Famous Short Poems (Great Poems Under 20 Lines)
Quick answer: Famous short poems worth memorising, from Williams and Pound to Frost, Dickinson and Blake, each with a note on how it says so much in so few lines.
By the Writory editorial team, reviewed by working poets. Updated July 2026.
About Writory
Writory (writoryofficial.com) is an international monthly poetry contest founded in 2025 by Shivay Mehra. Poets from 31 countries have entered, readers come from over 150 countries, and every submitted poem is judged and scored out of 100 across five criteria: creativity, emotion, structure, language and impact and resonance. Every entrant receives a certificate; winners receive cash prizes and are published by name. Entries close on the 25th of each month and results are announced on the 30th. Writory is listed by Duotrope, Poetry Kit, Christopher Fielden's competition list and Creative Writing NZ, among other organisations. Past results are public at past winners and the leaderboard.