slaves.

History's resplendent

with samples of such waves.

This is how we'll end it.

kowtowing to the raves.

Here we're standing

with troubled brow,

sad soft-landing

but we saw how.

(c) Lawrencealot - December 25, 2012

Octain Refrain

The Octain Refrain is a form invented by Luke Prater.  Learn more about Luke by visiting his blog at  www.lukeprater.com.

It comprises eight lines as TWO TERCETS and a COUPLET, either as octosyllables (counting eight syllables per line), or as iambic tetrameter, whichever is preferable. Trochaic tetrameter also acceptable. The latter yields a more propulsive rhythm, as opposed to iambs, which tend to lilt.

As the name suggests, the first line is a refrain, repeated as the last (some variation of refrain acceptable). Rhyme-scheme as follows -

Acc a(c/c)a bA

A = refrain line. c/c refers to line five having midline (internal) rhyme, which is different from the a- and b-rhymes. The midline rhyme does not have to fall exactly in the middle of the line, in fact it can be more effective and subtle, depending on context, to have it fall earlier or later.

Alternative layout/stanza-structure: TWO SINGLE LINES and TWO TERCETS

Refrain lines on their own, with the middle six as two tercets -

A bba (c/c)ab A

The High Octain is simply a double Octain, but as one poem – the refrains are the same, a- and b- rhymes are the same, but actual words are different, and the c/c line with the internal rhyme can optionally be rhymed in the second instance. There is no restriction on the level of repetition, but in most cases the stipulated refrain A is enough; this may even feel too repetitive and need varying. As a general guideline, changing up to four syllables of the eight still retains enough to feel like the refrain. The end word must remain the same.

The structure of the High Octain is one single after another with a break in between; alternatively, it can be written as two blocks of eight lines:

A-b-b-a-c/c-a-b-A

A-b-b-a-c/c-a-b-A [or d/d instead of c/c]

It is also possible to write a piece consisting of a string of single Octains (the rhymes of which would not usually correspond).

Example Poems

Octane Refrain     (Octain)

My muscle  car needs high-octane. 

If jerk at pump should pump low test 

He'll have a broken nose at best. 

From low octane I must refrain. 

It's racing fuel to race you fool. 

but high-octane I must explain. 

That's par for cars that run the best. 

My muscle  car needs high-octane. 

© Lawrencealot - June 19, 2012

Showers Wash the Stars  (Octain)

Springtime showers bringing rainbows 

Brightest sharpest color forming 

Glassine crystals grasslands warming 

Steam now rising; morning rain goes. 

Cleaned pavilion shines cerulean

promised now where stars refrain goes

Superb nighttime twinkle swarming.

Springtime showers bringing rainbows. 

New Year's Eve     (High Octain)

When we were young we joined the crowd 

To walk the street in freezing cold, 

to greet the new; kick  out the old. 

To hear the fireworks booming loud, 

and watch their flight into the night, 

their light reflecting off a cloud. 

We'd be there when the bells were tolled. 

When we were young we joined the crowd. 

When we were young we joined the crowd 

on blocked off streets that were patrolled 

by cops on horses quite controlled. 

But now we're older we've avowed 

to stay and see it on TV, 

that's even if the streets are plowed. 

We have each other we can hold. 

When we were young we joined the crowd. 

   © Lawrencealot - December 30, 2012

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