Fear the omens—famine,
fire-drakes—symbols dire of
shocking furor, spear-din,
shouts: our sand-beach landing.
Treasure blood-bought, terror
tramping grayhalls; falls the
wave-sent, far-sailed warband
wasting boldly: gold-lust.
Another dróttkvætt for the Yeah Write April poetry slam.
Graceful Press Poetry 
this form is something I can’t wrap my head around, but i like the internal rhyming and assonance. how did you learn to write one?
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I just used Rowan’s post at Yeah Write Writing Help (the link above), but her checklist in those comments helped the most. Hard, hard, but in a fun way. 😉
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This really puts you in the moment! So sweeping!
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The rhythm of the form is clearly suited to Viking raiding. 😉
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Gorgeous! I love Viking raider poetry. Didn’t realise this was a perticular form. Makes a great poem 🙂
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It’s new to me, too. Hard, but fun.
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Where did you find the rules?
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It came as a challenge through Yeah Write. Click on the link for dróttkvætt above the logo. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Jane Dougherty Writes and commented:
One of my favourite themes in poetry (apart from blackbirds and roses) is Viking raids. Here is a really spendid poem full of waves and terror.
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Thanks so much for sharing!
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Reblogged this on Chimera Poetry.
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Thank you for the visit and for sharing this poem!
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Wild and vivid! Amazing imagery! Every word counts, very well done!
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Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
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Powerful stuff. When I visited Lindisfarne I tried to imagine the Viking raids, you did it beautifully.
xxx Hugs xxx
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Thanks so much. I love to try to imagine past lives at historical sites–some times/places easier than others. 🙂
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Very powerful, Jennifer.
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Thanks. It was fun to be a Viking, for a little while…
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Love the spirit of adventure you captured with this one! ♥
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Thanks, Kathy!
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The meter in this one, Jennifer, is like the beating of war drums. I’ve been mindful of synecdoches lately; mostly because I’ve been trying to understand how to use them. So I appreciated “grayhalls” for castle. And the number of spears that must have been thrown at once to create a din was a telling image for me. Nice!
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Thanks, Nate. The trochaic rhythm took some getting used to (in writing, I mean), but I guess those Vikings knew what they were about!
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Nice job with the form! The combination of the poem’s rhythm and the advancing warriors is perfect.
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Thank you, Ruby. I’m glad that worked for you!
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First of all, I’m in awe of you for doing two of these! Second, Lindisfarne. How could I not love that!? And finally, coincidentally too, when I first read this I was in awe of your use of hyphens (all very Dickensen). Gold-lust is my favourite but spear-din and wave-sent are also wonderful. And I just need to say that if it hadn’t been for your two drottkvaets, I would never have written one. Somehow, yours made the form seem approachable.
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Aw, I’m so glad you tried it, because your results were beautiful. Steep learning curve, but the second one was truly easier (not nearly as many cross-outs in my drafts). And thank you for being so sweet and supportive. ❤
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Thank you for your kind words and, again, for your help!
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Ooh, I liked this. Very dramatic. And, like Nate, I’m impressed that you did two drottkvaetts (drottkvaetti? what is the plural of that, I wonder?). I did one and barely managed that. Yours was splendid.
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Thanks, Michael. The second one was easier!
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