POETIC FORMS | OPEN MIC POETRY CHALLENGE

Staging a Coup Against the Algo Gods with Poetry

A rebellion with hope and humour through limerick, haiku, acrostic, cinquain, and nonet

The Dance of Forms. Photo by Ariel Salgado on Unsplash

This post is a playful experiment with various poetic forms against the algorithm’s aversion to all things verse.

*Sunita Chakraborty announced that the Algo Gods are hungry, waiting for an offering of verse variations.*

I gathered the fabulous and fun forms favoured— the cheeky limerick, the terse cinquain, the ever-inclusive acrostic, the naughty nonet and the hopeful haiku — with a resolve to recite against the tyranny of the bots.

Let’s see if the algorithm is moved or not!

In any case, I still get to dance with soulful words and gifted friends against the jarring whirr of the bots!

Photo by Hongwei FAN on Unsplash

LIMERICK

There once was a girl on Medium,

Who longed for a viral podium.

She got claps by the ton,

But no moolah was won,

So, she laughed at the bots in delirium.

Photo by Woody Yan on Unsplash

HAIKU

I am tuned within,

drenched in rain and mist,

smiling as I try.

Photo by Carrie Borden on Unsplash

ACROSTIC

I wonder if I’ll pass,

Just musing as minutes amass,

Knowing my words take their chance,

Loved is each entry’s dance.

My friends at Frequency sing,

Note joy in the Change they bring,

Offering rhythm and rhyme,

Poetry lasting through time.

Photo by Xuan Nguyen on Unsplash

CINQUAIN

Hear, hear,

I’ve never done this.

Cheer for me, now I am here,

Crashing this algorithm ball,

Ta-da!

Photo by Alexander Mass on Unsplash

NONET

A girl once smiled with hope and dreams,

She never feared the challenges.

Brightly coloured were her thoughts;

No darkness touched her aura.

Yet the bots would test her will.

She holds her ground,

Unshaken still,

Not yet.

No.

Red Bull cannot give me wings! Your support, however, can… If you liked my stories, then you can help me sprout some wings and cheer me by reading more here :). Thank you for reading. © Anu Maheshwari, 2026.

Check out the fabulous Poetry Week at Frequency Change, thanks to the tireless editors at work — Sunita Chakraborty, Poet In The Arctic & Mary Acton

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