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The Winner and Runner-ups are listed HERE.
WHO
Anyone in the world, of any age or background, may participate (SCP Membership not required). Among members of the Society of Classical Poets, everyone including Advisory Board members may participate, if not involved in judging the contest. The winner, if not a U.S. resident, must have a PayPal account or a bank that accepts U.S. checks, in order to receive prize money.
IMPORTANT: By submitting haiku to this contest, the contestant declares that the poems are his or her own work, and that they were written after July 2023. Please submit using your first and last name, as we may find it difficult to distinguish between contestants who have similar first names.
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PRIZE
$100
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JUDGES
J. Thomas Rimer, Professor Emeritus of Japanese Literature, Theatre, and Art at the University of Pittsburgh; former chief of the Asian Division of the Library of Congress.
Margaret Coats, Ph.D. in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard University; retired from a career of teaching literature, languages, and writing that included considerable work in homeschooling for her own family and others.
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WHEN
Now until September 15, 2024, 6 pm EST (New York time). Results to be announced September 29, 2024.
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WHERE
Post your entries in the Comments below.
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WHAT
Each competitor may submit up to three haiku of traditional form: three lines per poem with 5 syllables in the first line, 7 syllables in the second, and 5 in the third. Entrants are recommended to conform to other traditional haiku requirements outlined HERE.
If you want coaching on haiku features, please read the examples and explanation before submitting your entries. Once entries are posted, they can be revised or withdrawn ONLY by making another Comment. This is permitted until the competition closes, but do take reasonable care to complete work to your satisfaction before you enter it. Please do not use the Comment area as your scratch pad. That is discourteous to other competitors, to interested readers, and to the judge and will disqualify you.
Entries that do not meet basic traditional haiku requirements may be deleted. Anyone who submits more than three entries will have ALL his or her entries disqualified, unless excess entries are clearly withdrawn by a later Comment.
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PAST WINNERS
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Silence of darkness
a twisting of tangled fates
before the world wakes
quiet_6/20/24
Sun’s height is today
feeling some new kind of way
a beautiful storm
sol_6/21/24
Fresh candles of pine
reaching towards the divine
can I grow with you?
grow_8/24/24
Thanks for reading!
Outside the headlamp’s
small light, claws climb a dim tree:
six young eyes gleam back.
Nettles sting my shins,
but here, too, grows jewel weed:
crushed leaves heal the hurt.
Just below the peak,
ancient trees stand tall, hidden
from winter’s harsh winds.
To the competition organisers: Both of these haiku were self-published earlier this year (June) in a book of poems, Digging for Water. I have given the titles because they are both ephrastic and based on Japanese prints.
Ushibori
Flow, friendly water,
lantern warming a window,
hush, cascading snow
Rain at Maekawa
so frail the pathway
of fading into darkness
and remembering
Reading through the posts- both of these are nice, but I love the second one because it can relate both to nature and to pathways in the mind.
Thank you.
chilly, cloudless night
on the hilltop we gather
just to view the moon
bird migration starts
at last I manage to fold
linen crane napkins
her first sakura
the child’s frenzy when seeing
those marshmellow trees
bonfire flaming red
children’s eyes spark at Grandpa
telling love stories
my shadow and me
on the forget-me-not path
this graveyard silence
the neighbor’s garden
fading into moonlit dark
a foreclosure sign
Nibble on the skin,
the small stone within the plum
begins its dreaming
Ragged edges, scratch
skin, red where the blood begins;
the rose resistance
Dirt fingers, like seeds –
in a sense, we’re playing God –
poking holes in Earth
Thank you for considering my poems.
Kevin
urgent ducks flying
in front of the brown burnt hills
liquid blue below
in a silent arc
the diving osprey strikes taut
then rises slapping
tiny yellow tail
the gull spying the fish swoops
leaving a feather
In reeds entangled
Hiding from helicopters
Skyclad and sunkissed
Claudia’s Poems:
1. The Beauty of Life
Is when you laugh at your past
Even when it hurts
2. Music can bring peace
To the mind, spirit and soul
Listen to your song
3. The view of mountains
Brought back special memories
From years in college
fully spring cleaning –
the housemaid trying to mop
her humble shadow
the scent of absence
in the attic with the moon
her shawl forgotten
the nights of full moon –
I’m reconciled to myself
and everybody
Good morning, all! I am a new member of the Society, and I’m happy to be with you all, here for these hearings. This is my haiku:
Crane stilting the lake
Lapping the cracked fence, strikes me,
Have they broken through?
Revision:
Cranes stilting the lake
Lapping the cracked fence, strikes me,
Have they broken through?
Dragonflies hover
and land on heron-swept reeds
darkened from high tide
Wild Mustangs caught
lower their heads and nicker
gentling cowboys
Chincoteague ponies
swim the highwater slack tide
heads bobbing near boats
fallen forest leaves
converse between sloping hills
hushed by early snow
morning semaphore
mirrored beach leaves glassy dew
signal sun’s approach
colored air ballet
whirling wind of gossamer
butterfly landings
Spring blooms on reef edge
Friends enjoy shallow lagoon
Deep blue Siren lures
On a flowered branch
Two doves sharing warmth of love
Squeals a stretched bowstring
Jogging in the morn
Cries beneath trodden dead leaves
I curse my knowledge
Mother’s Day flowers
roadside hawker sells enough
to feed her children
the sky bursts with song
angels dart across the sun
the martins are back
golden spring morning
the dog pricks her ears to hear
shoelaces tying
Powerful water
Turquoise river surges clear
Purifies sunlight
Grey clouds tinged with white
pass by with light intentions
Raindrops pelt evergreen trees
Puffy white clouds soar
Crystal clear blue sky canvas
Summer is the brush
Chipped and broken still,
Beauty hides in silent cracks,
Strength within them speaks.
Wild Woman roams free,
Wolf beside her, spirit calls,
In the Wild, her home.
Soul lost in shadows,
Chasing echoes through the dark,
Fires fade, cold remains.
Chipped and broken still,
Beauty hides in silent cracks,
Strength within them speaks.
Correction: (including last name)
Chipped and broken still,
Beauty hides in silent cracks,
Strength within them speaks.
Wild woman runs free,
Wolf at her side, spirit calls,
In the wild, she’s home.
Correction:
Wild woman runs free,
Wolf at her side, spirit calls,
In the wild, her home.
Soul lost in shadows,
Chasing echoes through the dark,
Fires fade, cold remains.
waves crash
on honeymoon beaches
horizons expand
***
time enough
to listen to a joke
senior center
***
under a canopy of stars
blinking fireflies await
the couple’s unfolding story
on the level plane
of a freshly trimmed privet
a new sprig rises
The sound of birdsong
On the path often trodden
Falls now on deaf ears
Ten thousand brush strokes
Cannot truly match the sight
That nature provides
At autumn’s approach
Each new breath becomes precious
Beyond any coin
There are some wonderful Haiku here. Here are my three.
March wind howls like wolves
Stalking herds of antelope
But I am safe inside.
Rainbow in the sky.
The sunshine split by raindrops.
Glorious colour.
Mist curls all around
Swirling like smoke in the air.
All colour has flown.
Much appreciate your contributions, Vivienne. Please reply here with your last name, as requested above where it says (boldface and underlined), “Please submit using your first and last name.” Thanks!
Twirling maple seeds
Gravity does not hold back
April pirouettes
Lithe sandpiper hops
Deftly dodging sun-glazed waves
Pecking for his prey
Tears entombed by sweat
Moisten fresh dug August earth
Of a canine grave.