Editor's Corner

The other day I mentioned a Japanese poetry type called waka. Today I want to go back to the other type of poetry from Japan that many of us are more familiar with: haiku. As I mentioned, haiku is three lines with the pattern of five syllables for the first and third lines and seven syllables in the middle. Traditional haiku was restricted to one of the seasons or topics in nature. Since we are getting closer to the weekend, I thought we should look at some more modern haiku, which are comedic. I hope you enjoy the ones I selected from Your Dictionary.com:

Haiku for Room Cleaning Motivation

I hid a twenty

In your messy room somewhere.

Just clean to find it.

Birthday Haiku

For your birthday, friend,

I wrote this haiku for you.

Worst present ever.

Haiku for Sweet Corn

The joy of sweet corn,

Taste of summer and butter.

I forgot to floss.

Haiku for Babies

You’re so cute, but why

Should I write a haiku for you?

You can’t even read.

T-Rex Hug Haiku

The T-Rex likes you,

But he can’t give you a hug.

His arms are too short.

Haiku for Bacon

That’s too much bacon.

Please just bring me some kale chips.

Said no one ever.

Good Morning Haiku from the Cat

In the morning light,

You sleep despite my meow.

I stand on your face.

You know what? It’s been a long time since I’ve had a contest. Let’s do one now! Here are the rules:

Who: You, Editor’s Corner readers (and any new folks you get to subscribe to Editor’s Corner).

What: Write a haiku following the 5-7-5 syllable rule. Funny ones would be delightful, but more traditional are okay, too. And please don’t plagiarize, we’re using the honor system here.

What Else: For prizes I will draw a winner randomly from each category. The funny one wins He Smokes Like a Fish and Other Malaphors; for the more serious winner I will send The Disheveled Dictionary. Both books are “slightly used” because I buy used books when they are available, for the environment’s sake. Don’t worry, they don’t have any blood or coffee stains on the pages.

Where: From your office or your house, just send me your best.

When: Get them to me by Friday, April 15, 2022. I will announce the winners on Tuesday, April 26, 2022.

Why: Because it doesn’t take long, it gets those creative juices flowing, and it’s fun!

Kara Church

Pronouns: she/her

Technical Editor, Advisory

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