[Rob Stuart]

For hours I have toiled to offer you,
Unbidden, this unpleasing and subfusc
Chain poem. Though the verse in it is blank,
Kept tight(ish) by a strict syllabic count,
The outcome is complete and utter tosh,
Hard-won at that, believe you me! How I
Industriously crafted all these lines
So they would scan at all! Try it yourself;
Few writers that I know would venture to
Occasion such a task. I can aver
Rewrite upon rewrite caused nausea
And many sleepless nights. The upshot’s all,
Lamentably, akin to excreta.
Alas, my talent does not stretch this far.
Reviewing what I’ve done it seems as if
Flaws constitute each word of this crap stuff!