An American sentence:
Publishing new poetry daily brings perfectionism to its knees.
What’s an ‘American Sentence’?
Allen Ginsberg, inventor of the American Sentence, felt that the haiku didnโt work as well in English. Ginsberg decided to remove the line structure of the haiku, maintaining the requirement of 17 syllables total. He felt that removing the line count freed the American Sentence up for the idiosyncrasies of English phonemes.
The requirements:
- Composed in one line;
- Syllabic, 17 syllables;
- Condensed, written with no unnecessary words or articles;
- Complete sentence or sentences;
- Includes a turn or enlightenment.
Let’s write poetry together!

When it comes to partnership, some humans can make their lives alone – it’s possible. But creatively, it’s more like painting: you can’t just use the same colours in every painting. It’s just not an option. You can’t take the same photograph every time and live with art forms with no differences.
–Ben Harper (b. 1969)
Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!
Good, the enemy of perfection, is better than nothing at all.
๐ Steven ๐
Haha! Really nice one! ๐
๐ Thanks, Terveen ๐
puuuuurfectly trashed! ๐๐๐๐
๐๏ธ Cindy ๐๏ธ
๐๐๐
A wonderful way to put perfectionism in the garbage bin!
Exactlyโฃ๏ธ
Recurrent thought reformed patience working covered, turned around glass.
โค Amelia โค ~ that's a lovely write!
Poetry perfected cries ‘uncle’ to its quotidian master. ๐
Forcing one’s self to ‘publish’ limits perfectionist inclinations.
When daily duty dulls perfection it’s time to replace the toner. ๐
It is the drug to which we become addicted!
Addictions are dangerous, but some are more dangerous than others.
Bravo! โคโคโค
๐ โค Filipa โค ๐
Brava!!!
Also shyness is inherently uncomfortable.
๐ Abi ๐
Bravo
๐๐ป Lauren ๐๐ป
Lol!!
๐คญ Leenda ๐คญ