April is National Poetry Month, and here at The Writer’s Blog, we’re celebrating with f10 inspirational poetry prompts to get you writing. Whether you’re a lifelong poet or someone quietly curious about verse, this month is your invitation to reconnect with the rhythm of language, explore new creative ground, and maybe even surprise yourself along the way.
Why April? In 1996, the Academy of American Poets launched National Poetry Month, inspired by the success of Black History Month and Women’s History Month. Their goal was to honor poetry’s cultural impact, invite more people to read and write it, and remind us that poetry isn’t a relic. Poetry is a living, breathing force. It doesn’t just sit on the page. It stirs, sings, questions, and heals.
Throughout April, we’ll be sharing poetry-centered posts, including a tribute to women poets across history and a look at poetry’s power as protest. But first, we’re starting with something a little more personal. A collection of original poetry prompts to spark your voice and invite you into the celebration. Each one explores a different form or theme, paired with a prompt and a poem for inspiration. These aren’t assignments. They’re invitations. Take what speaks to you. Leave what doesn’t. Most of all, write.
2 Poetry Prompts Theme: Identity, Confession, Womanhood
Confessional Poem
Confessional poetry is deeply personal and often reveals the hidden truths we carry. Made famous by poets like Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton, this form gives voice to emotional intensity, vulnerability, and identity. These poems read like diary entries transformed by fire.
Poetry Prompt: Write a poem that begins with the phrase: I never told anyone…
Example: Sylvia Plath’s Lady Lazarus and Anne Sexton’s Her Kind
Persona Poem
A persona poem invites you to step into another woman’s voice. Perhaps you become Sappho, writing to a lost lover. Or maybe you imagine the inner world of a woman who history overlooked. This prompt is a practice in empathy, embodiment, and reclamation.
Poetry Prompt: Write as if you are her, in your voice, but with her soul.
Example: Margaret Atwood’s Siren Song
3 Poetry Prompts Theme: Performance, Rhythm, Modern Expression
Spoken Word / Rap-Influenced Poem
Spoken word poetry lives in breath and rhythm. Influenced by hip-hop and oral tradition, it demands presence. Think of Amanda Gorman’s soaring delivery or Tupac Shakur’s lyrical vulnerability. These poems speak truth aloud.
Poetry Prompt: Write a poem meant to be performed. Use rhythm, repetition, and bold imagery. Bonus: record yourself reading it out loud.
Example: Tupac’s The Rose That Grew from Concrete
Anaphora Poem
Anaphora is the repetition of a phrase at the beginning of each line. It builds momentum and creates emotional resonance, perfect for themes of identity or protest. Maya Angelou and Allen Ginsberg both used it to powerful effect.
Poetry Prompt: Begin each line with “I am not…” or “This is for…” and see where the rhythm takes you.
Example: Maya Angelou’s Still I Rise, Allen Ginsberg’s Howl
Free Write / Free Verse Poem
Free verse allows you to let go of structure and write from the gut. No rhyme, no format, just raw expression. Begin with a timed free write and shape the mess into something true. This is where a lot of unexpected poetry lives.
Poetry Prompt: Write for 10 minutes without stopping. Then shape what you wrote into a free verse poem.
Example: Nikki Giovanni’s collected works often read like a conversation with the soul.
4 Poetry Prompts Theme: Protest, Power, Resistance
Blackout / Erasure Poem
Take someone else’s words and carve your own meaning. Blackout poems transform existing texts, newspapers, book pages, ads, into unexpected revelations. This is especially powerful when reclaiming language that historically excluded your voice.
Poetry Prompt: Choose a printed page and blackout all but the words that speak to your power, rage, or resistance.
Bonus: Try circling every sixth word on a page and write a poem using only those.
Example: Explore Poets.org’s collection on blackout and erasure poems
List Poem / Catalog of Resistance
List poems name what matters. They declare, they honor, they survive. Each item in the list becomes a pulse in the poem’s rhythm. Perfect for cataloging resistance, identity, or memory.
Poetry Prompt: Make a list of every time you said no and survived. Let that list become your poem.
Example: Lucille Clifton’s won’t you celebrate with me
Letter to the Past or Future
Epistolary poems are written as letters to your younger self, your ancestors, or the world yet to come. They hold grief, hope, and everything in between. This is one of the most emotionally resonant poetic forms you can write.
Poetry Prompt: Begin with “Dear…” and say what you’ve always needed to say.
Example: Ocean Vuong’s Letter to My Mother That She Will Never Read
Poem of Place / Belonging
Some poems are rooted in land and memory. This prompt invites you to write about a place that shaped you, geographically, emotionally, spiritually. Think of it as a spell woven from soil and scent.
Poetry Prompt: Describe your home using sensory imagery, memory, and metaphor. Let it speak for you.
Example: Joy Harjo’s Remember
1 Final Poetry Prompt: The Found Poem
Found poetry is a literary scavenger hunt. You collect lines from life, overheard conversations, magazine ads, graffiti, and arrange them into something new. The beauty lies in the unexpected connections.
Poetry Prompt: Go on a word hunt. Gather 10 lines or fragments from the world around you and piece them together into a found poem.
Bonus: This echoes the 6th-word prompt mentioned earlier. We’ll explore that further in a future post on creative writing exercises.
Example: See examples in Poetry Foundation’s Found Poem glossary
Poetry doesn’t need rules. It doesn’t ask for structure, or punctuation, or permission. It comes from someplace deeper, beneath logic, beneath craft. When I write poetry, it doesn’t start with a plan. It starts with something rising up inside me that needs to get out. Something I couldn’t say any other way.
That’s the gift of poetry. It gives us freedom. Not the kind of freedom you earn with technique or skill, but the kind you remember when you finally let yourself feel something all the way through. Poetry is your soul on paper. It’s messy. It’s lyrical. It stirs something. And it’s not just for scholars or people who talk about meter. It’s for anyone with a heart and a story. Which means it’s for you.
If one of these poetry prompts opened something up in you, write the poem. Let it pour out without editing, without second-guessing. And if you feel like sharing it, we’d love to see it. Post it in the comments, or link to wherever it lives. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be yours.
And if you’re not ready to share yet, that’s fine too. Let the words be yours alone for now. But keep writing. We’ll be here throughout the month, honoring women poets, exploring protest through verse, and holding space for whatever your voice needs to say. Poetry isn’t about rules. It’s about truth. And your truth matters.
Do you have a poetry prompt or a poem to share?
