DailyHaiku - The Edited Journal of Contemporary Haiku

About DailyHaiku

DailyHaiku is a print and online literary publication that exists to promote and preserve the written art of haiku. DailyHaiku publishes the work of Canadian and international haiku poets, blending contemporary, experimental, and traditional styles to push the boundaries of English-language haiku. Through our special features section and invited poet series, DailyHaiku also aims to chronicle and explore the diverse and ever-changing landscape of contemporary haiku-related forms.

One haiku is published per day on www.dailyhaiku.org (ISSN 1913-3936), and each year a print edition is published in book format that collects the work featured in the online publication (ISSN 1913-3928).

Editors: Nicole Pakan and Patrick M. Pilarski

(Submission Information)

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What is Haiku?

There is some debate as to the definition of haiku and its "proper" form. The best and most concise definition seems to be:

Haiku is a minimalist form of unrhymed poetry consisting of seventeen syllables or less.

Traditional Japanese haiku carry an unrhymed, three line, 5-7-5 syllabic (beat) structure with a seasonal reference. Over the years, English Language haiku authors have transplanted the traditional Japanese structure into their own language with varying degrees of success. The 5-7-5 structure continues to define haiku for many people, and, despite it falling out of use in modern times, it is still taught to students everywhere.

Modern English-language haiku artists often take a more organic approach to haiku, one that is perhaps closer in its minimalist spirit to the Japanese tradition. Contemporary English-language haiku artists have largely abandoned the 5-7-5 structure,and tend to gravitate toward shorter syllabic counts more representative of the verbal length of their Japanese counterparts. Additionally, in light of many people living in urban centers, the nature of seasonal references has been broadened beyond the traditional canon. At DailyHaiku we strive to represent a wide range of contemporary haiku and have a bunch of fun doing it.

For further information about the structure of modern and traditional haiku (and related forms), a concise and extremely useful set of definitions has been put forward by the Haiku Society of America.

Resources

If you'd like to dive a little further, there are many excellent online haiku journals, websites, and resources. Here a few that we suggest:

Another excellent resource for writers of all kinds is Duotrope's Digest, an online site to explore the writing market (fiction and poetry, both online and print) and track submissions.

Contributors and Submissions

DailyHaiku features the work of six authors presented over a six month time frame. Each week, the work of a different author from the current contributing team is featured on this site. The contributing team at DailyHaiku changes twice per year—once in April and once in October. We accept submissions between February 1 and 28, and August 1 and 31 ONLY. Submissions received at any other time will not be accepted.

All contributed work will be also put into consideration for our yearly print journal. Published once a year in the early fall, the print journal features the work of the previous two contributor teams. One exemplary week of contributed haiku each year will also be awarded the DailyHaiku Editors' Choice Award and featured prominently in the print edition. No submissions are paid, but contributors will receive one contributor's copy of the yearly print journal featuring their work.

Are you interested? Please note: submissions are closed until further notice, and we will not be accepting any new submissions in 2016. Any received submissions will be immediately returned to their authors.

For when submissions do re-open, here are our guidelines:

how and what to submit

In the body of a single email, please include:

Your name and contact information.
A publication-ready bio (75 word max).
A publication-ready author photo at least 120px wide.
Your submission of 10 original and unpublished haiku.

Email submissions to: desk@dailyhaiku.org

A note to previous contributors: please wait one or two cycles before submitting more of your work for consideration; we like to make sure we keep a set of fresh faces in each print edition.

general guidelines

Work should be "NEW", i.e. not published elsewhere and not under consideration by other journals or websites. We require first print and online serial rights. Copyright remains with the author. In the event of subsequent re-publication, DailyHaiku should be listed as the place of first publication.
Please send your haiku submission and supporting information in the body of your email. If your poems require detailed formatting, you may send them as a ONE-PAGE email attachment, titled with your first and last name (e.g. "Bob-Bobberson-Cycle-1-Submission.doc" — .doc, .pdf, or plain text format only please; we cannot accept .docx files).
Your submission should contain your name, an operating email address that you check regularly, a short publication-ready bio (75 words max), and your submission consisting of ten previously unpublished haiku—no more, no less
NEW: as the turn-around between selection and publication of work is quite rapid once submissions close, if possible, please also include a digital photograph of yourself suitable for publication if your work is selected; photographs should be at least 120px wide.
We occasionally accept and publish senryu if it fits well with the upcoming cycle—we're fairly liberal with regard to formal boundaries—but our focus is primarily on haiku.
Anonymous submissions will be rejected.
Send one submission only. Multiple and/or simultaneous submissions will be rejected.
All submissions are final. No after-the-fact changes and no additions except those requested by the editors to comply with DailyHaiku publication policy. By submitting your work, you attest that it is your own unpublished work and that you hold copyright to the submitted text; DailyHaiku is not liable for any submitter's misrepresentation or misattribution of authorship.
NOTE: We're OK with foul language, but be advised that we do not accept poems that contain racist, sexist, misogynistic, overly violent, homophobic, or any other hateful content.
If you have any questions about these guidelines, or wish to inquire as to the suitability of your work for this journal, please drop us a line.

when you'll hear back

All submitters will receive a confirmation email when their submission has been received.
All submitters will be notified within three weeks of the submission closing deadline as to the results of the selection process. If you have not heard from us by that point, please send us a query note. Sometimes email does strange things.
Once submissions close, all submitted work is anonymized for a blind review process. A short list may then be sent out to external reviewers for a double-blind review (we will notify you if your work has been short-listed).
If selected as a contributor, you will be responsible for providing a total of 28 haiku over a six-month period.

Thanks

Thank you for your interest in DailyHaiku!

Patrick M. Pilarski and Nicole Pakan
Editors — DailyHaiku
Contact DailyHaiku here.

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