Monday, April 25, 2016

Poetry Week by Week: Haiku

It is the last week of Poetry Week by Week, and we are celebrating haiku! Haiku is a traditional form a Japanese poetry that is written in three lines, with those lines being 5, 7, and 5 syllables. According to poets.org, haiku are often about nature and focus on a brief moment in time.

Some poets are comfortable with breaking the syllable rule when writing haiku, but I find the restriction a fun sort of challenge. Here is a haiku I wrote several years ago, in which I followed all the "rules."

colorful leaves drift
streaming bits of confetti
fall's celebration

Do you enjoy reading or writing haiku? Are you a traditionalist or a rule breaker?

2 comments:

  1. I follow syllabification rules, but mine are not always nature themed.

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  2. Like you, I appreciate the challenge of the syllable rules. It feels less authentic to do it any other way!

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