A Chicago Soul Poem is written about a person, place or thing that is indicative of the Second City. It is written in the form of a soloem (pronounced so-lo-em). A soloem is a new poetic form, created by avery r. young, Chicago Poet Laureate. 

Starting May 15, Chicago Soul Poems submitted by Chicagoans will be reviewed by the Poet Laureate on a regular basis for selection. Selected poems will be featured through local media outlets.

Submissions open on May 15, 2024. Use the instructions below to write your first Chicago Soul Poem!

INSTRUCTIONS

A Chicago Soul Poem is written in the form of a soloem. A so-lo-em has 10 lines and 5 stanzas, and the first and the last lines are the same!

1^st Stanza – 1 line
Simply use the 1st line to say something interesting about the person, place, or thing that you feel is the Soul of Chicago. 

2^nd Stanza – 2 lines
Then, take 2 lines to describe its unique physical features and/or characteristics. 

3^rd Stanza – 3 lines
Then, use the next 3 lines to share a memory with this person, place, or thing. 

4^th Stanza – 2 lines
After the 3 lines of your memory in Stanza 3, write 2 lines describing the setting where this memory occurred.

5^th Stanza – 1 line
The last line repeats your 1^st line – the interesting statement about who, what or where is the Soul of Chicago.

RULES FOR SUBMITTED POEMS

• Submissions must be original writing. Plagiarism will not be accepted.
• There is no tolerance for hate speech. No racist, sexist, homophobic, gender-biased, ableist, transphobic or otherwise derogatory speech that is degrading to any specific group of people.
• Discriminatory language will not be accepted.
• A trigger warning should be given for poems that are adult in theme, and/or have specifically sensitive and/or violent subjects.

LEARN MORE

Learn more about avery r. young at averyryoung.com. 
Find out more about the Chicago Poet Laureate program at Chicago.gov/PoetLaureate.