These arise from the very excellent Terrible Poetry site’s challenge for this week to write a Little Willie poem. The name comes from a way of writing poetry that was popular in the early 1900s, where each exponent tried to invent a catastrophe more gory in event and more nonchalant in effect than its predecessor. The favorite ‘hero’ was Willie, and although other characters sometimes crept into the quatrains, the terse lines became known as ‘Little Willies.’” The usual length is a quatrain although some were written as limericks or a double quatrain; but most were short, clever, and darkly humorous. Rhyming is imperative and these poems usually follow an A/A/B/B pattern. As the excellent Ms Owens has demanded, “this week’s poems are to be terrible because of their message. I expect darker tones, questionable humor, and stretches into creative venues writers never knew they had. If you’re sensitive, stay away. If you’re twisted, come on in.”

A Hair-raising Story

Cried an actor ‘My hair is demented”

So off to the barber he went-ed

The poor little sod

chose evil Mr. Todd

Thus were Lovett’s ham burgers invented.

An Axe To Grind

Lizzie lived with her step-mum and dad

An arrangement she could not accustom

So one day, when feeling so very sad,

She took an axe and she de-gutsed ‘em.

Mrs. Bobbit’s Revenge

Their wedded bliss was well-famed

But Little Willie’s oats were untamed

So like any good wife

She took out a knife

And now Little Willie is very well-named.