Both attentive to and unrestrained by the movements of meter, Shane McCrae’s work invites readers to engage in metrical poetry in new and interesting ways. As Jerriod Avant notes in his essay about the centrality of meter in McCrae’s work, what’s magical about McCrae’s use of these time-honored rhythms is simultaneously his commitment to using them and making them his own. This prompt is an invitation to do the same: refresh your memory (or do some research) about a particular meter—What is an iamb? A trochee? What are their typical uses?—and write a poem that both utilizes that metrical beat and somehow turns it on its head!

Read more in this issue: Interview | Critical Essay | Poems