This month's challenge was to write a pantoum inspired by a New Year's post by Pádraig Ó Tuama. In that post, he offered these prompts for the pantoum.
Write eight lines.
Number each one, 1-8, and then arrange them in the shape below.
1 ______
2 ______
3 ______
4 ______
2 ______
5 ______
4 ______
6 ______
5 ______
7 ______
6 ______
8 ______
7 ______
3 ______
8 ______
1 ______
As you arrange them in the shape, feel free to modify the repetition; some new idea may emerge.
- Where are you? What place? A village? a guest house? A city?
- What’s a night sound from outside you hear regularly?
- What’s a night sound from inside you hear regularly?
- What can you see in the dark?
- Who is nearby? Neighbours? Owls? Mice? What’s happening for them?
- What’s time doing?
- What physical sensations can you feel when you wake at night?
- What’s one thing that’s on your mind when you wake?
Here's the poem I came up with. I wrote about summer nights in the house I grew up in.
The Edge of Sleep
On hot nights, I lie on the screened porch,
serenaded by a chorus of crickets,
while the kitchen clock keeps ticking
and a sliver of moon rests above the roof.
Serenaded by a chorus of crickets,
upstairs, my father snores
as a sliver of moon rests above the roof
and the shortest night of summer slips away.
Upstairs, my father snores
while I fear I'll slip from the dream cliff;
the shortest night of summer slips away.
Will I ever sleep again?
I fear I'll slip from the dream cliff
as the kitchen clock keeps ticking.
Will I ever sleep again
on hot nights, on the screened porch?
Poem ©Tricia Stohr-Hunt, 2026. All rights reserved.
You can read the poems my Poetry Sisters have written at the links below.
- Tanita Davis
- Mary Lee Hahn
- Sara Lewis Holmes
- Laura Purdie Salas
- Liz Garton Scanlon
Would you like to try the next challenge? We will be writing in the form of the haiku sonnet. You’ve got a month to craft your creation(s), then share your offering with the rest of us on August 28th in a post and/or on social media with the tag #PoetryPals. We look forward to reading your poems!
