Prose: 104 words

HAIBUN is a short prose poem that ends with a haiku. Most haibun range from 100 to 300 words. A haibun is a short poem that uses imagistic language to convey the essence of an experience of nature or the season intuitively linked to the human condition. click here for more information

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Guidelines for Writing Haibun in English

Written both in present and in past tense Subject matter Autobiographical prose, travel journal, a slice of life, memory, dream short sketch of a person, place, event.

Traditional topics: life as a journey, love affairs, illness, human concerns & experiences.

Point of View Written in first person (everything seen through the author's eyes), third person (he/she), or first person plural (we).

Tone Consistent, sets a mood, often interrupted by the haiku Sensory Power Uses sensory images, concrete details, no abstractions

Focus One or two elements Language Uses language to suit the subject matter and mood (colloquial, formal, dialect)

Length Varies from very brief (1-2 sentences) with one haiku, to long prose entries with interspersed haiku, to memoir-length works Styles Haiku/prose Prose/haiku
Haiku/prose/haiku Prose/haiku/prose/haiku/prose/haiku etc.

Prose in Haibun Tells the story Gives information, defines the theme Creates a mood through tone Provides a background to spotlight the haiku

Haiku in Haibun Moves the story forward Takes the narrative in another direction Adds insight or another dimension to the prose Resolves the conflict in an unpredictable way, or questions the resolution of the prose.

The prose is the narrative and haiku is the revelation or the reaction.

Thank you for reading my haibun,

Gypsy

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