How to write an acrostic poem

An acrostic poem is a poem of words or phrases that describes a subject word. The subject word is written vertically, and each line begins with the letters of the subject word, making it a fun and unique form of poetry. Here are some tips on how to write an acrostic poem.

1)     Decide if you love or hate the reader

The first letter of each line (or paragraph) forms a hidden message or word. A fun way to create an ode to your loved one or a sneaky form of dissent – public resignations of disgruntled officials are a particularly popular place to deploy one – acrostic poetry can be very simple and straightforward, or take a more understated form in full verse.

2)     When you write an acrostic poem: start simple

Think of a word subject and write them vertically in capital letters. For young writers, start with 3-4 letter words. If you are older, you can choose longer words. Brainstorm for each letter that describes your topic. Think about nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs based on your own abilities.

3)     Help is encouraged

Check a thesaurus for synonyms if the word you want to use is too long or too short. If, for example, the word “love” is too short, you could try “affection”, “adoration”, “devotion”, “tenderness” or something else. Remember that you can also use multiple words for your topic, if you wish. This is an easy way to produce a longer poem.

4)     When you write an acrostic poem: free yourself

Unlike other forms of poetry, there are no rules regarding rhyme or meter in acrostics, so writing can be a relaxing sort of word puzzle. You may find that you develop a naturally consistent rhythm or line length as you go along.

When you write an acrostic poem, make sure your reader can understand your poem by clarifying any confusing and awkward language. This is a fun and easy way to dive into poetry writing.