Sonnet off the cuff
If I composed a sonnet off the cuff
I'd struggle for a subject at the start,
And by default I'd use reflexive stuff;
It fills the lines, y'know, but it ain't art.
I'd dedicate it to the one who asked
Me for this damned impromptu rhyming verse
And hidden in the subtext there'd be masked
An awkward mix of gratitude and curse.
This third quatrain is where the well would dry;
The blarney gone, the gift of gab deserted.
(Self-referential style would pall and die
In parenthetic comments I'd inserted.)
Don't be surprised if most of this sounds dumb
When pulling fourteen lines out of my bum.
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Comments
Virge, you truly are amazing. It's a great sonnet. If I was wsing it, I would have some minor critiques, though. Should I bother? Probably not, but...
I would prefer "the" to "this" for the start of line 9. "This" is too overtly self-referential for my taste. Of course it's not intended to be subtle, but you don't actually breach the 'fourth wall' until that word, "this".
The tense of "I'd inserted" doesn't seem to fit, since you're presumably still writing when the well dries.
"This" isn't pulling lines out of your bum--you are.
So who's the sonnet dedicated to?
You're right on all three of those crits.
But if I correct them, I've destroyed the premise of the work.
*shrugs* I'll have to live with the flaws.
The person who asked me for an impromptu sonnet was me. I set myself personal challenges. :)