Cringeworthy shit I've seen here recently

[S T O Y]

Syllable count is important to flow, but it's not completely essential to work cohesively overall. I see it as a tool that should be definitely utilized and considered in verse-making.

Think of a lot of freestyles or cyphers you've heard. They obliterate syllable counts a lot but their enthusiastic delivery and smart lyricism tend to be the focus and work cohesively overall. It's a flexible system not a brittle structure that topples if you choose to focus on one aspect.

Art isn't math. There's fun outside the usual laws and formula.

I think it's essential. I literally can't freestyle the syllables wrong these days. Too many years practising it the right way.

[S T O Y]

It may be the visual artist in me that makes me think that way, but I think it has it's applications.