2nd Annual Bashō Haiku
Challenge
Well, folks, it's that
time: this year I will be reading for the
2nd Annual Bashō Haiku
Challenge beginning today and continuing
through the entire
month of October. With a couple of slight
adjustments from last year (i.e. a different 1st prize),
here are the instructions as outlined last year:
So, here's the deal: for
the next four weeks, send along up to
5 haiku to lilliput
review at gmail dot com (spelled out
to fend off pesky bots) and the best haiku wins a copy
of
Bashō and His
Interpreters: Selected Hokku with
Commentary,
edited by
Makoto Ueda. Minimally,
I will
need your name and email to contact you with the
results. In the subject
line of your email, please put
"2nd Annual Bashō Haiku
Challenge" so I can easily
differentiate it from the scads of other things that
come my
way. The final
date for submissions will be October 31st and
the winner will be announced in either November 18th or
December 2nd postings. My definition of haiku is about
as
liberal as you can get: I follow no one particular
method,
school or theory and there is no seasonal requirement.
Your haiku can be 1, 2, or 3 lines (over 5 would be a
bit
much, folks, but I will keep an open mind for
experimenters). The one restriction would be that it be
in the spirit of haiku (I've always liked the definition
of
English haiku as lasting the length of one breath, in
and
out and pause, but that's just me - and, oh yeah, I'm
the
judge, but, again, it's the spirit of the thing that
counts)
and that the haiku be previously unpublished in either
paper or electronic form (ok, that's two requirements).
In addition, the winning poet will receive a 15 issue
subscription to
Lilliput Review (or have their current
subscription extended by 15 issues), plus two copies of
the 2nd Annual
chapbook, to be published sometime in
2010. Other poets whose work is selected for inclusion
will receive 2 copies of the chapbook plus a 6 issue
subscription.
That's it. This is an
electronic submission contest only; it is my way of giving
back to the online community that has been so vibrant and
encouraging since I started actively blogging in
July 2007.
Some of you may remember
the genesis of this contest, some may have come along
since then. In brief, I was contacted last year by Tomoe
Sumi of Kodansha America Press, who had been following an
ongoing series of posts and discussions about the work
Matsuo Bashô. At that time, she offered a reviewer's copy
of their fine new volume,
Bashō: The Complete Haiku, translated by Jane
Reichhold, to throw into the discussion mix. Since I'd
already purchased it for myself, I politely declined and
she offered to send it anyway, suggesting I give it away.
And so the contest was born.
To continue in the tradition of a volume of Bashō as first
prize, I've decided this year to purchase and give away
the selected work, with critical commentary, as listed
above. Again, I own a personal copy; it is a fine
selection of Bashō, accompanied with criticism from a wide
variety of sources, historical context, and scholarly
discussion. For the novice, it may be read as a selected
poems. For the more experienced or simply curious, it is a
rich rewarding journey into the essence of haiku in
general and Bashō in particular. It is a high quality,
pricey trade paperback that will make a fine addition to
anyone's Eastern poetry collection. Makoto Ueda is one of
the finest authorities on the work of Bashō and
his 1970 biography (link is to google books and is a
perfect illustration of what can go horribly wrong there)
is considered essential reading for those delving deep
into the work of the haiku master. You can get a glimpse
into Bashō and His
Interpreters at the link above to google books,
where there is nice little preview.
Spread the word and let the games begin!
Source for original announcement:
http://lilliputreview.blogspot.com/2009/09/2nd-annual-basho-haiku-challenge.html
