Northern Haiku Project is looking for writers
Four members of solstice haiku group in Whitehorse are calling for haiku poems for an anthology to be published in 2025.
Four members of solstice haiku group in Whitehorse are calling for haiku poems for an anthology to be published in 2025. The poems, written by northerners in Yukon, NWT, Nunavut and Nunavik will reflect life in the north in all seasons.
Solstice haiku group was founded by kjmunro (Katherine J. Munro) in 2014 and has grown to include new and published poets who write in both English and French. Munro facilitates the monthly solstice haiku discussions and has been instrumental in expanding the knowledge and writing of haiku in Yukon and beyond. She has served as a mentor to many members of solstice haiku.
The Northern Haiku Project is being coordinated by solstice haiku members Charlotte Hrenchuk, Pam Harry, Lillian Nakamura Maguire and Sandra St-Laurent. Hrenchuk proposed the idea of an anthology to her fellow haiku poets, who strongly supported the project.
Hrenchuk believes that, “Northerners want to express their view of the North from their own lived experience. We intend to share our creative expression through our own eyes and give southerners a glimpse through our writing.”
The members emphasized that northern images are not just of snow and the Northern Lights. They want to celebrate life in all the seasons and invite haiku about spring, summer, fall and winter.
To that end, Harry led a group in brainstorming a list of northern “kigo “ or words and images conveying fall and winter. Seasonal words for spring and summer will be added to complete this list during the second round of submissions in August.
St-Laurent, who has written and published in English and French, encourages francophone writers to submit their work in French and include a translation in English. Haiku poems can also be submitted in other languages, along with the translation.
Nakamura Maguire reminds people to “let go of the old notion of the format 5-7-5 syllables, you may have learned in school. English haiku doesn’t necessarily follow this format and takes many different forms.”
In addition to haiku, other forms for consideration in the anthology include senryu, tanka, haibun and haiga. For more information on these other forms, contact the Northern Haiku project or attend the monthly solstice haiku group discussions.
The anthology will include poems from all seasons. The deadline for autumn and winter poems is March 15 and for spring and summer, the deadline is August 31, 2025. Contact northernhaikuproject@gmail.com for more details about submission process, updates and upcoming writing sessions.
The solstice haiku discussion group meets monthly in Whitehorse to plan events, and to write, revise and share ideas about haiku poetry. For further info, please contact kj munro via her website: kjmunro1560.wordpress.com
