How to make your own Cut-Up Poetry

Step 1

Find words. They can be from a book, a magazine, a letter, a shopping list. Any source will do!

Step 2

Cut out the words or phrases that you love from any of the sources.

Step 3

Put them in a hat, a bowl, a bag, or anything that will hold them.

Step 4

Pick out the cut-up words or phrases at random. Place them in your poem. It may not mean anything. It may be the most profound thing that you have ever picked out of a hat. Try it a few times and see what you get. Play with different words, different phrases, different sources.

Step 5

Send us your best cut-up poems to include in our gallery.

Additional Note:

The internet is also full of words. Feel free to copy and paste from your favourite source into a word document. Randomise them in any way you see fit. Close your eyes and paste them in different order. Roll dice to arrange them. Experiment with ways of combining them.