This is the new and improved version of both the Periodic Poetry Contest and the Haiku Contest. From this point out, both contests will be combined into one massive contest for everyone to enjoy! And as such, each user is allowed to enter is both contests with separate entries if they so desire, effectively doubling the odds of winning. Each contest (One being general poetry and the other exclusively haiku) will have one winner every month. Every month, two winners (one from each contest shall be chosen and receive a merit for all their hard work. Show it off to your friends, gloat about it to your enemies! Tell your parents about it and confuse them! It's a win-win-win-win-win scenario, folks.
Rules
General Poetry Contest: - It must fit the theme if the month (same theme as the Haiku Contest). - It must be submitted by the deadline. - It cannot have inappropriate language in it. - It cannot be stolen (if you plagiarize, we will find you). - The poem must be created for this contest - A user cannot win twice in a row (though everyone is welcome to submit every month!) - Only one submission per user will be accepted
Once a month a winner will be chosen from all the received entries. To begin, the Moderation/Administration Team will act as judges and choose winners. Subject to change depending on how well things go. The winner will then make a comment on the ContestWinners profile to receive a merit. (Original idea by ubertuna, itemized rules by DragonMistress, modified by Devoidless)
Haiku Contest "A Haiku is a Japanese lyric verse form having three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables, traditionally invoking an aspect of nature or the seasons." Well, that said, here are the rules: - It must fit the theme of the month (same as General Poetry Contest) -The haiku must be original (no plagiarizing)! - It must be submitted before the deadline - It must be created for the contest (no using works previously written) - One submission per user - The same user cannot win twice in a row (but they are welcome to submit!)
Once a month a winner will be chosen from all the received entries. To begin, the Moderation/Administration Team will act as judges and choose winners. Subject to change depending on how well things go. The winner will then make a post on the ContestWinners profile to receive a merit. (Original idea and itemized rules by Maverick4, modified by Devoidless) First Themes The first themes to kick off this contest shall be: - The theme for the General Poetry contest this run is "Touch of Truth".
- The theme for the Haiku contest is "Broken Bond". Submitting an entry Since there are two separate contests, users are required to mention in the post which contest they wish to use the entry for. Any entry without this is subject to not being entered into either contest. Examples of how to clarify which contest an entry is for: -
This poem is for the General Poetry contest
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-This is for the Haiku contest
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I'd like to enter this for the General Poetry/Haiku contest
Remember, each user is allowed to join both contests!
Alright! Looking forward to seeing what you all can create! Good luck, and have fun with it!
Theme will currently be Floors due April 23rd a week from the end of next month. There will be no theme for this month, as most of it has passed and it's already a week before the end of the month, so you guys have about four weeks now.
As this was not mentioned before, there will be one theme for both contests from here on out unless otherwise noted.
So this is what I see being an issue with this theme..as shown by the first submission..I believe many users will submit poetry that use "Floors" as a sub theme
Take the lone example so far...the main theme of his haiku is not Floors..but the beating of his heart (and, if you understand the allusion..the fear caused by the heart beating). Floors merely serves as an object for the further protrusion of this theme in this haiku
Also..from the last contest..I worry that the contest will turn from how one best presents the theme with a master of language, figurative devices, rhetorical devices, sensory devices, etc (of course, not all at once, but the point I'm trying to bring is a mastery over the composition of their poem) to how one is able to blatantly tell you what the theme is and how the theme works in the poem
Take the winner of the haiku contest, for example. In it, the "oet" blatantly states what the broken bond is..but doesn't allow you to feel the emotion..instead he outright states what emotion is present. I feel no sadness from the boy losing the dog..because no reason is present for me to feel any sadness..for all I know, that boy could have been abusive (reasoning..no love was present. Just the idea of there being a boy and a dog..then no dog. Also..how is that depth? That is extreme lack of depth. We know nothing regarding depth of them..nothing on their relationship, on the reason of the bond being broke, etc)
Even though this entry for the Poetry Contest - Floors - dances on the boundaries of the theme, I will submit this entry. Hoping to set a benchmark of excellence, if it is worthy, On forehand I want to state that this poem is fictional and a work of art and has nothing to do with my own intents and political beliefs.
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
Towering brothers, offspring of hybris, You call yourself fair, you call yourself free; do you not see your true hypocrisy? You will be ravaged, God is my witness.
My bauxite casing in sapphire air, shall force itself in your virgin body and leave blood-red scarring memory. Everyone shall know, to God I swear.
The purpose of judging was to help the poets and onlookers to improve through criticism. How does "For its action" or "For its simplicity" help them? What makes simplicity trump action? From p453 of the old HC when the merit prize was revoked, Gantic's own words:
The judging has been lackluster or nonexistent. It fails to adequately highlight why the winner was chosen over all other entries...Simply, we ask for merit-quality judging for merit-quality winners.
Here's one of acmed's "unprofessional" judgings. Another. I don't see much difference between these and the recent judging.
I believe many users will submit poetry that use "Floors" as a sub theme
I'll make a literal one based on the style of the last winner:
Floor is made of wood, The wood is under carpet: My feet are happy.
Is that bare-bones and deep enough? Ain't it the ****ing Marianas Trench of haiku?
People have higher priorities than to get in-depth on poems.
The have someone else judge. There are plenty of people here who have enough time to go in-depth on 20 or even 30 poems. This new method of judging is thin, hypocritical and annoying.
Floors
Floors is the new theme? That seems like it wouldn't be much of a people pleaser as opposed to "Broken Bonds" because, frankly, "Floors" is a fairly strange/unusual topic. Not that I find trouble using it, but I doubt there'll be a whole lot of participation this round.
The judging, or the details of it, was all half-assed in particular because this wasn't the way it was supposed to be. I do not intend to present my reasoning as the only reasoning, but I have to work with what I have to (which is largely my own), so I stripped it down to bare minimum rather than just announcing the winners. The best course of action was just to get it over with and forge ahead, because unfortunately, this is poorly run and no one provided any feedback on my feedback, so I might actually be in this alone. I don't like this situation and this shouldn't have happened, but I won't make a commitment to which I can't hold myself.
The judging, or the details of it, was all half-assed in particular because this wasn't the way it was supposed to be. I do not intend to present my reasoning as the only reasoning, but I have to work with what I have to (which is largely my own), so I stripped it down to bare minimum rather than just announcing the winners. The best course of action was just to get it over with and forge ahead, because unfortunately, this is poorly run and no one provided any feedback on my feedback, so I might actually be in this alone. I don't like this situation and this shouldn't have happened, but I won't make a commitment to which I can't hold myself.
Then we'll have to work on the contest. This whole thing was a mistake imo, but I can't blame Devoidless and everyone else involved for trying. The poetic areas of the AMW have sucked for several months now - nearly an entire year. We definitely need to go back and see what made the prior contests, popular, fun, and functional. Until roughly 8-10 months ago they worked well. Obviously something came along and muffed everything up. I won't blame you, but I can't say this contest has made great strides of progress either. Who knows, maybe something magical will happen and save the day, but until then we need to use what and who we have to turn the poetry contests around. I'm all for continuing to use this thread solely as I find it a bit simpler than using two threads.
Personally, and this is my opinion alone, I believe we need some fresh blood to get in here. To me, it feels like certain AMWians are a bit burnt out of recycling the same activities over and over again. I think we should maintain how the system runs for now and get a new, fresh judge in here. Obviously, whoever does it will need a bit of direction. I know it'll sound corny when I say this, but if we cooperate and reshape how this thing is run, we'll get quite a bit in return. We need to restore the poetry contests, because, honestly, there is no excuse to use the same system for 3 years when it's clearly out of date. It needs to be adapted for a smaller, inexperienced community. By inexperienced, I mean most of our members aren't all too fluent in the ways of contests and poetry.
Until roughly 8-10 months ago they worked well. Obviously something came along and muffed everything up
Almost exactly 9 months ago, merits were removed.
there is no excuse to use the same system for 3 years when it's clearly out of date.
The problem is the same system wasn't kept. It worked great for a long time, then the mods thought acmed's judging wasn't good enough, so merits were removed. Then acmed quit and dudeguy was inactive. I (with the much appreciated help of murasaki, nicho, pang, and mav) had to drag the contest out of the mud. Everything was running smoothly from that point. Judging was up to par, participation was decent, communication was improved. And just as things are looking up, the merge happens. Merits are back, but we're stuck with disorganized, substandard judging again.
Almost all of the haiku relied on the the words bond, chain, broken, fixed, or the lost of an established relationship, friend, lover, etc or outright stated the bond that is broken. So what makes it good enough to win? It doesn't matter if the bond is explicit, implicit, or implied as much as the way it is presented. I can only present my opinions, and other mods may present theirs if they wish. I don't particularly care for poems that are so oblique or vague as to appear deep when they were superficial at best and pretentious at worst. Work with what you know and polish it. A lot of entries are unpolished because people didn't spend as much time working on it and editing it. There's a reason why certain users in the past have won more often then others and it's not simply based around how well they write (although that does have some bearing) as much as how much effort is put into editing and polishing.
I don't ride the same train as most users when it comes to haiku. I might even be on different rails. I pride depth in simplicity. Why simplicity? Without it, everything else seems to get lost in itself. I love Basho and I love Takarai Kikaku and I love the poetry of zen masters, but from a Western perspective I also do love Jack Kerouac's haikus and I agree with him when he says "Above all, 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." That is where I am looking from. (There's more to this quote, but I'm sure users would be up in arms if asked to relieve the 5-7-5 structure since that's what the contest is based on.) The other mods may disagree with my opinions, but these are my own (but it is not simply my own that determines the winners). From what I can see, most people blindly follow the rigid 5-7-5 format but ironically with no regard for constraint.
How many entries do I think might fall under the scope of what I look for?
Reton8: In the summer sky, the white clouds are tormenting the hibakusha.
If under another theme, this one may have won hands down. If interpretation of theme is completely forgone and only inspiration is considered, then things may be different, but I did not feel this one had as strong a connection with the theme as others. It is, however, very well cut.
HUA7XFan122396: The tinted white van At the children's candy store High, dreadful screaming
This is based on the stereotypical candy van of a pedophile/kidnapper, but not really one of broken bonds.
jasperdeboomstam: When I see her walk I think of our history But then she is gone
The image isn't as strong with this one, but the message is clear. 'She' could be many things. Unfortunately, vagueness doesn't work in its favor.
Kysier: Cold lonely winter Golden ring covered in dust I miss you my love
This actually reminds me of Buson's haiku where the speaker steps on the piercing cold of his dead wife's comb, but the connections with all of the images are not as strong. This one may have won, perhaps with the extraction of the word lonely and a stronger bond between winter and the ring.
doomy64: A boy and his dog The dog was taken away Sadness struck the boy
It's so simple that I think it's much better than the others in that it isn't caught up in the words it uses. It isn't flowery and it isn't facetiously oblique.
dazzadaman: Sushi Cat at mall Dog comes and steals wife away Will be seen again?
Edited: This one's not as simple and it does require context, but this is Armor Games. It's very similar to doomy64's but it doesn't blatantly state the emotion behind it, which is a plus, but I don't think it entirely reflects the theme. I feel the last line is weaker than the rest of the lines.
skildpadde7: Falling to the ground Shackles before so binding I am free again
This interpretation is very broad and literal. I cannot a specific image behind it other than the loosing of shackles. Who's shackles are these?
TopRank_: papa where are you? unused baseball, empty mitt. dont leave me mama.
It invokes the image of an absent father and the fear in a child of losing the mother as well, but it reads really choppy.
Parsat: Swirling clouds of luck: The way the sigma bounces Stable resonance
Edited: This one requires context and without some background in physics or statistics, it's difficult to understand and that's what I counted against it. If you do understand it, but even if you don't, you can see chance in action. It's so sprightly.
My reasoning for the winner was that:
"It's so simple that I think it's much better than the others in that it isn't caught up in the words it uses. It isn't flowery and it isn't facetiously oblique."
If you can strip away pretense and present something that appears timeless, then that works in your favor. It's plain and a five year old could understand it, but that's not everything. Why is it that sadness struck the boy? The dog could be Cujo and the boy could be relieved, but he isn't relieved. The boy could be a sociopath and the boy could not care, but he does care. In the same manner, why is death cruel? What is the relation between the high-pitched, dreadful screams and the white van parked in front of a candy store? Why do the white clouds torment the hibakusha? It doesn't have to, but it does. Bonds between images are not forged by what is obvious, but by the way we understand it and the way certain words have connections with others. To break these bonds is to lose sight of what language and communication is. There's more to what may be obvious and that lies in why things are the way they are. Certainly the last line of the winning entry isn't perfect and it could be better if it didn't outright mentions sadness, but overall, I feel it better than the others.
Now I must ask..what is wrong with complexity and simplicity used together?
I hate to do this..but I must because I can easily break it apart..but take my haiku, for example
Brightened smiles meet Euphoric friendship elates Death, the cruel jokester..
To be honest, a bit of me was dissapointed because I was so upfront and simple about it. Brightened smiles meet - a meeting has taken place, in which "brightened smiles" are brought about, hinting at a friendship/some form of relationship Euphoric friendship elates - Backs up the idea of a friendship being formed..and states that the friendship is one that is still growing/becoming stronger Death, the cruel jokester - The broken bond part. Implies that at least one of the friends have died, breaking their bond. Now, here is where some complexity steps in. The jokester part..which implies that the surviving friend believes that death took his/her friend for the sole purpose of "laying a joke" on him..which is a metaphor for the death being, in the eyes of the surviving friend, an unnecessary one
(note: I am not bringing my haiku up because I believe it should have won. I use it for my example because I have more confidence in using mine as an example because I know I can fully explain my poetry better than I could explain someone else's)
Now, I have nothing wrong with simplicity, but I think there is a difference between simplicity and poor construction.
Again, I state, that with the haiku winner..there is no reason for emotion to be felt. It does not emotionally draw the reader in, it does not cause the reader to think, etc. Instead it leaves the reader with a skeletal structure of a story
In the same manner, why is death cruel?
No offense, but please have a comprehension of my poetry before trying to use it to back up what you are saying. I take issue with this sentence because of its attempt to degrade my haiku as if I am a hypocrite to what I am saying, but I can safely say that I leave proficient clues as to why death is cruel
Thanks, Gantic, for finishing the judging on this contest we all waited so long to be judged. I understand that you all have lives to take care of whether it be just you, or a family, but if it takes an entire month to judge a poetry contest... maybe there shouldn't be one
That being said, here is my haiku for the 2nd poetry contest.
Old, wooden floorboards Supporting my family. I thank them for this.
