Julia Shaver • Julia's Haiku •

There are many talented people who write haiku for a living and others that do it as a hobby. Marlene Mountain is one of those people who do it as a hobby, but she is very good at what she does. Marlene is very talented and has experimented with all types of haiku. She does not consider herself a professional, but she does see herself as a serious writer. She experiments with all forms of haiku and really takes joy in them. Marlene Mountain uses nature in a lot of her haiku. Many of her haiku are based on the things in nature that mainly surround her and she does not focus on one particular topic. On her web site she has pictures that go along with her book. This is an example of one of the photos. It is interesting to see the photos and know exactly what she is talking about. Many times in haiku one has to visualize on their own. I think it is a very good idea and someone can understand the haiku a little bit easier. Marlene also incorporates different types of art and uses then as haiku. She seems to be a very visual person and it makes her more remarkable. Some haiku are just one word and it is the way they are written that makes them a haiku. There is also her use of magazine words. She puts them together as if they were a collage. She also writes dadaku cartoons that have the haiku talking about the picture. Those are very interesting because the picture is not very descriptive so you still have to use your imagination to an extent. I really enjoy her haiku because they are almost always funny and at the same time they are intriguing. For instance this haiku is from homeland (a collection of hers) and it is called 3 dadaku a sentence: Tonight tonight to Night tonight tonight tonight Tonight tonight to Five five five five five Seven seven sev Five five five five five Five-seven-five Tonight? I like this haiku because it catches you off guard at first and then it takes a second to realize what it is saying. I get the idea of someone thinking about something very intensely and they cannot make up their mind. They go back and forth and still by then end of the haiku they have not made a decision. Some of her haiku are complete works of art. This haiku is called fiber. It is a picture with a haiku make out of clippings. I find this haiku very intense. I’m not sure exactly what it is saying but I really like the way it was put together. I like the idea that I can like a haiku without really understanding it. This next haiku is funny because it is true and really makes sense and it uses the tribute to an author. I really enjoy her writing style. I also find it motivating that Marlene uses other author’s works with hers. I think she has a lot of respect for other authors and so she gives them that tribute. There is a section of her works that she has titled Tribute and she has haiku to a lot of different authors and people in her life. Marlene also likes to write with other authors and link all the haiku’s together. They are usually on very unique topics and are very fascinating. This haiku is on an umbrella but not the normal umbrella a person would automatically think of. one-line linked haiku       march 1982-march 1987 invisible umbrella out she sings to her woman lover of her time in prison twilight the women's talk turns again to herpes year of 18[sic]48 demanding women gather in seneca falls {intentional blank link} for my wellness his voice also unto his goddess * secretary's day in a bought vase cabinet meeting reagan asleep again international women's day come and gone idiot or computer error & it's over solstice solace goddess * for raymond roseliep Frogpond 11:2 1988 I think this haiku is very hard to understand but it uses a lot of interesting elements. It does not really tell you what it is about but gives you an idea that it is about women’s rights. The haiku then uses an “international blank link” in the middle of it. I had never seen this type of link before and I found it very creative. The idea of using blank space as part of the haiku is very ingenious. Marlene also writes the traditional style haiku’s that most readers are used to. She writes on all topics and does not stick to one form. This is from The Haiku Anthology p.130: empty mailbox I pick wildflowers on my way back I like this haiku because I receive good visuals from it. I can see the mailbox, which is very red and old. I then can see the flowers and feel the beautiful day. I can feel the sun and it is a very lazy afternoon. This reminds me of my grandparents’ house in Tennessee because it is out in the middle of nowhere and you have to walk about a block to get to their mailbox. This is funny to me because I found out that Marlene Mountain now lives in Tennessee and I’m sure she would know exactly what I was talking about. This is a haiku that I as well as many others can relate to. Another technique Marlene seems to use a lot is the use of words, but in a different form to make the idea more visual. An example of this is from The Haiku Anthology p.133: I enjoy this haiku because it uses the word to its literal meaning and it is not expected. The word stick it put out of the original line to emphasize the hopping. I can also see the little rooster hopping and it is more comical with the word doing the same thing. This is another way that Marlene is very creative. I really enjoy the fact that Marlene is not afraid to write about topics that could be very controversial. If they are important to her then she feels the need/right to write about them. She has written about protest, war, women’s rights, 9/11, and many more, mainly which ever she has very strong emotions about. There is even a section on a web site that is entitled “Pissed Off Poems and Crosswords”. Her haiku about these important topics almost seem like stories and I am really glad I was able to read them. I find Marlene Mountain a very interesting person. She does not write haiku for a living, but she still does it very well. She also does not write just to make others happy. You can tell in her work that she is just doing what she wants to do. She uses all different forms and topics, and really doesn’t fit into any specific category. I find her work to be some of the best work in the haiku world that I have read so far. She uses very different ideas and does not write like any other author. After contacting her for this paper, she was very generous to help me and was very thankful for me choosing her work to write this paper on. I am very happy I was able to explore her work and read the wonderful haiku that I did. There is a quote to which she has told many people and I take pleasure in it: “To create haiku from experiences which are unique to ourselves as women . . . experiences which only women can write.” ~Marlene Mountain