Poetry is the hardest form of writing — every word carries weight and there's nowhere to hide. These prompts help you craft poems that surprise, move, and resonate, whether you're writing your first haiku or polishing a collection. Tested across ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude so you know which model has the best ear for language.
| What you're trying to do | الأفضل لـ |
|---|---|
| Write in specific poetic forms | Claude |
| Strengthen poetic imagery and metaphor | Gemini |
| Fix meter, cadence, and musicality | Claude |
| Generate poetry writing prompts | ChatGPT |
| Get editorial feedback on poems | Gemini |
| Write and perform spoken word poetry | ChatGPT |
أوامر
Write in specific poetic forms
Help me write a poem in [form: sonnet / villanelle / haiku / ghazal / free verse / sestina / pantoum]. Theme: [what the poem is about] Emotional tone: [melancholic / joyful / angry / contemplative / playful] Personal connection: [why this theme matters to me] Create: 1. An explanation of the form's rules, structure, and rhyme scheme 2. A complete poem in this form with annotations showing how each rule is followed 3. 3 alternative opening lines with different entry points 4. Line-by-line commentary on craft choices (word selection, rhythm, imagery) 5. One deliberate rule-break suggestion and why it might strengthen the poem 6. A list of 5 published poems in this form worth studying as models
الأفضل لـ: CLAUDE
Claude demonstrates the strongest technical command of poetic forms, maintaining strict meter and rhyme schemes while still producing poems that feel alive rather than mechanical. Its craft annotations are genuinely educational.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
Master the rules of a form before you break them. AI can generate a technically perfect sonnet, but the most powerful sonnets bend one rule deliberately. Learn what's standard first, then decide what to subvert.
Strengthen poetic imagery and metaphor
Help me improve the imagery in this poem (or poem draft): [Paste your poem or describe the images you want to create] Theme: [what the poem explores] The feeling I want to evoke: [specific emotion] Images I'm drawn to: [visual motifs or objects that resonate] Sharpen my imagery: 1. Identify every cliche or dead metaphor in the draft and suggest fresh replacements 2. Create 5 original metaphors for the central theme using unexpected comparisons 3. Add concrete sensory details: taste, touch, sound, smell (not just visual) 4. Suggest one extended metaphor that could unify the entire poem 5. Show how to 'zoom in' on a small, specific detail that carries emotional weight 6. Rewrite the weakest stanza with sharper, more precise language
الأفضل لـ: GEMINI
Gemini is most effective at identifying cliches and generating genuinely fresh metaphors. Its replacement images are surprising and specific rather than trading one worn image for another.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
The more specific your image, the more universal it becomes. 'Grief' is abstract and forgettable. 'The chair at the kitchen table where she always sat, now pushed in too neatly' is specific and heartbreaking. Zoom in, don't zoom out.
Fix meter, cadence, and musicality
Help me improve the rhythm and sound of this poem: [Paste your poem] Intended form: [metered / free verse / spoken word / song lyrics] Read-aloud feel I want: [flowing / percussive / halting / conversational] Analyze and improve: 1. Scan the meter: mark stressed and unstressed syllables throughout 2. Identify where the rhythm stumbles or feels forced 3. Suggest word substitutions that fix rhythm without changing meaning 4. Highlight effective sound devices already present (alliteration, assonance, consonance) 5. Add internal rhyme or sound patterns where they'd strengthen the poem 6. Read it aloud in your analysis: note where a reader would naturally pause or emphasize
الأفضل لـ: CLAUDE
Claude has the strongest ear for prosody among AI models. Its scansion is accurate, and its rhythm suggestions preserve the poet's intent while smoothing awkward beats. It understands that rhythm serves meaning, not the other way around.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
Record yourself reading the poem aloud before and after revisions. Your ear catches rhythm problems your eye misses. Where you stumble while reading is exactly where the poem stumbles.
Generate poetry writing prompts
I need poetry writing prompts to spark new work. My preferred styles: [forms or approaches I gravitate toward] Themes I've been exploring: [recent interests or obsessions] What I want to push against: [comfort zones I want to leave] Poets I admire: [influences] Generate: 1. 5 prompts based on a specific image or object to write about 2. 5 prompts with a formal constraint (write without adjectives, write in second person, etc.) 3. 5 prompts that start from an overheard line of dialogue or a found phrase 4. 3 'collision prompts' that force two unrelated ideas together 5. 1 ekphrastic prompt based on a specific painting or photograph 6. For each prompt: a first line to get started and one thing to avoid
الأفضل لـ: CHATGPT
ChatGPT generates the most diverse and inspiring writing prompts that push beyond familiar territory. Its constraint-based prompts are particularly creative and reliably produce surprising work.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
Set a timer for 10 minutes and write without stopping. Prompts work best when you don't overthink them. The first draft is never the poem — it's the raw material. Let yourself write badly to find the good lines buried inside.
Get editorial feedback on poems
Give me a workshop-style critique of this poem: [Paste your poem] What I'm trying to achieve: [intention behind the poem] Where I feel uncertain: [lines or choices I'm not sure about] Feedback level: [gentle encouragement / honest workshop / tough love] Critique: 1. What's working: the strongest lines and why they succeed 2. What's not working: specific lines or choices that weaken the poem 3. The poem's central tension or question — is it clear enough? 4. Line breaks: are they earning their place or just following sentence structure? 5. The ending: does it land, and is it the right ending for this poem? 6. Three specific revision suggestions ranked by impact
الأفضل لـ: GEMINI
Gemini provides the most balanced workshop feedback, giving specific praise alongside specific critique. Its line-break analysis is particularly sharp, and it identifies when a poem is trying to do too many things at once.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
Ask for the critique AFTER you've written the poem, not before. If you workshop ideas before writing, you'll self-censor during the draft. Write freely first, then invite the critical eye. Creativity and editing use different mental muscles.
Write and perform spoken word poetry
Help me create a spoken word piece about [topic/theme]. Performance context: [open mic / slam competition / video / classroom] Duration: [2 / 3 / 5 minutes] Tone: [passionate / funny / vulnerable / political / meditative] Audience: [who will hear this] Build the piece: 1. An opening line designed to silence the room and grab attention 2. The full poem written for performance, not the page (short lines, breath marks) 3. Performance notes: where to pause, speed up, get louder, get quiet 4. A callback structure: a repeated line or phrase that evolves in meaning 5. A physical gesture or movement suggestion for the climax of the piece 6. An ending that leaves the audience in silence before they applaud
الأفضل لـ: CHATGPT
ChatGPT writes the most performable spoken word pieces with natural rhythm and breath-friendly line lengths. Its callback structures are emotionally effective and build in intensity across the poem.
Tested Feb 15, 2026
نصائح احترافية
Memorize the first and last 30 seconds perfectly. You can hold notes for the middle, but the opening and closing must be delivered with full eye contact. The audience remembers how you started and how you ended — everything else is a feeling.
Based on actual testing — not assumptions. See our methodology
Gemini
Best for imagery sharpening and editorial critique. Identifies cliches accurately and provides balanced workshop-style feedback. Its revision suggestions are specific and impactful.
Results from Gemini 2.0 Flash · Tested Feb 15, 2026ChatGPT
Best for writing prompts and spoken word. Generates the most creatively diverse prompts and writes performable pieces with natural rhythm. Can default to generic 'poetic' language if not pushed.
Results from GPT-4o · Tested Feb 15, 2026Claude
Best for formal poetry and rhythm analysis. Has the strongest technical command of meter, rhyme, and prosody. Produces the most literary craft commentary. Sometimes prioritizes technical perfection over emotional resonance.
Results from Claude 3.5 Sonnet · Tested Feb 15, 2026Grok
Strongest at contemporary spoken word, slam poetry, and verse with raw emotional punch and cultural commentary. Writes with a distinctive rhythmic energy that feels performable. Less effective at traditional forms like sonnets and villanelles that require strict technical adherence.
Results from Grok 2 · Tested Feb 15, 2026Write the poem you need, not the poem that sounds poetic. AI will default to flowery, 'poetic' language if you let it. The best modern poetry sounds like a real person thinking out loud. Tell AI to avoid words like 'whisper,' 'embrace,' and 'ethereal' — they're dead weight.
Every line break is a choice. In free verse, the line break is your most powerful tool. Breaking a line mid-sentence creates suspense. Breaking after a complete thought creates finality. If your line breaks just follow punctuation, you've written prose with ragged margins.
Read 10 poems for every one you write. Your poetic vocabulary grows by reading, not just writing. If you only read your own work, your poems will circle the same patterns endlessly. AI can recommend poets, but you need to read them yourself — not just their summaries.