WEEK TWO
Welcome to week two of The NaiSaiKu Challenge?
First of all I must congratulate each and every one of the week one participants for taking The NaiSaiKu.. Challenge! Thank you!
They say that the great thing about having rules is being able to break them – well, we haven’t really got any rules, but we do have a few guidelines and ideas and although NaiSaiKu.. Isn’t really an invention, (it’s just a different way of saying the same thing) we have found that it evolves at a rapid rate from time to time.
I started by writing a three-line poem with a strict syllable count. I didn’t know where to put the title so I tagged it on the end making it into a four-line poem. I then repeated the previous three lines in re-verse order to give me a seven-line poem of two stanzas linked by a central TITLE.
Here’s an example:
Skating on the pond
If the ice cracks don’t go on
Hippopotamus
SKATING ON THE POND
Hippopotamus
If the ice cracks don’t go on
Skating on the pond
The example above is made up of two Haiku style poems with a title inserted or sandwiched between them. Below I have printed the two Haiku without the capitalised title, making a two-verse poem.
Skating on the pond
If the ice cracks don’t go on
Hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
If the ice cracks don’t go on
Skating on the pond
You will notice above that the last line of the first verse reads the same as the first line of the second verse.
Next I combine the last line of the first verse with the first line of the second verse to create a central capitalised title, which identifies this poem as being a NaiSaiKu..
But more than that, we have discarded some of the repetition, and if the idea is to say more in fewer words and less syllables, then I think this could be a defining moment in the evolution of the form.
Skating on the pond
If the ice cracks don’t go on
HIPPOPOTAMUS
If the ice cracks don’t go on
Skating on the pond
Okay, so the example above has 29 syllables, which is ten less than the first example and I for one think it looks and reads better. So my aim now is to write NaiSaiKu.. with 29 syllables or less. Of course doing it the way I propose is a little more restrictive than the earlier examples because it does involve combining the title with the last line of the first verse and the first line of the re-verse verse.
From my point of view, this would of course standardize and purify the form. However, there are so many other variations already in existence and I know that your creative minds have new ideas for this form too! So at the end of the day there isn’t just one way to build a NaiSaiKu.. but quite literally as many different ways as there are people writing them.
So, what is a NaiSaiKu.. ?
First of all I must stress that NaisaiKu.. is a just for fun form of poetry. It’s not meant to be taken seriously by real poets or by academics. It’s not a new invention; it’s just a different way of saying the same thing. It is usually made up of two three-line Haiku style verses with a capitalised title sandwiched between them.
The second verse is a re-verse form of the first verse, although one or two people have shown that a simple repetition of the first verse works equally well. Others have also played around with the words in the second verse and stretched the meaning of the original thought. Some people have actually added more lines and more syllables to the form, experimenting with Tanka and playing around with the Cinquain.
So, in short the answer has to be that NaiSaiKu.. is whatever you want it to be, whichever way you build it. But don’t forget, ‘It’s just a bit of fun!’
Now you’re ready to play The NaiSaiKu.. Challenge! game...
All you need to do is write a NaiSaiKu.. style poem and post it on your own blog. Then leave your name and a permalink to your blog post on the Mister Linky thingy below.
A NaiSaiKu.. is usually made up of two Haiku length poems, the second being a re-verse order or mirror image of the first with a CAPITALISED TITLE inserted between them. I try to build mine in 17 syllables or less for each three line stanza.
You can clink~da~link HERE for my notes on How To Write a NaiSaiKu.. However, you can be as creative as you like with your interpretation but please put a link back to The NaiSaiKu.. Challenge! when you do. And please don't forget to visit the other participants if you can and leave a comment on their blogs. Thank you
