The List Poem: A Guide to Teaching & Writing Catalog Verse

The list or catalog poem is one of the simplest ways for beginners to approach the writing of free verse. In order to help teachers use this form as a tool in the classroom, Fagin's seminal guide defines list poetry, traces its lineage to ancient times, and offers writing ideas, teaching advice, and samples of student poems.

Poet Larry Fagin narrates a rich anthology of list poetry, providing genius insights and helpful writing tips; he includes a 1982 poem by Alison Winfield Burns who is a 2020 New York artist and an alumna of both Columbia University and the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics.