Welcome to the second haiku contest!

The first one was such a success that I can't resist doing another. Seriously—go read the entries to the first contest. They are all great!

This one has a theme, provided by @negativer and @bex-dk and tweaked by me. The theme is: Bugs and Arachnids in Winter.

That is to say, please feature bugs or arachnids in your haiku in some way, but also remember: it's currently winter and haiku usually should feature something of the current season. Perhaps this means seeing the bugs waking up outside, with spring so near, or maybe it means seeing one that is wintering inside your house for warmth, or... well, your idea!

Haiku Contest Rules

1. Upvote and Resteem this post. Tell your friends on Discord or steemit chat. The more people we can get involved here, the more fun we can have.

2. Write a haiku.

   • Post it in the comments to this post
   • Make your own post with the haiku and a link to this post
   • Oh yeah, and while it's not required, I would prefer if your haiku were original. That is, that you aren't using the same one you previous submitted to another contest on Steemit.

3. You may include a title or a headnote. A headnote is a short bit of text that sets the scene for the haiku. Some haiku poets use them (Basho and Shiki did) and some don't. You may also include a photo if you want.

4. No syllable requirement, just keep it short. Aim for one breath. You can read my thoughts on syllable counts in English haiku here.

   • Nor does it have to be three lines. See my thoughts here.

5. In addition to the theme for this contest, it should have some kind of reference to nature and have a juxtaposition of images. I write should not must. If you think your haiku is strong enough to do without, go for it. I am not stuck in tradition and I welcome new creative ideas.

6. Consider this quote from Jack Kerouac:

   [A] Haiku must be very simple and free of all poetic trickery and make a little picture and yet be as airy and graceful as a Vivaldi Pastorella.

7. Have at it!

8. (Psst—If you are stuck for ideas, go read some of the translated haiku in my Haiku of Japan series. Here is the latest with links to previous ones at the end, or follow the haiku tag here on Steemit)

Sample

Here is a haiku I used in the article referenced above.

evening
snow beating down
my son is snoring

You can see I give a nod to the season, and there is also a shift in the action as we move from the scene (lines 1 and 2) to my son.

Another Sample

This one, a classic from Buson:

on the temple bell
sleeping
a butterfly

You can read more about that haiku here.

An American Haiku Sample

And here is one of my favorites from Jack Kerouac:

No telegram today
only more leaves
fell.

Close Date and Prizes

Contest will go for 7 days, so that means the final day you can submit is next Friday the 23rd (Japan time).

Special thanks to @tinypaleokitchen of the Writers Block who donated 10 SBD for use in this contest. With her contribution along with the same among I gave away last time, the prizes for this week will be as follows.

5 SBD for first place. 3.5 SBD for second place. 2 SBD for third place. And 2 SBD in the pot for an honorable mentions or two.

I will be the sole judge.

Even if you've never written haiku before, I encourage you to give it a try! And Have fun!

❦

I post one photo everyday, as well as a haiku and as time allows, videos, more Japanese history, and so on. Let me know if there is anything about Japan you would like to know more about or would like to see.