Poetry Journal cover art, and Alan Summers haiku shortlisted for the Museum of Haiku Literature Award, British Haiku Society, Blithe Spirit; and appearances in Haiku Society of America journal Frogpond, Asahi Shimbun, and Presence magazine

It's a wonderful experience for a poet to be published in journals that produce both fine editing, selection of poems,  and striking cover art.

Aubrie Cox is the new incoming editor of Frogpond, the journal of the Haiku Society of America, starting with vol. 39 : 1 Winter issue 2016 (printed Spring 2016).  

She suggested poets take a snapshot of the magazine in various surroundings.  What better than when two iconic British icons are involved!  That of bluebells, and a robin.


It was only fitting that today, when I received my copy of Frogpond, where my crow haiku was published, that another bird, a robin, came visiting.  The European Robin is a Winter/Christmas image in the U.K. and other parts of Europe.   

The robin haiku is unpublished, produced in honour of Frogpond being visited by this most friendly and iconic of birds in Britain.

Bluebells and Frogpond.

Such superb artwork for the cover of Frogpond by Christopher Patchel, that comes even more alive in outdoor photographs that I am reminded of this haiku in another publication, that of Presence magazine:

Presence magazine cover art and design by Ian Turner.

Another example of fine cover artwork is by Andrew Brown for the British Haiku Society journal Blithe Spirit.

An incredible delight and surprise was the fact that I was shortlisted for the Museum of Haiku Literature Award by esteemed artist/poet Debbie Strange via the British Haiku Society journal Blithe Spirit (Editor Dave Serjeant):

Commentary by Debbie Strange:

I am also honoured to be published by the Asahi Shimbun of Japan:

The haikai journals with web links:

Frogpond is the Haiku Society of America's journal edited by Aubrie Cox with Assistant Editor Jim Warner, artwork by Christopher Patchel: 

http://www.hsa-haiku.org/frogpond/aboutfrogpond.html

Presence is the U.K.'s largest independent journal of haiku literature with fine editors:

http://haikupresence.org/contribute

http://haikupresence.org/home

http://haiku-presence.50webs.com/guide/subscribe.html#_=_

Blithe Spirit is the journal of the British Haiku Society:

http://britishhaikusociety.org.uk/journal/

http://britishhaikusociety.org.uk/membership-new/

Asahi Shimbun, Japan, has a regular haiku column in English edited by David McMurray since April 1995, first for the Asahi Evening News: http://www.asahi.com/ajw/special/haiku/

More about one line haiku:

http://area17.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/all-those-red-apples-travelling.html

http://area17.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/alan-summers-one-line-haiku-in-premier.html

Robinsong:

http://area17.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/modern-haiku-alan-summers-robinsong.html

How Robins Became the Birds of Christmas

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/how-robins-became-the-birds-of-christmas/

haiga artist Kuniharu Shimizu of Tokyo selects a haiku by Alan Summers for his artwork

Kuniharu Shimizu said:

" I like the contrast of the subject matters, big truck in the artwork, and a can of coke in the verse. However the sizes differ, both are man-made things, expressing their existence in their own ways."

Please feel free to add a comment or two both on this blog, and at Kuniharu Shimizu's website:
http://seehaikuhere.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/haiga-865-alan-summers-haiku.html

Donna Fleischer says:
 
"What an imaginative pairing. The gleam of the industrial world of machines and metal, and cans of cherry cola, with room for a morning star.
 
Posting this at my blog word pond, with delight! Thank you both!"

Donna's Word Pond link:
https://donnafleischer.wordpress.com/2013/03/12/area-17-eleventh-and-twelfth-days-haiku-poetry-showcase-by-alan-summers-at-cornell-university-usa/

About Donna: https://donnafleischer.wordpress.com/about/

Donna Fleischer

In December 2011, Fiera Lingue published seven new poems, honoring Donna among “those poets I evaluate as representative of our times” (Anny Ballardini, editor).

Her recently published poems include: "The Red Photogram", in Visions, Voices, and Verses, an anthology of poems of ekphrasis (Exiles Press and The New Britain Museum of American Art, 2012).

Donna has also been the assistant editor of bottle rockets, a journal of the small poem, and of bottle rockets press anthologies and serial volumes (2007 to 2013): http://www.bottlerocketspress.com

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Alan Summers Honourable Mentions for haiku in the Best of Mainichi Shimbun, Japan

I didn't get round to submitting often to Mainichi Shimbun aka Mainichi Daily News in 2011 so it was a delightful surprise when I received two Honourable Mentions selected by the (Tokyo) Museum of Haiku Literature's Isamu Hashimoto:


April 30, 2011


rain clouds
conversations shift around
the train carriage

— Alan Summers (Bradford-on-Avon, England)


Isamu Hashimoto:
All the passengers must be afraid of a delay. The train continues to run along the steep precipices under the rain clouds.



May 28, 2011


netsuke...
the hare with amber eyes
jumps back in again

— Alan Summers (Bradford-on-Avon, England)


Isamu Hashimoto: 
Netsuke (small Japanese art sculptures) are attached to purses as stoppers. They are valuable and are often made of ivory or chased gold.

Alan Summers' "lazy afternoon" haiku in a Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku) created by Kuniharu Shimizu (Tokyo, Japan)

lazy afternoon-
I drift along with the breeze
and dandelion seeds

Alan Summers

publication credits:
1.   Haiga artwork by Kuniharu Shimizu (Tokyo, Japan) published at 'see haiku here' (2010)
2.   Writing Events Bath ekphrastic challenge (2010)
3.   'Aesthetics' Bath Spa University literary journal, (Summer 2007)
4.   'Haiku Friends 2'  Editor: Masaharu Hirata, Osaka, Japan (2007)