Haiku Review
Want to get creative whilst letting everyone know just what you thought of that movie, book, play, gig, exhibition, album or TV show? Then welcome to Haiku Review - your chance to beat the critics by cutting through the waffle and getting to the nub of arts and culture.
A traditional form of Japanese poetry, Haiku was formally established in the 1890’s and is a 17 syllable verse consisting of three metrical units of 5, 7 and 5 syllables.
It was introduced to the West in the 1950's and Beat poets including Jack Kerouac and Gary Snyder helped popularise it.
And now we’d love you to try your hand at this beautiful, profound and often funny form of poetry.
The traditional Japanese poems deal with nature, the seasons, and Buddhist philosophies.
But the brevity and transient nature of Haiku mean it’s the perfect way to write a review.
Don’t feel you have to stick to the 5, 7, 5 structure. As long as it’s a brief 3 lines, then free-form is fine.
Here are a couple of examples ( English translation ) from Haiku master Masaoka Shiki:
Lightning flash—
in the bottom of the basin,
water someone forgot to throw out
Picture of the Buddha
Entering Nirvana
One person is laughing !
We’ll pick the best and publish a new Haiku Review every weekday. Readers will be invited to vote for their favourite and each month, there’ll be a winner who’ll be crowned Haiku Review Master - and will receive a prize!
How to submit
Please send your Haiku Review, along with your name, address and phone number to haiku@openmagazine.co.uk
Illustration exclusively by Louise Stockton
The Small Print
The Haiku Review is submitted for publication in Open Magazine by the author. The article has not have been published previously and is not being considered for publication elsewhere. Copyright to the work (including all text, photographs, images, tables and graphs) is hereby transferred to Open Magazine Ltd.
Open Magazine Ltd. may publish the above article electronically on its electronic journal server and reserves the right to publish in any other format, including but not limited to print magazine, books, leaflets and posters. Transfer of copyright covers the right to reproduce and distribute the article and all of its components.
This copyright agreement will become binding from the date that the article is submitted.
Copyright notice as at June 2009
