This is a haiku I wrote some time ago. It has rhymes and pauses so I guess it breaks the rules? Though I must confess I wasn't aware of those two rules until reading this post!
I love your haiku! It has a real Thoreau and Whitman vibe. Some haiku poets are quite serious about the not rhyming thing. I think it really works for your poem. It's funny that the first poetry most people who grew up in the U.S. ever exposed to was Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein, but many American poets want to run away from rhymes. There's a reason rhymes are at the core of pop, rock, folk, and country music. They're fun and catchy. Long live rhyming haiku!
Not boring at all! Getting your posts in my inbox every morning helps brighten my day. No matter the subject matter. You have a very, I think "optimistic" is the word, way of writing.
Thanks Lisa! Knowing I brighten someone's day is all the reason I need to keep running this strange career of mine! I appreciate your reading, commenting, and sharing this newsletter.
Not boring in the least, can't wait for the other essay. But not in the way that would increase performance anxiety about the next essay, just in a friendly way that makes it fun to write that one too. :-)
Hahaha! I appreciate the note about not wanting to increase my performance anxiety, that's a real issue sometimes. But I will have fun writing the next one of these (and probably a few more after that). Thanks for your constant support Jessica!
5/7/5 has got to be the most debated thing in haiku world. If you enjoy using it go for it but I like the Idea of English language haiku evolving into their own form. many Haiku 'masters' abandoned the traditional style and they often play with words, where the same character can have different meanings. Jack Kerouac did a great job of creating a new style of haiku while still retaining the 'essence'
I love Kerouac’s pops. He’s masterful at capturing a moment. I don’t know that there’s a right or wrong way to write haiku. I read and enjoy a lot of freestyle haiku. I write the 5/7/5 ones because one of my goals is to get more people to write and read poetry. Most people in English speaking countries are taught the 5/7/5 format in school and have a comfort level with them. By writing haiku this way I think it’s easier for many people to feel they could do something like that. The syllable count and short form gives them a guardrail that makes writing these poems feel doable. I don’t think it’s possible to truly write haiku in English the way they’re written in Japanese. I agree that English language haiku is its own form, but at this point I think there are a few branches using the same name that will eventually separate out into completely different forms. If you’re a haiku lover you should subscribe to Haiku Daily, if you don’t already. Kyle G. Jones does an excellent job curating mostly free verse haiku and writing his own poems as well. It’s a great newsletter/podcast.
It's always good to learn 'the rules ' anyway. The benefit of 5/7/5 is that it stops the Haiku becoming too long or too short. Thanks for the recommendation too.
I love this! I’m a member of an online haiku group run by Clark Strand. He writes and curates the haiku column for Tricycle magazine. So, I love the haiku lessons! Bring ‘‘em on!
I’m not so good with the change of thought. Her’s today’s haiku from my walk:
columbine has bloomed
bleeding against the mountain
a spring sacrament
I know I’ve got two season words in there--columbine and spring--but ... who cares?!
I love Clark's Tricycle column! He has such an interesting history, and I love his poetry. Most months, I enter the Tricycle haiku contest, but the past few months I've missed them. I need to get back into that habit again.
I like your haiku, Alan. I have a fondness for poems that use religious imagery to describe a spiritual element of nature outside of a traditional religious context, so I especially enjoy the way you call the columbine bloom a spring sacrament and contrast that with the image of the columbine bleeding against the mountain. Haiku walks are the best!
Thanks for sharing your poem and for being such a great supporter of me and this newsletter!
Love the essay about haiku. I stopped writing them because I saw too many people using the rules to dismiss the creations of others. I don't like that. You manage to explain quite clearly why the rules exist and why you should not always follow them.
Thanks! I really have a hard time with poetry snobs--people who are dismissive of other people's creativity. Too many of them end up as gatekeepers. How can you tell someone their expression of themselves is wrong or bad?
I'm really enjoying your newsletter and am intrigued by what you are doing with poetry and NFTs!
Yes, precisely. I like to think that if a poem is enjoyed by one single person, it already has shown its value. I don't mind gatekeepers, if they understand that they are assessing a creative expression to fit their need. That's okay. You can say "it's not for me". But that does not mean "it is not good".
Anyway, I think your work here could be very well received in the NFT space. It's an extremely fun space to be in, if you move in artist circles and don't fall for the get-rich-quick schemes. These don't work. But I do believe your work has crypto-earning potential.
Let me know if you want to discuss taking steps into that or want to test the waters.
This is a haiku I wrote some time ago. It has rhymes and pauses so I guess it breaks the rules? Though I must confess I wasn't aware of those two rules until reading this post!
Pass not timidly,
Knowing time’s captivity.
No. Live vividly.
I love your haiku! It has a real Thoreau and Whitman vibe. Some haiku poets are quite serious about the not rhyming thing. I think it really works for your poem. It's funny that the first poetry most people who grew up in the U.S. ever exposed to was Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein, but many American poets want to run away from rhymes. There's a reason rhymes are at the core of pop, rock, folk, and country music. They're fun and catchy. Long live rhyming haiku!
Not boring at all! Getting your posts in my inbox every morning helps brighten my day. No matter the subject matter. You have a very, I think "optimistic" is the word, way of writing.
Thanks Lisa! Knowing I brighten someone's day is all the reason I need to keep running this strange career of mine! I appreciate your reading, commenting, and sharing this newsletter.
Really enjoyed this!
Thanks! I'm never quite sure how deeply to nerd-out over haiku in this newsletter.
Don't hold back.
Not boring in the least, can't wait for the other essay. But not in the way that would increase performance anxiety about the next essay, just in a friendly way that makes it fun to write that one too. :-)
Hahaha! I appreciate the note about not wanting to increase my performance anxiety, that's a real issue sometimes. But I will have fun writing the next one of these (and probably a few more after that). Thanks for your constant support Jessica!
5/7/5 has got to be the most debated thing in haiku world. If you enjoy using it go for it but I like the Idea of English language haiku evolving into their own form. many Haiku 'masters' abandoned the traditional style and they often play with words, where the same character can have different meanings. Jack Kerouac did a great job of creating a new style of haiku while still retaining the 'essence'
I love Kerouac’s pops. He’s masterful at capturing a moment. I don’t know that there’s a right or wrong way to write haiku. I read and enjoy a lot of freestyle haiku. I write the 5/7/5 ones because one of my goals is to get more people to write and read poetry. Most people in English speaking countries are taught the 5/7/5 format in school and have a comfort level with them. By writing haiku this way I think it’s easier for many people to feel they could do something like that. The syllable count and short form gives them a guardrail that makes writing these poems feel doable. I don’t think it’s possible to truly write haiku in English the way they’re written in Japanese. I agree that English language haiku is its own form, but at this point I think there are a few branches using the same name that will eventually separate out into completely different forms. If you’re a haiku lover you should subscribe to Haiku Daily, if you don’t already. Kyle G. Jones does an excellent job curating mostly free verse haiku and writing his own poems as well. It’s a great newsletter/podcast.
It's always good to learn 'the rules ' anyway. The benefit of 5/7/5 is that it stops the Haiku becoming too long or too short. Thanks for the recommendation too.
Always enjoy reading your Haiku in my mail
Thanks for reading Marc! I love talking about haiku in every form
I love this! I’m a member of an online haiku group run by Clark Strand. He writes and curates the haiku column for Tricycle magazine. So, I love the haiku lessons! Bring ‘‘em on!
I’m not so good with the change of thought. Her’s today’s haiku from my walk:
columbine has bloomed
bleeding against the mountain
a spring sacrament
I know I’ve got two season words in there--columbine and spring--but ... who cares?!
Thank you!
I love Clark's Tricycle column! He has such an interesting history, and I love his poetry. Most months, I enter the Tricycle haiku contest, but the past few months I've missed them. I need to get back into that habit again.
I like your haiku, Alan. I have a fondness for poems that use religious imagery to describe a spiritual element of nature outside of a traditional religious context, so I especially enjoy the way you call the columbine bloom a spring sacrament and contrast that with the image of the columbine bleeding against the mountain. Haiku walks are the best!
Thanks for sharing your poem and for being such a great supporter of me and this newsletter!
A thoroughly enlightening read, much enjoyed!
Sincerely,
Your fellow rule breaker/haiku writing friend
Thanks! Rule breakers are my people!
Love the essay about haiku. I stopped writing them because I saw too many people using the rules to dismiss the creations of others. I don't like that. You manage to explain quite clearly why the rules exist and why you should not always follow them.
Plus: the poem is a very good one.
Thanks! I really have a hard time with poetry snobs--people who are dismissive of other people's creativity. Too many of them end up as gatekeepers. How can you tell someone their expression of themselves is wrong or bad?
I'm really enjoying your newsletter and am intrigued by what you are doing with poetry and NFTs!
Yes, precisely. I like to think that if a poem is enjoyed by one single person, it already has shown its value. I don't mind gatekeepers, if they understand that they are assessing a creative expression to fit their need. That's okay. You can say "it's not for me". But that does not mean "it is not good".
Anyway, I think your work here could be very well received in the NFT space. It's an extremely fun space to be in, if you move in artist circles and don't fall for the get-rich-quick schemes. These don't work. But I do believe your work has crypto-earning potential.
Let me know if you want to discuss taking steps into that or want to test the waters.
I feel the same way about a poem only needing one person to enjoy it! I'll have to think about the NFT thing. I'm still learning
Of course. Just let me know if you have questions or are looking for some assistance in that.