Space, the West, and Poetry
Here we are on a thundering Monday, me with plenty to get done and a full to-do list just waiting for some check marks. I think I've finally gotten my head back in the space where I'll actually be able to be productive, too! Which is why I'm finally catching up on an announcement I meant to make last week: I have the great honor of being one of the judges in the upcoming SpaceWesterns.com Poetry Contest. Those of you who have followed this blog for any length of time will know that SpaceWesterns.com is a site that I've been pleased to follow, and Nathan Lilly (nelilly), the editor, has been a great help to us at Cowboys and Aliens II (still on hiatus) in getting the word out about our project. So I was just absolutely tickled when Nathan asked me to sign on as one of the judges.
And of course, now I'm looking forward to reading some great poetry!
The contest is senryu this year (last year it was limericks), and that was the other reason I took the big book of haiku and senryu to Delphi with me. Not only does the poetry honor Apollo (in a round about, filtered through Rick Riordan kind of way), there's actually a lot more to it than I ever realized. When they teach you haiku in grade school, the rule is 5/7/5, and that's pretty much all they ever get in to (that I remember from my classes, at least). But haiku is actually a lot more flexible in form (Japanese doesn't use syllables like ours, so in English, the limit is actually between 12 and 17 syllables), and less flexible in content. Haiku has to do with nature, the seasons in particular. If the poem is about human nature, it's a senryu. This, of course, is why senryu is the chosen form for this contest: seasons are not required, but human nature--or alien nature--probably is!
So here's a clue to any of you who are thinking about entering and who are reading this: when I'm doing the judging on this, I'm not going to mark down for the 5/7/5 variety if they're really well done. But I *am* going to mark higher in my votes for poems that show and understanding of the form's flexibility, and for poems that capture a moment, showing an understanding of the nature of haiku and senryu (which is often about capturing a moment that, in its simplicity, is revealing about other things) and showing an appreciation for this cross-genre that we enjoy so much. I can't speak for the other judges of course!
I hope I'll see entries from many of you! There is a prize of cashy money, and favorite picks of the three judges each get a book prize: mine will receive a copy of Serenity Adventures when it comes out. Good luck!
And of course, now I'm looking forward to reading some great poetry!
The contest is senryu this year (last year it was limericks), and that was the other reason I took the big book of haiku and senryu to Delphi with me. Not only does the poetry honor Apollo (in a round about, filtered through Rick Riordan kind of way), there's actually a lot more to it than I ever realized. When they teach you haiku in grade school, the rule is 5/7/5, and that's pretty much all they ever get in to (that I remember from my classes, at least). But haiku is actually a lot more flexible in form (Japanese doesn't use syllables like ours, so in English, the limit is actually between 12 and 17 syllables), and less flexible in content. Haiku has to do with nature, the seasons in particular. If the poem is about human nature, it's a senryu. This, of course, is why senryu is the chosen form for this contest: seasons are not required, but human nature--or alien nature--probably is!
So here's a clue to any of you who are thinking about entering and who are reading this: when I'm doing the judging on this, I'm not going to mark down for the 5/7/5 variety if they're really well done. But I *am* going to mark higher in my votes for poems that show and understanding of the form's flexibility, and for poems that capture a moment, showing an understanding of the nature of haiku and senryu (which is often about capturing a moment that, in its simplicity, is revealing about other things) and showing an appreciation for this cross-genre that we enjoy so much. I can't speak for the other judges of course!
I hope I'll see entries from many of you! There is a prize of cashy money, and favorite picks of the three judges each get a book prize: mine will receive a copy of Serenity Adventures when it comes out. Good luck!