S9E37 Haibun and tips for writing them from Tendrils volume 3

Welcome back to the Poetry Peacast! After a rather unfortunate disappearing act by my voice, I’m back behind the microphone with a special episode celebrating haibun from Tendrils, Volume 3, the Poetry Pea journal of haibun.

In this episode, I read the Editor’s Choice and Honourable Mentions from the journal, outstanding haibun by Cathryn Daley, Mark Forrester and Sara Winteridge.

I explore what makes a successful haibun, particularly the relationship between prose and haiku. I look at how the haiku can bring its own distinct “utterance” to a piece, add emotional resonance and create a dialogue with the prose rather than simply illustrating it.

I also share some thoughts on stand-alone haiku, drawing on Sean O’Connor’s discussion of contemporary haibun and his definition of haibun as a prosimetrum: a combination of prose and poetry.

Featured works include On Repeat, Largesse and Sara Winteridge’s haunting The Order of Things, which explores grief, dementia, memory and the natural world.

If you’re interested in writing haibun, haiku or short-form poetry, there’s plenty here to think about – and hopefully plenty to inspire your own writing.

You’ll find links in the show notes to Tendrils, Volume 3, Sean O’Connor’s article on contemporary haibun, and Vandana Parashar’s We, the People.

Thanks for listening, and as always, keep writing!