Needless to say, I’m over the moon to have a haiku in the current issue of The Heron’s Nest, but more than that, I’m in awe of this beautifully quiet yet expansive haiku by Frank Hooven:
dinnertime
one sandal
under the swing
I love the simplicity and tenderness of the scene, the way what’s left behind is enough for us to construct a whole backstory. No wonder it’s the editor’s choice – if you follow the above link you can read her comment in full, and it says much more than I could so I’ll leave it at that, except to say that the issue is packed full of superb poems and I feel very humble to have my haiku alongside them.
Julie Mellor - poet 
Hi Julie, Yes, Frank Hooven’s haiku is lovely, and the commentary by Anne Elise Burgevin is spot-on. But I also very much like the feast of sensory experience in your own ‘half light’ too. All the best, Matthew x
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Thanks Matthew,
You’re very supportive! I do think Hooven’s haiku is a great example of not seeming to try too hard. That impression of effortlessness is difficult to achieve I think. It would be interesting to know the process behind that poem, wouldn’t it?
Julie x
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It might be. There’s always the danger that poems which seem effortless aren’t born of actual experience but are ‘desk’ haiku, which would devalue them for me. I’m not suggesting that’s necessarily the case here though. This particular haiku somehow reminds me of a late-Victorian painting.
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