Haiku is a short form of Japanese poetry with 17 syllables divided into three lines. While traditional haiku is about nature, modern poets can write about anything. While there are rules, not all poets follow them. When writing, it’s helpful to focus on the theme first and then organize it into the traditional structure.
A haiku is a short form of Japanese poetry that is popular around the world. Many poets believe that the strict rules of haiku help hone poetic writing skills, and haiku writing can also be a useful creative writing exercise for writers of other forms of literature, both fiction and non-fiction. Traditional haiku is a poem that contains 17 syllables divided into three lines; the first and third lines contain five syllables each, while the second line contains seven syllables. While many classical haiku are about nature, modern poets can write about anything that interests them.
Many believe that there are very strict rules for haiku and that these rules should not be broken. For the beginner, it can be helpful to stick to these rules and really reap the benefits of writing this type of poem. The most basic rule of writing haiku is that these short poems have only 17 syllables in all, and these syllables are divided into three lines. A basic way to remember the structure of haiku is five-seven-five because there are five syllables on the first line, seven syllables on the second line, and the remaining three syllables go on the third line.
While there are accepted rules for writing haiku, not all poets abide by these rules. While most poets who experiment with haiku stick to the traditional three-line format, a poet may not always follow the strict five-seven-five syllable structure. In fact, there are classic Japanese haiku that have fewer syllables in each line than the accepted rules of haiku dictate. Classical haiku tends to be about nature, but modern haiku writers are often encouraged to write about other topics and themes. Most traditional haiku doesn’t rhyme, but writing haiku that rhymes can be a good way for poets to sharpen their writing skills.
When writing a first draft of this type of poem, many find it helpful not to dwell too much on the rules of haiku. First, a writer should decide what his haiku will be about, including the theme, topic, emotion, or experience he wants to explore. After that, he should just start writing, letting what he wants to say in the haiku flow. After the first draft has been written, the writer can go back and organize what he has written into the traditional three-line, five-seven-five structure of a haiku.
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