Sonnet Quick Guide

 SONNETS! Here's how you make a good one. Though there is a rhyme scheme and it's all iambic pentameter, there are also some rules about the content. First, Shakespeare's sonnet 18:

This has the components we've talked about before. Next, the Volta. This is the turning point of the poem, and all sonnets should have it. In the case of Sonnet 18, the turning point is line 9. It doesn't have to be here - it could be in the rhyming couplet. The use of the word, "But" strongly signals a turning point, however, so this must be the volta.

With this in mind, take a gander at the criteria handed out for this poem. Use the quatrains you've made so far to create a sonnet!