Aubrie Cox - Three Questions

Aubrie Cox is an English literature and creative writing student at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. At Millikin, she serves as the editor-in-chief for the literary and fine arts magazine Collage, and senior editor for the student-run press, Bronze Man Books. She first encountered haiku in the spring of 2008 when she took Dr. Randy Brooks' course, Global Haiku Traditions. Since then, Aubrie has been independently writing and studying haiku and related forms. Her poetry has appeared in online and print publications such as Modern Haiku, The Heron's Nest, bottle rockets, and Notes From the Gean.

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1) Why do you write haiku?

I feel like that's like asking, 'Why do you breathe?' I just do it...it happens. I no longer have the time to sit down and write out long journal entries about my days or inner thoughts, but I can always scribble a haiku onto a post-it or type it out on my iPod Touch while walking to class. I compose and edit in my head while driving to and from school. While the Midwest is not the most exciting place to live, it's down to earth with a distinct flavor of humility (politics aside), which makes it ideal for haiku.

Oftentimes once I have figured out the answer or how to do something, I grow bored and move on to tackle the next challenge. Haiku continuously challenges and invigorates me such that I can't imagine my life without it. I value the craft of the illusion of spontaneity, and the exchange between reader and writer, both of which are embodied in haiku. Although compact on the surface, I'm always exploring new depths and resonances. Mum calls haiku my 'bliss,' even though she thinks this also makes me a geek.

2) What other poetic forms do you enjoy?

I used to write longer forms--form and free verse--though these days end up with only bits and pieces of uncompleted work. I have, however, taken interest in photo haiga. My approach to haiku and photography reflect one another, so I enjoy it when I can combine the two and/or collaborate with other poets to combine image and poetry. I love composing rengay and other linked verse with friends that I've taught haiku. On occasion I write tanka, though I wouldn't necessarily say that I enjoy it (as much as haiku). While I crank out a haibun on an even rarer occasion, the combination of poetry and prose in general fascinates me.

3) Of the many wonderful haiku you've written, what do you consider to be your top three?

I don't know if they can be deemed wonderful, but these are three I particularly enjoy.



harvest moon
rises above the branches
tea's aftertaste

bottle rockets 11.2, February 2010



father-daughter talk
my fishing lure
caught in the moon

tinywords 10.2, July 2010



school desk
one name carved
deeper than the rest

The Heron's Nest 12.2, June 2010

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If you've been enjoying this weekly series and have not contributed, please consider sharing your response (whether it be for haiku or tanka) to the three little questions that Aubrie answered. You must be a published poet to participate.

Sunday updates - October 31

Hi, Curtis --

Just wanted you and your readers to know that copies of this year's Haiku Society of America members' anthology (which I was asked to edit) have been going fast -- nearly 500 sent out to date -- but I still have a supply available for purchase.

This year's anthology, entitled 'sharing the sun', is built around the theme of biodiversity, in keeping with the U.N.'s designation of 2010 as 'International Year of Biodiversity'. 269 member poets are each represented by a haiku that makes reference to a specific plant or animal. The visual motif for the book is postage stamps from various countries -- with each stamp featuring a plant and/or animal -- that were 'recycled' from the envelopes of members' submissions to this volume. And a special feature of this year's anthology is a 15-page glossary to some of the less familiar references in the poems I published.

Literally dozens of members have emailed me with their praise of this year's anthology. (Some of my favorite excerpts: 'a treasure chest', 'a gem', 'a great work of art', 'a triumph', 'a landmark publication', and 'absolutely spectacular' ...).

A single copy of the anthology costs $14 in the U.S. and $17 elsewhere, postage included. With each four copies purchased at the regular price, a fifth copy is offered with compliments of the Haiku Society of America. (Although 215 pages in length, the book is very compact and would make a great stocking stuffer!) Before sending payment, those interested should first email me at hsaanthology@gmail.com to confirm availability. In my response I will advise where payment (preferably in the form of a check payable to 'Haiku Society of America') should be sent.

Thanks for passing this along, and for your terrific blog!

Scott Mason

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IHS INTERNATIONAL HAIKU COMPETITION 2010

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EPISODE 15: THUNDER MOON: A RENKU PARTY

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THE TEMPLE BELL STOPS: CONTEMPORARY POEMS OF GRIEF,
LOSS AND CHANGE

I am writing with a request that you circulate a call for submissions among the members of your local chapter.  Thank you very much for posting the following message:

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS:  For an anthology of haiku, senryu, and tanka on the subject of grief, loss and change, entitled THE TEMPLE BELL STOPS: CONTEMPORARY POEMS OF GRIEF, LOSS AND CHANGE.  Prefer unpublished poems, but published poems okay that include full credits.  No current deadline and no reimbursement for accepted poems.

Please send submissions to Robert Epstein:  worldofdewhaiku@gmail.com.

Wednesday updates - October 27

Penny Harter sent the following message:

I am having a hysterectomy on Thursday morning, October 28th. Please send light and prayers for a successful surgery my way. When I'm able, from my daughter's house I'll let Curtis know how I'm doing after surgery. And if you want to be in touch, e-mail me and I'll get back to you via my netbook, while recuperating at my daughter's, after the first foggy couple of days there.

Love,
Penny

We love you too, Penny. The poetry community will inundate you with prayers and healing thoughts.

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Here's a message from Scott Metz:

Dear Roadrunner Reader,

Issue X:3 (October 2010) is now up:

http://www.roadrunnerjournal.net/

Featuring:

—The Scorpion Prize #21 by Tom Raworth

—ku

—"Peggy Willis Lyles: A Celebration"

—"Tada Chimako's Haiku" by Hiroaki Sato

&

—Tom Raworth: An Interview

Thanks for reading, and please do pass this email on to others.

Scott Metz

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Sasa Vazic sent this sad news about Slavko Sedlar:

It is with great regret that I inform you that the great Serbian poet, Slavko Sedlar, passed away.

http://www.thehaikufoundation.org/resources/poet-details/?IDclient=137
(7 July 1932-24 October 2010)

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Merrill Gonzales sent this sad news about H.F. (Tom) Noyes:

Dear Curtis,

vincent tripi called to let me know that he's been advised that H.F.(Tom) Noyes passed away last April. Tom was 92 and loved by many people...he surely loved life. He loved the country of Greece...and the happy accident that led him to live there.

vincent has 25 copies of Tom's last book: still here 110 pages, letterpress. and a stack of what vincent considers Tom's death poem: "Basho's death poem/ my grandson asks/ for mine"...letterpress. vincent can be reached at 413-772-2354.

Here's is a review of still here:

http://www.modernhaiku.org/bookreviews/noyes2002.html

Here are a few haiku by H. F. Noyes:

http://www.terebess.hu/english/usa/noyes.html

Robert D. Wilson - Three Questions

Robert D. Wilson is co-publisher & co-owner of Simply Haiku. He's the author of Jack Fruit Moon, Vietnam Ruminations, and a murder mystery novel, Late for Mass.

Wilson lives in the Philippines with his wife, Jinky, and step-son, Carlo. He writes: 

"I won't bore you with a list of published poetry credits. You either like my art or you don't."

http://simplyhaiku.wordpress.com

http://picasaweb.google.com/foamfish/TheWonderlandAmusementPark#

Http://thewonderlandamusementpark.blogspot.com

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1) Why do you write haiku?

My father, the late Robert Dean Wilson, fell in love with haiku in the mid-fifties, impressed with it's minimalism and ability to use cerebral white space to say in a few words what others say with many words.

Even then, uninfluenced by Blyth, Henderson, Snyder, the Beats, or Yasuda, he saw the need to use less syllables yet adhere to the metrical schemata and kigo that defines true haiku. He did not think there were two kinds of haiku: one with one set of rules, the other with a different set of rules. To my father, haiku was a Japanese poetic genre. I agree with my father, and have stowed away in my desk, which I read through periodically, note cards with some of his handwritten haiku, each card, dated and signed.  When I compose haiku and tanka, for me it's a state of meditation. Nothing else exists...

Haiku is suggestive and cannot say all. Those that say all are not haiku. It is the haiku poet's job to write a haiku and the reader's job to interpret the poem according to his own cultural memories, education, experience, biospheric locale, and parental conditioning. Haiku as defined in most American textbooks is misinformed and mis-taught.  A haiku is not a nature poem nor a senryu labeled as a haiku. It's a poem that makes use of the said and the unsaid, utilizing highly effective aesthetic tools that cultivate each poem's gist and are, therefore, essential. There are those who argue that the use of said tools are not part of the Western mindset, but the use of these tools have benefitted many of America's finest poets including Amy Lowell, e. e. cummings, Jack Kerouac, James McClure, William Carlos Williams, Gary Snyder, Allen Ginsburg, and Ezra Pound. All of these tools can adapt to an American mindset, whatever the hell the American mindset is due to the diversity of cultures living there.

2) What other poetic forms do you enjoy?

I have a love affair with poetic meter. When I read a poem, it becomes a dance, the meter inhabiting me; my synaptic nerves feeeeeeeeeeeling every beat. I read almost all of Shakespeare's plays by the end of 6th grade. My father would explain each act, have me read, then read to me in a way that rang true and made the act embody the mood Shakespeare was conveying in that particular act. To this day I love to watch live stage performances of Shakespeare's play. My father also introduced me to Edwin Markham's poignant, stirring poetic warning to those who oppress the poor. It has perfect meter and I've performed it publicly several times. My favorite living poet is James McClure whom I've had the privilege of conversing with twice. He's a playwright, actor, and the best damned performing poet on the planet. His readings are usually accompanied by the piano artistry of the Door's former keyboardist, Ray Manzarek. As for the non-living, no one stirs me more than Agusti Bartra and William Blake, both masters of meter who knew the tools of their art, and penned poetry that will linger in my mind forever.

3) Of the many wonderful haiku you have written, what do you consider to be your top three?

I have no favorite. Like the late, great jazz trumpeter, Miles Davis, said regarding his own compositions, it's impossible to have a favorite when one's journey is forever changing. I don't want to be remembered for something past. I inhabit the now, not reiterating the past like once famous rock bands and vocalists. I study and write haiku and tanka daily. When one becomes satisfied with his art, he becomes a stagnant pond, evoking the conceptualization of algae, non-growth, and the lack of a need to create. Like a cubist, thinking in a Nietzsche-Picasso-esque influenced headspace, I believe we need to destroy in order to create. Satisfaction is the antithesis of growth and creative expression. I write my poetry expecting each one to be my best and settle for nothing less. I was exposed to haiku by my father in the late 1950's and my haiku has evolved daily, weekly, monthly, and annually. Life is metamorphic, in continuous change. I accept this and compose: thought and what is combined with the now, a canvas painted symbiotically between what was and is. I'll compose one now on the spot.  We'll call that my favorite:


your skin's
just a temple, leper . . .
autumn wind


Here are two others I just wrote:


harvest moon . . .
i chase my dog into
the moon



leaving autumn . . .
a soiled blouse on the
evening news

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If you've been enjoying this weekly series and have not contributed, please consider sharing your response (whether it be for haiku or tanka) to the three little questions that Robert answered. You must be a published poet to participate.

Poets and Poems - Neal Whitman

Ode to the Monterey Peninsula

We love…

to stand on Lovers Point in the early morning
   watching when the waves break
   how water droplets rise to form fleeting rainbows.
to walk by Hawk Tower in the early evening
   imagining Robinson Jeffers atop
   as he waits for the rise of Orion over Carmel Bay.
to sit on the Old Monterey Wharf
   spooning seafood chowder in bread bowls
   while we wait for our whale watching charter.
to sip wine in a Carmel Valley tasting room
   the world looking better
   through bottled poetry.
to picnic on Point Lobos at China Cove
   half-cursing that seagull who steals
   half a tuna sandwich right out of my hand.
to sit by the Carmel River
   listening to the symphonic river run
   as water moves over its pebbled bed.
But, most of all,  we love to meet tourists
   vowing "Some day we will make this our home."

   As we once said. And did.

Poem by Neal Whitman
Photograph by Elaine Whitman, "Asilomar Sunset, Pacific Grove"

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If you would like to participate in this series, send a photo of yourself composing a poem or writing or a picture of a location where you enjoy writing, along with one of your poems (the type/genre of poem doesn't matter). This series will allow us to see the various locations that inspire us or where we go to write.

Thursday updates - 10/21/2010

David Lanoue sent this:

Hi Curtis,

Yesterday I reached a big milestone in my translating of Issa, posting the ten thousandth haiku on my website.

More about it here:

http://haikuguy.com/issa/new.html

*whew!* I think I deserve a drink...

David Lanoue

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A message from Simply Haiku:

Dear Friends,

Beginning with our Autumn issue we announce international non-English haiku (tanka, haiga, haibun) contests.
We feel many non-English haiku and related genres have been ignored and deserve to be shared.
Could you help us by informing us about such contests in your country or elsewhere?

Thank you very much!

Best wishes,
Sasa Vazic and Robert D. Wilson
Simply Haiku
http://simplyhaiku.webs.com

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From Anatoly Kudryavitsky:

 IHS International Haiku Competition 2010

Deadline approaching!

The Irish Haiku Society International Haiku Competition offers prizes of Euro 150, Euro 50 and Euro 30 for unpublished haiku/senryu in English. In addition there will be up to 7 Highly Commended haiku/senryu.

Also, there will be prizes from Dóchas Ireland of Euro 100, Euro 30 and Euro 20 for unpublished haiku/senryu in English or in Irish Gaelic (with an English translation) about Ireland in the changing world + up to 3 Highly Commended haiku/senryu in this category.

Details here:

http://irishhaiku.webs.com/haikucompetition.htm

All the entries shall be postmarked by 31th October 2010.

No e-mail submissions, please!

Good luck to all!

J. Zimmerman - Three Questions (Tanka)

J. Zimmerman's poems have been published internationally (including Australia and Germany). She is co-editor & contributor for "Poetry at Ariadne's Web".  Currently she lives along the west coast of North America.

She writes:

I didn't send my same image as for the Haiku Three Questions.

That's because I hope you can use the photo attached (with permission of the artist) showing that one of my tanka (the second one below) is graffitied on a wheel at the world famous Cadillac Ranch Graffiti Installation -- calligraphy and photography by Liz Davis.

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1) Why do you write tanka?

Tanka combine the passion of lyric poetry with the clarity and the natural world of haiku. While I've attempted lyric poetry for decades, I only began to write tanka three years ago, after tanka poet Mariko Kitakubo's presentation at Asilomar (2007 YT Retreat) showed me the rhythm of tanka.

2) What other poetic forms do you enjoy?

I enjoy all forms, but especially works that are brief, multilayered, and musical. The work of Kay Ryan is particularly great in these aspects. I am also devoted to the sonnet.

3) Of the many wonderful tanka you've written, what do you consider to be your top three?

The first of my current favorites was my first tanka ever published -- and it was honored with being selected as a moonset Editor's Choice:

Slowly rising tide
the harbor seal lifts its tail
for every swell —
I too adjust my posture
with each of my friend's complaints.

[First published in moonset Spring/Summer 2008; editor anya.]



Valentine's dusk
rosy on the breaking waves —
the seaside redhead
glides her pink Cadillac
past each undressing surfer.


[First published in Ribbons 2009 Summer issue (5.2); editor David Bacharach.]


This is a favorite in part because it was written at the ocean and then calligraphied and photographed two thousand miles away on a wheel at the world famous Cadillac Ranch Graffiti Installation near Amarillo, TX, by Liz Davis (calligraphy and photo (c) Liz Davis 2009-2010)). Her artist's note says:

Your work is immortalized at Cadillac Ranch, on the right rear tire of the lead car. Your tanka reads clockwise on the pink part of the tire, beginning at the southwest. It runs the length of the area just inside the cutout. I was happy to find this lovely pink canvas. I also liked the fact that the tire still rotates so the tanka spins. Here is a partial close-up, showing your 'signature' and that of your amanuensis:

There were kids from every country going wild with joy because THIS is a venue where spray painting is encouraged. It was a little dicey because the wind was blowing hard and I wanted to keep upwind of the flying paint :-)

I think your tanka is likely to survive longer than most of the casual messages because it lives on a piece of the car that doesn't make a good canvas for an 8-year-old. Your work will fade into spray-paint memory when an artist comes along who wants to re-do the total look of that wheel.

This is a favorite because (despite its being austere and its use of the sometimes-taboo word "souls") it was selected by the Ribbons' editor for commentary, praise, and reprinting on the Ribbons' Back Cover:


Without coat or gloves
I walk into clouds and tears
walk on ash
on cremated bones
on the grit of souls


[First published in Ribbons 2009 Winter issue (5.4); editor David Bacharach.]


As always, it's hard to pick just three favorites: the rest of my favorites are at: http://www.baymoon.com/~ariadne/poets/j.zimmerman.tanka.htm

Curtis, thank you so much for Tobacco Road and for all that you do to inform and delight us.

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If you've been enjoying this weekly series and have not contributed, please consider sharing your response (whether it be for haiku or tanka) to the three little questions that J answered. You must be a published poet to participate.

Sunday updates - October 17

Djurdja Vukelic-Rozic sent the results to The Klostar Ivanic Haiku Contest (In English 2010). Click the link below to view a pdf document of the results:

Klostar Ivanic Haiku Contest

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Simply Haiku call for submissions from Sasa Vazic:

http://simplyhaiku.webs.com/

Submissions for the Winter issue accepted from October 15 through December 15..

Accepting Quality Traditional English Language Haiku, Tanka, Haibun, Haiga, Renga, Book reviews, Interviews and Feature articles.

Please read carefully the Submission Guidelines before submitting.

http://simplyhaiku.webs.com/submissionguidelines.htm
Robert D. Wilson & Sasa Vazic
Co-Owners, Co-Publishers, Co-Editors in Chief

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Penny Harter's haiku are featured on "Daily Haiku." The URL below is for October 10th. From there, you can click on the "next" arrow to see the remaining poems for the week, day by day.

http://www.dailyhaiku.org/haiku/2010-october-10

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David Giacalone sent this update:

Last week, I brought f/k/a out of retirement long enough to do a memorial tribute to Peggy Lyles. I did it as a Page, not a Post, so it is not on the front page of the weblog, but it occurs to me now that a tribute needs to be shared to be meaningful.

If interested, you'll find it at "let us celebrate Peggy Lyles" (Oct. 9, 2010).

best wishes,
David

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Here's a message from Peter Yovu:

Greetings,

I have a new book out from Red Moon Press, entitled Sunrise. Comprised of (by last count) 91 poems, it's divided thematically in five sections, each preceded by a pen and ink drawing. The poems were first printed in venues as diverse as The Heron's Nest and Roadrunner/Masks. If you wish to purchase a copy, please send US $15 (ppd) to:

Peter Yovu
60 VT RTE 12
Middlesex VT 05602

If you live in Canada, please add one dollar. Anywhere else on the planet, please add two dollars and a prayer for my sad country. Just prior to taking it to the post office,I will place your copy of the book somewhere near my stereo as it plays Brian Eno and Harold Budd's The Pearl. If you prefer, I will play Alina, by Arvo Part.

Just let me know.

All the best,
Peter Yovu

Poets and Poems - Pravat Kumar Padhy

 

SONGS OF LOVE

On each page of night
You compose the poem of love
Shyly dawn knocks at your door.
As you are still
In the half way of your song,
You request the beauty night
To stay with you
For a little long .
… … …

The waves of warm feeling
Spread over
Slowly on the sands
Of your aspiration.
Smilingly your shyness
Mingles with a new skyline
Murmuring another moment
Of ecstasy of union.
… … …

Throughout night
Your smile gathers
The petals
Of the blooming buds.
I discover
Every morning
Your freshness
Becomes the garden
Of my life.
… … …

In your cosmic love
I search the
Cause of the creation
And wish
I could discover
Adam and Eve
… … …

I sleep on the waves
Of your shyness
With your deep signature.
On the rolling edge
Of sweetness,
The music
Of the tides of the night
I closely remember.
… … …

We climb many heights
Embodying soul to soul.
Our love,
In your richness valley,
Silently brims
As the imprint
Becomes awaken
Like a tender leaf.
… … …

Our life scripted
A new stanza.
Like spreading branch
And sprouting flowers
We all grow, and
Imprints of life carry
To another
Generation of tree.
… … …

I go back to the
Pages of time
And read the poetry again.
I plunge to think how
Time shapes our mind.
With beauty and bliss
It is more to
A celestial journey indeed.

Brief biographical sketch

Pravat Kumar Padhy born in India, professionally a Petroleum Geologist, Holds Masters and Ph.D from Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad. He lives with his wife, Namita and two daughters, Smita and Rupa. Poems widely published and anthologized including “Contemporary Indian English Love Poetry”. Literary work referred in Spectrum History of Indian Literature in English, Alienation in Contemporary Indian English Poetry etc. Short Poems, Haiku and Tanka appeared in number of literary journals (both print and web) in India, USA, UK, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Africa including Poetry Time, Poet, Creative Forum, Poetcrit, Kritya, World Haiku Review, LYNX, Akita International Haiku Network, Poetry Pages, The Notes From the Gean, The Four Seasons of Haiku, Poetbay, Anglo-Japanese Society (Tanka Online), Ambrosia, Sketchbook , Atlas Poetica, Kokako, Berry Blue Haiku, Simply Haiku, The Houston Literary Review and others.

Wednesday updates - October 13

A new issue of Simply Haiku is online. Click the link below to access the new issue:

Autumn 2010, Vol. 8. No. 2

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Dennis Chibi had an interesting idea, honoring last Sunday's date of 10/10/10 by posting a three line poem with 10 syllables in each line on Nora Wood's Facebook page. A few of my Facebook friends responded to my request for ten,ten,ten poems (decapoems?) so, some written in jest, others artistically, here are the poems.

Dennis Chibi:
short days of october are filled with sweets
little gouls and goblins roam city streets
leaves turn colors while all enjoy the treats

Michele Harvey:
the last morning shadows of the first frost
recede into the bustle of the day
and garlic cloves will nose their way to bed

Terri Hale French:
slicing up flank steak for beef fajitas
add peppers, onions, and spices to pot
for the next six hours our taste buds simmer

Lynne Rees:
All day this odd malaise accompanied
by the first true autumn day - grey sky, wind.
A day for spiced tea, letters to old friends.

Paul David Mena:
hot sauce so hot it would have seared my soul
if I had one; instead, I was taken
to a happy place of pure, perfect pain.

Mary Melodee Mena:
Just planted dozens of daffodil bulbs~
a big burst of yellow on the hillside?
or a freebie buffet for the chipmunks?

Curtis Dunlap:
off to see the pig races at the fair
we'll eat pork barbecue while we are there
that is, if I can catch the wee porker

 :-)

Helen Losse and Curtis Dunlap collaboration

 

Shadows of the Past

The old man sitting on
the back of a tractor
is wearing a ball cap &
hanging his head. He’s
going nowhere. The tractor’s
seat is hot in the sun, as is
the man who also appears
to be tired, perhaps because
he’s old, and it’s late in
the afternoon.

The tractor’s flat tires
have sunk deep into straw
on the ground where it’s
parked. Shadows of the past
lie all around. All memory
dwells in shadows, fresh &
alive like the tree off to the left,
rusted & changed like the
tractor chassis, or even lost
like the engine coil.

Poem by Helen Losse, photo by Curtis Dunlap

Thomas Martin - Three Questions

Thomas Martin was born August 13, 1944 in Greensboro, North Carolina. As have so many others, Thomas discovered quality haiku rather late in life (63). He is quite appreciative of the observational and centering nature of the genre and has become very devoted to it. He is a retired journalist and technical writer who lives in Beaverton, Oregon with his wife, Joyce.

Awards and Other Honors: Third Place, Kusamakura Haiku Competition (2008); Third Place, Moonset Haiku Contest (2009); Second Place, Moonset Haiku Contest (2010).

Books Published: Real Gifts [essays and stories] (Suite 101, 2002); A Southern Line [poetry] (Suite 101, 2003).

Web site: http://www.haikucrossings.blogspot.com

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1) Why do you write haiku?

Mainly because of you, Curtis.  You read the haibun I had published on my website with its poorly written haiku and for some reason liked it.  It took practically another two years, but I wrote back, and you sent me a copy of the anthology in which you appeared (New Resonance V by Red Moon Press).  We struck up a friendship by e-mail and post.

I consider haiku and related forms a gift to me . After intense study of haiku, trying to make up for lost time since I am over 60 years, I sent a few fledgling attempts off for publication (I believe you suffered with me with the early rejections.)

Anyway, I now own about thirty or forty collections or anthologies and write haiku for many reasons.  I admire their intensity and brevity, along with other reasons.  I am sorry to be so long-winded, but this quote from Thomas Moore says much of what I feel about haiku:

". . .We can grasp the soul more directly through the senses than by means of the mind. . ."

2) What other poetic forms do you enjoy?

I read and write some free verse, though I have written traditional forms also.  I am partial to   haiga and haibun.  Tanka seems to be a problem for me; I keep on trying but feel like none of it  is very successful or publishable.  I continue to write and publish haibun--mostly with Contemporary Haibun Online.

3) Of the many wonderful haiku you've written. what do you consider to be your top three? (Please provide original publication credits.)

I suppose the top three keep on changing.  Here they are:




winter gravestone
hyphen between dates
my father's life

Frogpond - Spring/Summer 2009




eggs still warm
from the nest
spring planting

Mayfly - Summer, 2010




pussy willow
I wear my mother's smile
looking for a vase

Third Place
 Kusamakura Competition - 2008 

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If you've been enjoying this weekly series and have not contributed, please consider sharing your response (whether it be for haiku or tanka) to the three little questions that Thomas answered. You must be a published poet to participate.

Sunday updates - October 10

Randy Brooks sent this:

Modern Haiku Press is pleased to announce the publication of Modern Haiku, Volumes 1-10 (1969-1979) now available in a CD-ROM edition, edited and designed by Randy Brooks.

This archive of the first ten years of Modern Haiku features facsimiles of all pages from Volume 1.1 (winter 1969), through Volume 10.3 (autumn 1979). This CD comprises simple HTML files, so the contents may be read with any Web browser. All pages of each issue, including front and back covers, were scanned from a set of original issues, some of which are in less than perfect condition, so the quality of the images has sometimes suffered somewhat.

The index of authors, prepared by Modern Haiku Editor Charles Trumbull, records, in alphabetical order by author, the contents of the first ten years of the journal. Included are all essays, reviews, regular features, and—most significantly—the full text of every haiku and senryu that were published. Cover graphic design by Modern Haiku Art Director Lidia Rozmus.

 Order your copy for $30.00 plus $2.50 shipping & handling from:

Randy M. Brooks
Web Editor, Modern Haiku
3720 N. Woodridge Drive
Decatur, IL 62526

It is also available for online purchase from the Brooks Books web site at:

http://www.brooksbookshaiku.com/othersbooks/ModernHaikuCD-Volumne1-10.html

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Dear Haiku-Friends;

Chrysanthemum 8 is now online and ready to be viewed at:

www.chrysanthemum-haiku.net

Best Wishes,

Dietmar Tauchner

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M. Kei sent this:

Shoppers who utilize Lulu.com to purchase books from Keibooks (or any of the other small presses that use Lulu.com), can take advantage of their Columbus Day sale to save 14.92% off any order using the code EXPLORE305. Buyers who want to purchase a large order of $350 or more can save 20% buy using the code CARGO305. Coupon codes are good only at Lulu.com through 10/11/2010.

More information at:
http://www.lulu.com/static/100810_EXPLORE305wv.html

~K~

--
Keibooks
publisher of literature for discerning readers

P O Box 1118, Elkton, MD, 21922 USA
http://Lulu.com/Keibooks
Keibooks (at) gmail (dot) com

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Pris Campbell sent this:

Main Street Rag has dropped prices

I just received this in the Main Street Rag newsletter today:

'If you’ve browsed the MSR Online Bookstore, you will notice something: We’ve dropped our prices across the board. It occurred to me that the reason why we set our prices where we do is to accommodate distributors and other bookstores. Since we have been seeing so much more traffic and sales on our own website, it made sense to reward folks for buying directly from Main Street Rag. In most cases, it’s a $10-20% decrease, but I like round numbers, so for the most part that means between one and five dollars per book—about the cost of shipping. We hope our newsletter readers will take the time to peruse the MSR Online Bookstore and see what we’ve done—but you should do so soon. We’re about to completely reconfigure the bookstore pages. '

Ergo, The Nature of Attraction is now on sale on the site for 5 dollars plus shipping under 'new releases'. http://www.mainstreetrag.com/

I have about 8 personal copies left for sale and am matching my price to theirs, along with dedication and signature. First eight who message me, then get a check to me get them. There will be no reprinting, so this is it. Scott Owens bought a larger stock and has those to sell, too.

Pris

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Carolyn Thomas sent this:

The Winter Moon Awards for Haiku 2010

Deadline: In hand December 1, 2010

Prizes: First Prize: $100; Second Prize: $50; Third Prize: $25; Zen Award (if warranted): $25. Honorable Mentions. Winners living outside the US will receive subscriptions to haiku journals in place of cash prizes.

Eligibility: Open to everyone.

Entry Fee: None

Rules: All haiku must be the entrant’s original, unpublished work, and not under consideration by any publication or other contest.

Submissions: Up to 10 haiku in English, typed (or printed legibly) on one sheet of 8 ½ x 11 paper. Submit 2 copies. Provide name, address and pen name, if you use one, in upper left corner of one copy only.

Correspondence: Send #10 (4 1/8 x 9 1/2 ) SASE (outside US, SAE and 1 IRC) for notification of results. No entries will be returned. No email submissions.

Mail entries to: Carolyn Thomas, 7866 Hogan Circle, Hemet, CA 92545 USA

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Here's another video poem by Richard Peek:

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I was out and about with my small camcorder yesterday. Check out the video below. Watch the two gentlemen to the right of the screen.

Poets and Poems - Richard Krawiec

waiting to be beaten

an old rug hangs
from the wires
before the Royal Inn
a stucco wound
masquerading as comfort
for the perpetual hopeless
men of bag-sagged eyes
and 4-days beards
women bound with barbed wire
and rose tattoos on wine-
flaccid thighs
even the rip
of cocaine
or a bloodied fist
fails to move them
beyond this

dust-laden hairball bed
to a streaked window
where the rising sun
glistens yellow
then white

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If you would like to participate in this series, send a photo of yourself composing a poem or writing or a picture of a location where you enjoy writing, along with one of your poems (the type/genre of poem doesn't matter). This series will allow us to see the various locations that inspire us or where we go to write.

Wednesday updates - October 6

A new issue of The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature is online.

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Here is an update from Penny Harter:

Hi,

October rains have come to the South Jersey shore area, but with them---finally---cooler weather. I'm gearing up for reading at the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival next week. I'll be reading on Saturday, October 9th, and returning from Newark, NJ, on October 11th, the two-year anniversary of Bill's death. I know he'll be with me at the Festival in spirit---the first one I'll be attending without him. I can feel him cheering me on!

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that  two poems from my new chapbook, Recycling Starlight, (just out from Mountains and Rivers press--please visit my blog for ordering info) “Facing the Sea,” and “I Swim a Sea That Has No Shore or Bottom,” are featured in the Autumnal Issue of Sea Stories,

http://seastories.org/category/littoralcurrents/

the on-line journal of the blue Ocean Institute. I encourage you to explore all the work in the journal, from poems to essays, memoirs to photos, and interviews.

And for those of you who may have been wondering when Recycling Starlight would be out, it is now available. You can read about it on my blog at:

http://penhart.wordpress.com/2010/09/17/recycling-starlight-just-published/

There's a link to Mountains and Rivers Press if you'd like to order a copy.

Hope you're doing well these early days of autumn.

Warmly,
Penny

Penny Harter
poet, teaching artist, children's author
www.2hweb.net/penhart
http://penhart.wordpress.com
http://www.wordtechweb.com/harter.html
http://www.shenaniganbooks.com/beastiebook.html

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Christopher Herold writes:

Hey Curtis,

I just received copies of my new collection (been 10 years since my last two came out!) entitled Inside Out from Red Moon Press. I wonder if you could send out news of it via Blogging Along Tobacco Road. Sure would appreciate it!

Gratefully, as ever, your friend,

Christopher

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There will be a reading and book signing for the new book of poems entitled The Sounds of Poets Cooking on October 24th in Greensboro. Here are the details:

October 24; 3pm
The Sounds of Poets Cooking
Authors: Fred Chappell, Mark Smith-Soto, Kelly Cherry, Richard Krawiec and more
Genre: Poetry
Where: Barnes & Noble, 3102 Northline Ave, Greensboro, NC

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Penny Harter sent this:

A Call for Submissions for CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW
http://www.craborchardreview.siuc.edu/special.html

--THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS NOVEMBER 1, 2010. THIS IS A POSTMARK DEADLINE, SO THERE IS NO NEED TO EXPRESS MAIL, OVERNIGHT, OR FAX ANY SUBMISSION. CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW DOES NOT CONSIDER ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS AT ANY TIME, SO PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL YOUR SUBMISSION. THANK YOU.--

Special Issue: New & Old ~ Re-Visions of The American South

Crab Orchard Review is seeking work for our Summer/Fall 2011 issue focusing on writing exploring the people, places, history, and new directions that have shaped and are reshaping the American South.
All submissions should be original, unpublished poetry, fiction, or literary nonfiction in English or unpublished translations in English (we do run bilingual, facing-page translations whenever possible). Please query before submitting any interview.

The submission period for this issue is August 10 through November 1, 2010. We will be reading submissions throughout this period and hope to complete the editorial work on the issue by the end of March 2011. Writers whose work is selected will receive $25 (US) per magazine page ($50 minimum for poetry; $100 minimum for prose) and two copies of the issue. Mail submissions to:

CRAB ORCHARD REVIEW
American South issue
Faner 2380, Mail Code 4503
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
1000 Faner Drive
Carbondale, IL 62901
United States of America

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Angelee Deodhar forwarded this:

Hello, there! Haibun is haiku-style prose. The rules have changed slightly this year. For a start, it's free to enter. Kindly advertise our contest in your next newsletter  or to the extent you feel able. This is still Japan's only haibun contest! Hopefully, you'll have an attempt yourself and send it off to Tokyo? Thank you for anything you can do to spread the word... All the best, Stephen (Tito)

English Section

Ideally, there will be one Grand Prix, a number of Za Prizes (Highly Commended), and some Honourable Mentions, too. The authors of entries chosen for the first two of these categories will receive prizes as well as certificates from Kikakuza. In the spring, a bilingual bulletin will be published in Japan (there is a Japanese Haibun Section, too), and the results displayed both on the Kikakuza homepage and on the Hailstone Icebox. You can read last year's top four pieces on that site now (click top right - Kikakuza '10 Winning Haibun). http://hailhaiku.wordpress.com  Japanese winning haibun are to be read at the Kikakuza site

Entries to: Ms. Motoko Yoshioka, Regalia 907, 7-32-44 Fujimi-cho, Tachikawa-shi, Tokyo 190-0013, Japan (to arrive between 1 Oct. 2010 and 31 Jan. 2011)

No more than 30 lines (max. 80 spaces each), with title and at least one haiku, not necessarily phrased in three lines. Print on one side of A4, if possible, with your name and address, tel. no., and email address typed along the bottom. The judges will not get to know your identity until judging is over and Kikakuza already knows the results. If English is not your first language, please add the name of your first language in brackets after your name.

Judges: Nobuyuki Yuasa & Stephen Henry Gill.

Entry fee and no. of entries per author: the Contest is free this year! Maximum 3 entries per author.

Terri L. French - Three Questions

Terri L. French is a poet/writer, Licensed Massage Therapist, and Barista living in Huntsville, Alabama. She and her husband have a blended family of four children and three cats. Terri finds her haiku in the crooks, crannies, and corners of her everyday world experiences. She is a member of the Southeast Region of the Haiku Society of America, the Alabama Writer's Conclave and the Coffee Tree Writer's Group. Terri's poems have appeared in Lilliput Review, The Heron's Nest, haikuworld, and Sketchbook.

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1) Why do you write haiku?

I come from a journalistic background and think like an editor. I am not one for circuitous language, so haiku works for me.

Also, I spent many years sitting in a church pew looking for God, with not much success. I find I feel closer to my maker in nature and have found more truth in haiku than in most sermons.

2) What other poetic forms do you enjoy?

I write prose and I'm just beginning to pair prose and haiku into haibun. I also work with my husband to pair some of our photos with haiku to create haiga. In the future I would like to learn sumi-e to accompany my haiku.

3) Of the many wonderful haiku you've written, what do you consider to be your top three? (Please provide original publication credits.)

I'm sure I have yet to write my top three, but here are three that I like.


a spot of blood
on the unfinished quilt--
harvest moon

(Sketchbook, Sept/Oct, 2009)



the child
blowing on the pinwheel
the wind blowing on her

(The Heron's Nest, June 2009)



catching tadpoles
this summer he wades
d
e
e
p
e
r

(from my book, A Ladybug on My Words)

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If you've been enjoying this weekly series and have not contributed, please consider sharing your response (whether it be for haiku or tanka) to the three little questions that Terri answered. You must be a published poet to participate.

Sunday updates - October 3

Magnapoets is open for submissions during the month of October. Payment is one contributor copy. Submission guidelines are available via the link below:

Magnapoets Submission Guidelines

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News from the Australian Haiku Society from immediate past-president, Beverley George:

Recently, after over 4 years in office, I stepped down as president of the Australian Haiku Society (HaikuOz) as did Graham Nunn, as secretary. Graham and I are delighted to announce the new president is Jo McInerney, a talented poet and experienced forum mediator, and the new secretary is Greg Piko, whose haiku are also internationally recognised.

For a report on haiku in Australia at this time please visit

http://www.haikuoz.org/2010/09/haiku_in_australia_2010.html

and click on the main menu for other news

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Let Us Pray

Sketchbook is extending an invitation around the world for submissions of prayer, inspiration and heart felt encouraging poetry submissions for this new section of the Sketchbook Journal.

Our goal is to hear from all faiths and peoples on a Global Scale. The more people who participate and read the more our hearts will become one. Surely a heart that envelops the world can make changes and differences in lives.

We can make a difference and wipe away all the divisions that have arisen because of different belief systems. Let us all love and respect one another in one accord.

Please send your poems and prayers to: letuspray@poetrywriting.org

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Rattle Call for Submissions

Issue: Theme  (Reading Period)
#35: Canadian Poets (8/1/10 – 2/1/11)
#36: Buddhist Poets (2/1/11 –  8/1/11)
#37: Poets in Law Enforcement (8/1/11 – 2/1/12)

Go to http://www.rattle.com/callsforsubs.htm for details.

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Issue #3 of Pig in a Poke now alive and oinking!

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I'm amazed at what you can find at scribd.com these days. Here's a splendid book of tanka by Liam Wilkinson:

The Darkening Tide by Liam Wilkinson

Sad News - Art Stein

I received this message from Stanford M. Forrester:

Hi All:

I just got a phone message from Vincent Tripi that Art Stein passed away this morning 9/30/2010. Vince asked me to let the hsa and others know. I know he has not been well for awhile and this was not unexpected. I don't have the details at this point, but will pass them on when I know. I'll be out of town for a couple of days, but I bet if one of you google for his obituary which will probably be out soon you'll have more info. He lived in Northfield, MA.

I'm sorry to be the messenger of such news.
Stanford

http://www.bottlerocketspress.com/

So far, this is the only obituary I've been able to find of Art. I'm sure web sites with more details are being written.

In the meantime, here are a few poems from his book blonde, red Mustang.

Stanford sent this photo of Art Stein: