The sun’s rays filter through a stand of spruce where twenty horses are hitched. As we unpack them, Dave, a lanky outfitter, and I chat about the grizzly we spotted earlier in the day and how the horses are holding up. men’s talk – the smell of sweat and manure Dave asks, “Ray, what are … Continue reading What Are You Up To?
Category: haiku
Haibun Exemplars
| Haibun Exemplars | Haibun Commentaries | Haibun Close Reading Guide | Glenn Coats: WitnessHarriot West, Two Minimalist Haibun: Maybe and The Way Things WereJeffrey Woodward: Time with the Heron Exemplars: What are they? Why are they here? The Rogue River falls shown above is, in my estimation, nature's exemplar of a waterfall. I'd also … Continue reading Haibun Exemplars
Haibun Titles are Important!
Very little has been done in the way of informed critical study of the haibun form, particularly when compared with the number of haiku studies. While there's been a good deal of emphasis in haibun about the importance of the link between the haibun's prose and the link-shift with it's important little sidekick, the haiku, … Continue reading Haibun Titles are Important!
A Winter Renewal with Issa
| Haibun: Winter Renewal | Comments on Issa's Haiku | More Haiku by Issa | This blog is primarily focused on exploring the nature of haiku, haibun and haiga. I posted "Winter Renewal" which contains my prose, haiku by Issa and mimic haiku by me for several reasons: to expose new writers to haiku and … Continue reading A Winter Renewal with Issa
How to Read Haiku
With The Heron's Nest Editor Fay Aoyagi and Haijin Chad Lee Robinson Kitagawa Utamaro, circa 1790s | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Early on in my haiku and haibun journey, editors rejected my haibun and several advised me to read haiku, saying that I'd not be able to write a good … Continue reading How to Read Haiku
About This Blog
Welcome. My intent is to show examples and to discuss contemporary English-language haibun and haiga which necessitate also exploring haiku (haibun prose's and haiga image's little partner). haibun : a mix of title, prose and haikuhaiga: a mix of an image of any type (painting, photograph, digital art) and haiku I will provide examples and … Continue reading About This Blog
A Monk’s Journey with Basho
courtesan and monk, we sleep under one roof together, moon in a field of clover ~ Basho "A Monk's Journey" is haibun with a mix of my prose intertwined with translations of Basho's haiku. It was first published in the journal Simply Haiku. I present it to show how writers can work in conversation, so … Continue reading A Monk’s Journey with Basho
Billy Collins & The Writer’s Gaze
What the oven is to the baker, and the berry-stained blouse to the dry cleaner, so the window is to the poet. ~ Billy Collins fall morning / a nuthatch outside my window / inside my poem This essay-haibun is and exploration of a poem by Billy Collins, past Poet Laureate of the U.S., about … Continue reading Billy Collins & The Writer’s Gaze
Ray Rasmussen: All Things Haibun Blog 