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| by Gary LeBel, Modern Haiku, Summer 2007 |
Modern Haiku is a journal of haiku and
haiku studies published three times a year out of Portsmouth, Rhode Island. For
haiku lovers, Modern Haiku is pure
paradise.
Before you submit, Modern Haiku urges you to familiarize yourself with the journal,
especially with regard to what constitutes a haiku (see below).
Material submitted to Modern Haiku is to be the author’s
original work, previously unpublished and not under consideration by any other
publication, including Web-based journals, personal Web sites, blogs, and social
networking sites.
Editors
read submissions year-round—but not continuously. Please do not be alarmed if
6–8 weeks pass before an editor makes a decision on your work. Please send 5–15
haiku, senryu, and/or up to 3 haibun per submission. No more than one
submission per issue, please. So send your best work. (Note: If you’ve ever
wondered what haiku is all about, see the definitions of haiku, senryu, and haibun below).
Work
may either be pasted in the message text or included as an attachment in MS
Word or PDF. Your message must be identified as “MH SUBMISSION” (this text
only) in the Subject line. Be sure to include your full postal address and
indicate how you wish your materials to be signed.
Juxtapositions is the section of the journal
devoted to reader feedback and discussion of important issues in modern haiku.
Postal or e-mail letters are avidly sought and will be printed (and edited for
fit) at the editors’ discretion.
Definitions—what
we’re looking for
Haiku is a brief verse that
epitomizes a single moment. It uses the juxtaposition of two concrete images,
often a universal condition of nature and a particular aspect of human
experience, in a way that prompts the reader to make an insightful connection
between the two. The best haiku allude to the appropriate season of the year.
Good haiku avoid subjectivity; intrusions of the poet’s ego, views, or values;
and displays of intellect, wit, and facility with words.
The
above is a normative definition, and haiku of various kinds
not squaring with this definition can be easily found, even in the pages of our
journal.
Senryu is a verse in the haiku form
that focuses on human nature. Although Modern Haiku has a best-senryu-of-issue
award, separate sections for haiku and senryu have been discontinued because we
find it is impossible to draw a sharp line between the two in English-language
verse.
The
editors of Modern Haiku use the term "haiku"
inclusively (and loosely) for both haiku and senyru and consider both for publication
on an equal footing.
Haibun is a prose poem that uses
embedded haiku to enhance the composition’s overall resonance and effect. Modern
Haiku publishes several haibun in each issue. The following principles
guide the editors in choosing among haibun submissions: (1) Each verse should
be able to stand on it own as a haiku, without reference to the prose; (2) The
prose should be composed in haikai style—that is, with an eye to brevity,
objectivity, and non-intellectualization; (3) The haiku and the prose should
stand in the same relationship to one another as do the two parts of the
haiku—that is, one part should not repeat, explain, or continue the other,
rather the juxtaposition of the two should lead the reader to experience added
insight or resonance. Haibun are generally, but not necessarily, titled.
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| Simply Haiku, Summer 2007 |
Haiga is
a work combining a graphic image (originally sumi-e, brush painting with black ink) with a haiku in
the same relationship as the two parts of a haibun (see above); in particular,
the graphic should not merely be an illustration of the haiku, nor the haiku a
caption for the image.
The best haiga use the same medium for the haiku and the
graphic. Photo haiga are very popular these days, but not with our editors.
Haiga generally do not need a title. Modern Haiku typically
publishes four haiga in each issue in the Poetry Gallery section.
Modern
Haiku publication
policies
Syllable
and line count are
not vital in contemporary English-language haiku—in particular in our journal.
We find, in fact, that few poets are able to write effective haiku in the
"traditional" 5–7–5–syllable format.
Titles,
notes. English-language
haiku generally do not need titles or head notes. If you wish to label your
haiku, you should be sure there is a very good reason for doing so and that the
title is more than merely a cheat, an extra "fourth line." The same is
true of explanatory notes or footnotes: if your verse contains material that
needs explanation, it is safe to assume that it is inadequately communicating
to its intended audience—i.e., it is a failed haiku.
Dedications. Modern Haiku tries to avoid
including a dedication with a haiku on the grounds that it tends to divert
attention and sap energy from the haiku.
Locations
& dates.
Similarly, we try to avoid including a location or date (e.g., a line reading
"Aunt Jenny’s backyard, May 1978") with haiku for the same reasons we
are suspicious of titles, notes, and dedications.
Foreign
languages. Modern
Haiku is keen to publish haiku in languages other than English
provided that the work was originally composed in the foreign language and that
it is accompanied by an English translation (our editors can often help with
the translations). Back translations (that is, an author’s original
English-language work translated into another language) and translations into
third languages are generally not of interest.
Full submission guidelines here.
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Poem: Janet L Davis. Image: Christine Klocek-Lim,
Simply Haiku, Winter 2006 |
Simply Haiku
Simply Haiku is a showcase for
Japanese short form poetry written in the English language.
Simply Haiku publishes all forms of
Japanese short form poetry, as well as all forms of traditional and modern
haiga (works combining an image and a haiku. See definition above). In addition
we publish essays, articles and reviews relating to haiku poetry and associated
genres. Please read the introduction to each section for more detailed
information.
Policy on Publication Elsewhere: Simply Haiku does not consider submissions
of previously published works unless invited; however, we do not consider postings
on Internet forums, personal webpages and the like as publications.
How to Submit Poetry: All poems must be submitted by email to the editor of the
appropriate section: Haiku (10-25); Tanka (5-20); Senryu (any number); Haibun
(1-3). Work may be submitted in any language, so long as it is accompanied by
an English language translation. Any quoted work must be attributed both to the
original author and to the translator(s), if any.
How to Submit Artwork: Simply Haiku has a continuous open
submissions period for haiga. Submissions will be scheduled by the haiga editor
to meet quarterly deadlines. Previously published work is by invitation only.
You may submit up to a dozen works at one time. You may submit up to a dozen
works at one time and no less than five. We may publish between 4 and 8 haiga
for each presentation. Please be mindful of the season (a snow scene will not
be chosen for a summer issue). We are interested in combined art and prose of
high quality. Judgments will be made at the sole discretion of the editor. All
haiku-related art forms (e.g., ink drawing, brush painting, woodblock painting,
photo, digital) will be considered.
Also,
check out Shamrock, an Irish haiku
quarterly that accepts submissions from around the world. See here.
See Brian Henry's schedule here, including writing
workshops and creative writing courses in Kingston, Peterborough, Toronto,
Mississauga, Brampton, Georgetown, Milton, Oakville, Burlington, St.
Catharines, Hamilton, Dundas, Kitchener, Guelph, London, Woodstock,
Orangeville, Newmarket, Barrie, Orillia, Bracebridge, Sudbury,
Muskoka, Peel, Halton, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.
