Sherlock Holmes: 60 for 60

Welcome once again to my poetry page!

I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then go on to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.

And here, courtesy of my housemaid Rachel, is this week’s suggested poem to read—a suggestion inspired by the themes and subjects in this week's story. Hopefully you will enjoy the poem, and perhaps it may give you some ideas for a poem of your own or allow you to look at Dr. Watson's story in a new way.


To A Friend Estranged From Me

by Edna St. Vincent Millay


Note from Rachel: This poem conveys some of the feelings toward Miss Holder that I imagine her cousin and uncle felt, having loved her so much but knowing she ultimately abandoned and betrayed their trust for the sake of her lover.



Thank you to Rachel. And here is my suggested form to revisit this week: the curtal sonnet. (The link will take you back to a previous poetry page.)


But you do not have to use that form. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:

221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, ballad, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, Burns stanza, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, Cornish verse, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, elegiac stanza, elfje, englyn, epigram, epitaph, epulaeryu, Etheree, fable, Fib, found poetry, ghazal, haiku, Italian sonnet, jueju, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, lyric poetry, mathnawī, micropoetry, mini-monoverse, palindrome poetry, pantoum, Parallelismus Membrorum, poem cycle, quintilla, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triangular triplet, triolet, Tyburn, villanelle


Please leave all your poems inspired by The Beryl Coronet in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!



Warm regards,

Mrs. Hudson

This Sunday, 24th April, we'll be posting our 60 word ficlets for The Beryl Coronet.

A priceless coronet has been accepted as security for a bank loan. Mr. Alexander Holder, afraid to let it out of his personal possession, takes it home with him and in the night three of the irreplaceable beryls go missing. Is the banker's wastrel son truly responsible? What other explanation can there be? Holmes takes on the case...

If you haven't tried 60 for 60 before, full information - including our schedule - can be found on our profile. But in essence: you read ACD's story and then you write a 60 word story inspired by it! You don't have to post a story every week - just join in whenever you feel like it.

Each Sunday we will also have our weekly discussion post, where we discuss a topic inspired by the canon story. And there’s Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page too - any poems written about this week’s story can be left as a comment on her post. Mrs. Hudson informs me that the poetry form being revisited this week is the curtal sonnet. And as always, her housemaid Rachel will be suggesting a poem for us to read, to give us added inspiration.

You can choose one activity, or have a go at everything. Or just come along and read the 60s! (And have a chat in the comments.) All options are absolutely fine.

Hope to see you on Sunday. But don’t worry if you can’t join us then - we stay open for posting and commenting all week!

Canon Story: The Beryl Coronet
Title: Be Mine
Author: scfrankles
Rating: G
Author's Notes: It was a bright, crisp February morning… Holmes and Watson’s fame is growing...



The morning of the 14th brought more post than usual for Holmes.

“Five Valentines!” he declared, resolutely pretending not to be pleased.

He tossed them aside.

“Sentimental nonsense, of course. Watson, did you get anything in..?”

Holmes’ voice trailed away as he took in the huge pile of cards next to Watson’s plate.

Watson smiled weakly. “Oh, just… bills… mostly.”