Chinese traditional poetry is often difficult to understand; good translation is essential to fully understand Chinese poems. In terms of the technical side of poetry, the two traditions (Chinese and English) have similarities, for example, there are a fixed number of lines of syllables and rhyme. And the ‘strict’ form of writing (metre, rhyme scheme, and stanzas) is still the most prevalent form of poetry in both traditions. Chinese poetry is all about the poet, the ‘meaning’ for the poet (subjective), and not what is happening ‘around’ the poet (objective). In contrast, modern English poetry places a focus on ‘what is happening’ around the poet. Modern Chinese poets have written in free verse, but many still write with a strict form. The main themes of Chinese modern poetry are ‘relationships’, but set within a unique Chinese context— in a wider social, economic and social context of China's continued economic and social development.
Jueju and Sijo are but two poetry styles that can trace their origins back to traditional Chinese poetry.
I kept these elements in mind when I designed the following poetic form:
™THE PIROUETTE (5 SEPTEMBER 2021)
pirouette: (n.) a ballet term meaning spin. It is used to describe any turn in ballet that involves turning on one leg.
© THE DESIGN
- Metre per each stanza: A quatrain in anapaestic dimeter [**/|**/], and ending with an additional line, pirouette, in dactylic monometer [/**]. The pirouette may be extended, but then the metre is switched around in each subsequent line, eg L6 **/, L7 /**, etc. It imitates the rhythm of dance—the spin is in the reversed stress/metre of the final line(s). The number of stanzas is unlimited. In my example, the metre is highlighted. [Edited: Some latitude, insofar as the metre in the quatrain is concerned is allowed.]
- Rhyme scheme: The rhyme scheme of the quatrains is the prerogative of the poet. The first word/syllable [edited] (unstressed) in the 1st line of the quatrain rhymes with the last word (unstressed) in line 5. When the pirouette is extended, every alternate (uneven number) line rhymes as set out above. It is an example of remote rhyme [edited].
- The pirouette (the final line or more)) is presented indented.
- The subjective content has a light and playful ambience.
- It may be titled.
MY EXAMPLE
FAIR PLAY
Be intent on the prize;
one resists all fair play.
But then neither his nor
my absurd reaching dreams
affect me
by any
means and we,
however, love
same as thee.
© Suzette Richards (2021)
[Edited 3 June 2022 & the poem rewritten]
™THE PIROUETTE VARIANT (3 June 2022)
© THE DESIGN
Syllabic: A 6 syllables per line quatrain, followed by the 3 syllables per line pirouette that 'spins' on its own axis. The pirouette consists of at least five lines.
Rhyme scheme: This single stanza poem is a combination of remote rhyme and linked rhyme. The pirouette rhymes in its linked rhyme in L5 & L6 with the FIRST SYLLABLE of the unrhymed quatrain (creating the remote rhyme). The linked rhyme resulting in the 'spin' is a variation of initial rhyme where the last word rhymes with the first word in the next line.
Presentation: The pirouette is presented indented to the quatrain.
MY EXAMPLE
FAIR PLAY
Fair play didn’t quite feature
when reason absconded;
war and peace polarised.
When their ideals clash,
men rip, tear
hair by roots.
Didn’t they care
rare courage
found in lair?
Other well-known heterometric verse:
Tail-rhyme; Clerihew; Limerick; Double Dactyl; Lai; Thorley; and Skeltronic verse.
All rights reserved.
The moral rights of the author have been asserted.
Copyright © Docendo discimus, Suzette Richards, 2021
ISBN 978-0-620-95432-7
NB No part of my designed poetic forms may be copied/used in any manner, including the unique names of the poetic forms—it would constitute Paraphrasing plagiarism.
[Edit 19/9/2025] With The Pirouette, I explore persistent myths—such as the belief that a quatrain must always follow a rhyme scheme. In fact, this expectation is so ingrained that it’s the default setting of AI when prompted to produce one. The Pirouette variant was born little over three years ago, during another global battle—not of swords, but of narratives: the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The name The Pirouette draws from the legend of Swan Lake—a ballet whose libretto was crafted by Vladimir Begichev and Vasily Geltser, with music composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. It was first performed on March 4, 1877, at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.
Over time, Swan Lake became a symbol of regime collapse, famously broadcast during moments of political upheaval. In Ukraine, the Ballet Society of Live performed it as an act of defiance (1 May 2014)—a pirouette of protest against oppression. Similarly, The Pirouette spins new life into poetic terminology. It challenges the rigidity of rhyme, where the initial rhyme is not merely loosely tied to alliteration, but also diverges through first-word rhyme—a subtle twist that reclaims poetic freedom. Were the remote rhyme between the elements don’t mean that they are loosely associated, but in fact are intricately forged by a common goal despite the distance between the first syllable of the quatrain and the pattern of linked rhyme in the pirouetting leg of the poem.
The Pirouette demands attention to the very first syllable of the first line in the quatrain—unrhymed in this contest’s instance.* This syllable acts as the dancer’s fixed point, the spot on the wall a ballerina locks eyes with to maintain balance during a spin. In this poetic choreography, that syllable is elevated to near-cult status, reappearing with deliberate resonance: rhyming with the final word of line five (the moment the pirouette begins), the first word of line six, the last word of line seven, and so on. It is not a war plan—it is a symphony of sound and movement; a poetic revolution that turns on a single syllable, spinning meaning and music into a new kind of form.
*The Pirouette: Standard contest, dated August–September 2025.
My example poem for this contest: What a Pair? | Poem (poetrysoup.com)
***
Definitions [Edited 29/8/2025]
Remote Rhyme: A rhyme that connects non-adjacent lines or syllables. In this form, lines 5 and 6, etc of the pirouette must rhyme in their last and first syllables respectively, with the first syllable of the first line of the quatrain, creating a subtle echo in the initial rhyme and linked rhyme, eg fair / tear / hair …
Linked rhyme: This is a variation of initial rhyme. Linked rhyme is where the last word rhymes with the first word in the next line—it is NOT a Chain Verse. The words don’t have to be of equal stress, for example, wine and mine, where the first is stressed, and the last unstressed per its meaning.
Initial rhyme (also called head rhyme): It refers to a type of rhyme in which the rhyming occurs at the beginning of words—typically the first syllable or onset of a line. This often involves repetition of the initial consonant or consonant cluster. Examples include: wrung / sung; modern / modicum / odd; form / dormant. These pairings do not necessarily have to be alliterative, though they often are. For instance, tainted / faint share similar stressed syllables, but differ in their initial consonants (/t/ and /f/), which still contributes to the rhyme's effect. Initial rhyme can be thought of as the mirror image of end rhyme, which focuses on the repetition of terminal sounds.