The Japanese haiku master, Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), moved to the outskirts of Tokyo in 1680. From that time forward, Basho took his name from the Japanese banana tree, or ‘basho’, planted in the yard of his rustic hut (known as Basho-an). It was here that Basho wrote many of his most famous works including his… Read More 8th Basho-an International English Haiku Competition
The town of Young in New South Wales is well known for the production of cherries. Since 1949, Young has held a National Cherry Festival to coincide with each year’s harvest. Festival activities include a street parade, boutique markets, cultural activities and a fireworks display. For the past 43 years, the local branch of the… Read More National Cherry Festival Poetry Competition
Yass Valley Writers recently released a sixth collection of prose and poetry titled Voices from the Valley: An Anthology of Stories and Verse, Vol VI. The anthology features writing by 17 members of the group. A friendly and relaxed forum, the Yass Valley Writers group has now been meeting for 26 years. While based in… Read More Yass Valley Writers Anthology: Vol VI
Each year, the New Zealand Poetry Society Te Rōpū Toikupu o Aotearoa conducts an international competition with categories for haiku and for longer poems. For the past 38 years, an anthology has been produced to showcase poetry from the competition. The 2025 anthology, titled There Are Rabbits Here, was edited by Amelia Kirkness and Jackson… Read More There Are Rabbits Here
The highly regarded print journal, Presence, publishes haiku, tanka, haibun and other short-form poetry. Based in the UK, the journal has established a strong international following over many years. Founded by Martin Lucas in 1996, Presence has benefited from a consistent editorial hand since its inception. Martin was editor until 2014, with Ian Storr being… Read More Presence Journal
Award-winning haiku poet, Paul Chambers, founded the Wales Haiku Journal and edited the early issues – the first edition arriving in Spring 2018. Paul’s work established the basis for a successful journal: creating the online presence, spreading the word and building a readership. Joe Woodhouse has been editor of the journal since November 2021 and,… Read More Wales Haiku Journal
Argentina was home for Australian singer-songwriter, Stu Larsen, during the final month of his year-long encounter with Solitude. If you’ve been following this series of posts, you’ll know his project involved spending each month of 2024 in a different location – and writing a new song in each place. Stu posted videos of the songs… Read More Stu Larsen: Solitude, Argentina
Eleven months into his self-imposed year of solitude, Stu Larsen was in the USA. With his project of writing a new song in a different location each month drawing to a close, Stu chose to stay in one of his favourite places: California. November 2024 This time, he was living in a cottage on the… Read More Stu Larsen: Solitude, USA
Gregory Piko 