haiku poetry kit

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2012. William Victor, S.L. - All rights reserved

Haiku Poetry Kit

by Creative Writing Now

http://www.creative-writing-now.com


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Haiku is a short poetic form originally from Japan.

A haiku captures a specific moment in time. It uses just a few words to create a picture

in the reader's mind. It is like a tiny window into a scene much bigger than itself.

Traditionally, haiku are written in three lines, with the following syllable pattern:

1) 5 syllables in the first line

2) 7 syllables in the second line

3) 5 syllables in the third line

Here are three examples of haiku with the 5-7-5 syllable pattern by Richard Wright:

Heaps of black cherries

glittering with drops of rain

in the evening sun

From this skyscraper,all the bustling streets converge

towards the spring sea

Whitecaps on the bay:

A broken signboard banging

In the April wind.

- Richard Wright (Haiku: This Other World. Arcade Publishing, 1998)


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Many English-language haiku do not follow this exact structure.

Here is a haiku by Jack Kerouac:

frozen

in the birdbath

A leaf

- Jack Kerouac (Book of Haikus. Enitharmon Press, 2004)

Here is one by Gary Snyder:

In a swarm of yellowjackets

a squirrel drinks water

feet in the cool clay, head way down.

- Gary Snyder (Danger on Peaks: Poems. Shoemaker & Hoard, 2004)

English-language haiku are generally 1-4 lines and 17 syllables or fewer. The length of

the lines are generally asymmetrical or uneven -- not all the same length. Generally,

haiku do not rhyme.

The following are typical of haiku:

- A focus on nature.

- A "season word" such as "snow" which tells the reader what time of year it is.

- A division somewhere in the poem -- the poem focuses first on one thing, than

on another. The relationship between the two parts of the poem is sometimes

surprising.

- Showing instead of telling. Instead of saying how a scene makes him or her

feel, the poet presents the details that caused that emotion. If the sight of an

empty winter sky made the poet feel lonely, describing that sky can give the

same feeling to the reader.


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Write a haiku

Ready to write some haiku? Here are some photographic prompts to give you ideas. In

your haiku, try to use details related to the senses -- sight, hearing, touch, smell, or

taste. Try to "zoom in" on a small detail that contains the feeling of the larger scene.


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Publish your haiku

Below are links to some poetry journals where you can read contemporary haiku and

submit your haiku for publication. Check the submission guidelines page on each

website for details.

http://www.acornhaiku.com/acornhaiku/Home.html

http://shamrockhaiku.webs.com/

http://www.muhaikujournal.com/Mu_Haiku_Journal/Mu_Haiku_Journal.html

http://haiku-presence.50webs.com/


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Happy writing!

Creative Writing Now

http://www.creative-writing-now.com

haiku poetry kit

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