for
1/26 (in class)
renga
reading in class: reading and sharing resonse to a kasen renga by Millikin students in the Fall 2010 Global Haiku Tradition course, coffee & cigarettes
for
2/2 (email your tan-renga and reading responses to me by midnight Sunday 1/30)
Assignment (1) writing tan-renga: write
3-5 tan-renga with experienced haiku writers. You may choose any 3-5 haiku from previous or new work. If you are totally new to haiku, then add 2 lines to favorite haiku from the opening day class gift, Mayfly Winter 2007.
(2) writing haiku: write
5-10 haiku attempts about the winter break & startup of the spring semester.
(3) writing response: write about a favorite haiku from Mayfly Winter 2007.
You may simply want to start a haiku journal and write as many as you want then select 5-10 best ones for the assignment.
for 2/9 (email due midnight 2/6)
listening & reading: Gather some of your friends and classmates to listen to Haiku Chronicles espisode 15:
http://haikuchronicles.com/2010/10/e15_thundermoon/
follow along with the PDF printout of this renga while listening to it with your friends and classmates:
Thunder Moon (pdf download available from the Haiku Chronicles website URL above)
(4) response writing: Discuss the kasen-renga, noting favorite links and movement through the whole collection. Send me a short response writing to this episode with your new insights into writing kasen-renga. NO MORE THAN 3 paragraphs!
(5) writing hokku: send me 2-3 hokku (possible starting verses) for our first class kasen writing. What does a hokku need to do? The opening (1) reflects the season and locale in which composition begins, (2) starts the linking process triggering emotional responses, memories and associations, (3) is deliberately open-ended thus inviting kasen writers to add to it, and (4) sets an opening tone, attitude or atmosphere.
for 2/16 (email due to Dr. Brooks by midnight 2/13)
reading: The introduction to writing renga by Kris Kondo & William J. Higginson. You may read this online at: <http://www.2hweb.net/haikai/renku/Link_Shift.html>
(6) response writing: write a paragraph about your favorite haiku from Kukai 1.
(7) response writing: write about your favorite tan-renga from Tan-renga 1.
(8) renga writing: write 3-5 haiku on love & then use them as hokku to write at least 2 tan-renga with partners or friends on love or lost love or Valentine's day or anti-love or anti-Valentine's day. Email your haiku and tan-renga to me by midnight, Sunday February 13.
(9) Valentine's exchange: bring 13 love haiku or renga to class for Valentine's gift exchange! Put them on Valentines or bookmarks or some other clever way.
for 2/23 (email due to Dr. Brooks by midnight 2/20)
reading: The introduction to writing renga by Kris Kondo & William J. Higginson. You may read this online at: <http://www.2hweb.net/haikai/renku/Link_Shift.html>
BRING your copy of Thunder Moon & the handout on Link & Shift by Kondo & Higginson to class. We are going to actually discuss the tradition directly.
(10) response writing: write about your favorite tan-renga from Tan-renga 2 - love tan-renga. Email this to me by Sunday midnight.
(11) hokku writing: write or nominate 3-5 possible hokku for possible first verse of a kasen-renga. Email them to me by Sunday midnight. The hokku may be previously published, but needs to fit this time of year.
What does a hokku need to do? The opening (1) reflects the season and locale in which composition begins, (2) starts the linking process triggering emotional responses, memories and associations, (3) is deliberately open-ended thus inviting kasen writers to add to it, and (4) sets an opening tone, attitude or atmosphere.
for 3/2 (email due to Dr. Brooks by midnight 2/27)
reading: The PREFACE to One Hundred Frogs: From Renga to Haiku to English (pages ix-xiv) and Sato's overview about writing kasen renga (pages 29-34).
(12) response writing: Please email me your response to the Preface & kasen pages in Sato's book, including at least 1-2 questions.
BRING your copy of the partner kasen we started in class. We will be writing more links in class!
(13) renga writing: with your partner (in person or back and forth through email) write and edit additional links to your kasen started in class.
for 3/9 (email due to Dr. Brooks by midnight 3/6)
reading: The Chapter 1 (pages 3-42) of One Hundred Frogs: From Renga to Haiku to English.
(14) response writing due 3/6: as an email response to chapter one, propose a new kind of renku (linked verse) that would maintain the goal of linking and shifting but be based on your own "rules" of movement and collage.
BRING your completed first kasen to class.
(15) renga writing email due 3/8: with your kasen renga team complete your round robin links (in person or back and forth through email) for the kasen we worked on in class. The goal is to finish this kukai before spring break (next Wednesday). I'm always glad to join in as a guest at any point in your kasen and promise to be quick with my linking in.
for 3/23 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Sunday, midnight 3/20)
in class - sharing & voting on our favorite spring break kasen. i have a fabulous prize!
(16) have a great spring break and write a spring-break renga with friends, family, classmates or go SOLO. and yes, you may write one based on your own rules!
for 3/30 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Sunday, midnight 3/27)
(17) Read Chapter 3 (pages 88-106) of One Hundred Frogs: From Renga to Haiku to English. This is a complete discussion of a kasen renga by Basho and friends. Write a short-short story (no more than one page maximum with a haiku at the end of your story) as a response to a favorite link.
(18) start a new kasen renga with a group of 3-4 friends (in class or not) and discuss the rules of linking you plan to follow before you start. the goal is to be halfway done by next class and finished for April 6. please edit while you go
(19) write a couple of spring hokku (spring start) and email them to me (at least 3). I'm going to use 1 for our next in class renga
for 4/6 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Sunday, midnight 4/3)
(18) complete a kasen renga with a group of 3-4 friends (in class or not) and discuss the rules of linking you plan to follow before you start. the goal is to be halfway done by next class and finished for April 6. please edit while you go and bring your copy with obi to class April 6
(19) Read Chapter 8 (pages 175-189 and 195-197 kasen "As the Fog Thickens") of One Hundred Frogs: From Renga to Haiku to English. Write a short-short story (no more than one page maximum with a haiku at the end of your story) as a response to a favorite link from the kasen, "As the Fog Thickens".
for 4/13 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Sunday, midnight 4/10)
(20) Read the short stories written in response to links from Chapter 8 (pages 175-189 and 195-197 kasen "As the Fog Thickens") of One Hundred Frogs: From Renga to Haiku to English. Write a short paragraph about your favorite story.
for 4/20 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Monday, midnight 4/17)
(21) Start another kasen renga with friends (inside or outside class). Start it in person if possible and provide guidelines for linking & shifting (yes, you may make up your own). The goal is to write 18 links for next week.
for 4/27 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Monday, midnight 4/25)
(21 finish) Finish your kasen renga with friends (inside or outside class). Bring the folded copy to class. Here is a Microsoft Word Doc guides for kasen renga (two versions - one is 10point type for longer lines and another is 11point type for short lines). Use "show paragraphs" to see the spaces between links.
(22) write 5-10 Easter break haiku or senryu. no linking necessary!
for 5/4 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Monday, midnight 5/1)
(23) Start one last free-form renga (you may link or follow your own rules or no rules) with your friends. Be sure to address the Mother's day and "school's out" subjects somewhere in this one.
(24) write a response to your favorite two Easter break haiku from kukai 3 favorites
for 5/11 (email due to Dr. Brooks by Monday, midnight 5/8)
(25) Finish your last free-form renga (you may link or follow your own rules or no rules) with your friends. Be sure to address the "end of school" or "school's out" theme someone in this one. Bring it to class properly dressed in its obi.
for our Monday, 5/16 final reading
Bring your favorite renga completed this semester for the reading. Friends and family welcome. We will conclude with a reading of the final class kasen renga: "Woppy-Soppy".
4pm - Fireplace Room