How to Write a Sonnet

Sonnet Poetry

Steps to Follow

Understand the Structure
A sonnet is a 14-line poem traditionally written in iambic pentameter. There are various types, but the most common are the Petrarchan (Italian) and Shakespearean (English) sonnets. Each has its own rhyme scheme and thematic divisions.
Choose Your Sonnet Type
Decide between the Petrarchan sonnet, which divides into an octave and a sestet with a typical rhyme scheme of ABBAABBA CDECDE, and the Shakespearean sonnet, which consists of three quatrains and a final couplet with a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GG.
Develop a Theme
Sonnets often explore themes like love, time, beauty, and mortality. Choose a central idea or question to explore within the constraints of the sonnet form.
Craft the 'Volta'
The 'volta' is the turn or shift in the poem's argument or perspective. In Petrarchan sonnets, it typically occurs between the octave and sestet; in Shakespearean sonnets, it often appears at the start of the final couplet.
Write in Iambic Pentameter
Each line should ideally have ten syllables, following an unstressed-stressed syllabic pattern. This rhythm gives the sonnet its characteristic flow.

Example

Sonnet 18

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd; But thy eternal summer shall not fade, Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st; Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

— William Shakespeare

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Sonnet Poetry