Acrostic Poem Generator

Here are some guidelines you could use to write an acrostic poem.

1. Decide on the subject of the acrostic poem. This could be anything; your favorite person, cat, or inanimate objects like pens.
2. Write down the letters of the name of the subject, to spell out its name in a vertical line.
3. Look at the vertical line to help you plan the kind of pattern the poem should follow. For instance, should the first letter of each line spell out the name of the subject the poem is about? Or, should the name of the subject be spelt out in a diagonal line? Do lines in the poem need to rhyme? What is the tone of the poem?
4. After deciding on the pattern, work on a sentence or phrase for each letter of the subject's name. If it helps, you could first think about the first and last lines of the poem, then fill out the lines in the middle. For each line, think about which quality of the subject you would like to describe.
5. Now that you have your acrostic poem, you might want to make the letters of the subject's name stand out more. For example, you could write each letter in bold, or color it.
6. Go through each line again and revise the acrostic poem to your satisfaction.

Below are some common acrostic poem styles for reference.

The 'one-characteristic-per-line' style

This style is quite easy to write in: simply choose a characteristic of the subject to wax lyrical about each line.

A is for Agreeable, a breeze to get along with
R is for Refreshing, stimulating company
I is for Incredible, you raise the bar for greatness
A is for Alluring, drawing people in
L is for Light-hearted, you have an easy laughter

The 'free-form' style

This structure gives you much more freedom to let your creativity flourish. Whether or not the lines in the poem should rhyme, is optional. Below is an acrostic poem about a subject named 'Elizabeth', by Edgar Allan Poe.

Elizabeth it is in vain you say
'Love not' — thou sayest it in so sweet a way:
In vain those words from thee or L.E.L.
Zantippe's talents had enforced so well:
Ah! if that language from thy heart arise,
Breath it less gently forth — and veil thine eyes.
Endymion, recollect, when Luna tried
To cure his love — was cured of all beside —
His follie — pride — and passion — for he died.

     -- 'An Acrostic', by Edgar Allan Poe

The double acrostic style

In this style, there is more than one grouping of letters that form the name of the subject. In the example below, the initial and last letters of each line both spell out the name 'Stroud'.

Set among hills in the midst of five valleyS,
This peaceful little market town we inhabiT
Refuses (vociferously!) to be a conformeR.
Once home of the cloth it gave its name tO,
Uphill and down again its streets lead yoU.
Despite its faults it leaves us all charmeD.

                  -- by Paul Hansford