Poetic form to try: Song thất lục bát

A song thất lục bát is a Vietnamese form. It consists of two quatrains containing two seven-syllable lines, followed by a Lục bát couplet (a six-syllable line and an eight-syllable line). Each line requires certain syllables to exhibit a “flat” or “sharp” pitch (• = neutral), and a complex rhyme scheme (A, B, etc).

• • ♯ • ♭ • [♯A]

• • ♭ • [♯A] • [♭B]

• ♭ • ♯ • [♭B]

• ♭ • ♯ • [♭B] • [♭C]

 

• • ♯ • [♭C] • [♯ D]

• • ♭ • [♯ D] • [♭E]

• ♭ • ♯ • [♭E]

• ♭ • ♯ • [♭E] • [♭F]