Poetic Form- the Lento

The lento was invented by poet Lencio Rodrigues. He explains on poetry sites that he named the form after his own first name, but rhymed it with another form, the Cento. He also mentions that the format came to him in a dream, much like many of his writing inspirations.

The lento consists of two quatrains, or four-line stanzas, that use either of the following rhyming schemes:

a-b-a-b ... c-d-c-d

a-w-a-x ... b-y-b-z

Remember that in a rhyming pattern, lines ending in a sound designated by "a" only rhyme with other "a" lines, "b" lines only with other "b" lines, and so on. "w," "x," "y," and "z" do not rhyme with any other lines. Rhymes can be perfect or just similar sounds.

The interesting twist in this form is that the first word in each line rhymes with other lines in its stanza, the scheme being, "e-e-e-e ... f-f-f-f."

Four quatrains would make a "double lento," six would make a "triple lento," and so on. There is no set naming convention, so the author may select a title as they like..

Example:

Wyoming

Dwell on Wyoming, its soft, clouded sky,
smell the plains' air as the fragrances drift,
tell us of eagles in early July,
quell nature's passion before spirits lift.

Nights in the open are filled with such stars,
rites of the passage of earth and of man,
sites where a clan had drawn circles and bars,
whites and dull reds in a Yellowstone tan.