Haiku Canada: Marianne Bluger Awards, 2026

Thrilled to receive joint 1st Place in the 2026 Marianne Bluger Book Awards for Random Blue Sparks! My thanks to the judges.

Judging Commentary:

We were looking for haiku and related forms that ring true; a book or chapbook that demonstrates coherence and flow; and a book design that enhances the poet's work. A tall order, as all of these features work together to engage a reader.

—Terry Ann Carter and Philomene Kocher

Quail Eggs: A Tanka Journal, Issue 5, June 2026

north winds

whipping the snowbanks

into a frenzy . . .

our dog burrows deeper

into her fireside dreams

Haiku 2026: 100 Notable Ku from 2025, Modern Haiku Press, 2026

Thrilled to be included in this anthology edited by Lee Gurga and Scott Metz!

moorland the beginning and onding of snow

(note: "onding" = heavy fall of rain or snow)

NOON: Journal of the Short Poem 27

Modern Haiku, Vol. 57.2, Summer 2026

family reunion

a jumble of shells

at low tide

rotted rafters

fog curdles around

the owl's call

Honourable Mention

Robert Spiess Memorial Haiku Award Competition for 2026

Judge's Comments: forthcoming

Museum of Haiku Literature, Japan

I'm honoured to know that Masako Kakutani will introduce "Random Blue Sparks" to haiku poets in Japan who are interested in English-language haiku, and that Haijin Kyokai (Tokyo, Japan) will include my book in the Museum of Haiku Literature collection!

Heliosparrow Poetry Journal, June 2026

Featured June 15, 2026:

Fearless

Haiku Girl Summer: A Picnic Sky, 2023 - 2025, 2026

splash pad

bubbles run away

with the light

sun dress

the clear margins

of her biopsy

sand dunes

this path leading

to the clouds

Haiku Girl Summer, 2026

Curated by Allyson Whipple

June 18, 2026 - Guest Editor, C.X. Turner

seaworn stones the journey from your pocket to mine

Fresh Out: An Arts and Poetry Collective, June 2026

 Curated by Eric A. Lohman

Featured Artist: June 9, 2026

(note: this haiku first appeared in Mayfly 62, 2017)

Daily Haiku: Charlotte Digregorio's Writer's Blog, June 2026

rotted rafters

fog curdles around

the owl's call

Honourable Mention

The Robert Spiess Memorial Haiku Awards, 2026

distant slopes

turning blue at twilight

the soft folds

of this tweed blanket draped

around father's shoulders

Runner-up

The British Haiku Society Linda Jeannette Ward Tanka Award, 2025

Eucalypt, Issue 40, May 2026

fishmongers

hawk their silvery wares

on the beach

small girls gather sequins

from a mermaid's dress

 

Autumn Moon Haiku Journal, 9:2, Spring/Summer 2026

gleaning wrens

we donate your clothes

to the shelter

requiem

tamarisk leaves let go

of their salt

Forestry England - The Magic of Maples Haiku Competition, 2026

Honoured to receive a Commendation in this competition. Over 550 haiku were submitted from around the world. The winning, placed, commended, and honourable mentioned poems will all form part of an outdoor exhibition at Westonbirt Arboretum during the autumn season (September - November) 2026. My thanks to the judges, Emiko Miyashita, Lev Hart, and Andrew Shimield!

fallen leaves

our dog jumps into a sea

of crimson

Geppo: The Haiku Work-Study Journal of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society, Volume L1:1, February 2026

November 2025 - January 2026

a chick roosting

on the barn cat's head . . .

snowdrifts

scattered flurries

a blue jay buries nuts

in the window box

Winter Challenge Kigo: First Winter Rain, hatsu shigure

first winter rain

for a moment I thought

you walked beside me

Honoured to know that "a chick roosting" was included among the favourites of Dojin Patricia J. Machmiller, and "scattered flurries" was included among the favourites of Dojins Hiroyuki Murakami and Patricia J. Machmiller.

Also honoured that "scattered flurries" was included among the "Voted Best" in the subsequent issue.

Geppo: The Haiku Work-Study Journal of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society, Volume L:4, November 2025

August - October 2025

All Hallows' Eve an intermittent flurry of snow ghosts

embers burn holes

in their makeshift tent . . .

first frost

Autumn Challenge Kigo: Autumn Deepens, aki fukashi

deep autumn

cranberries anchor

the bog

Honoured to know that "All Hallows' Eve" was included among the favourites of Dojin Emiko Miyashita, and "embers burn holes" was included among the favourites of Dojins Emiko Miyashita and Phillip Kennedy.

Keeping Faith, Yuki Teikei Haiku Society 50th Anniversay Members' Anthology 1975 - 2025, 2025

My thanks to the editor, Gregory Longenecker!

freight train the rags of a vagabond moon

candy floss

hair ice transforms

a rotten branch

Members' Celebratory Haiku:

fox's wedding

this metamorphosis

of light

Also included in this anthology is "The Poet's Journey" by Ellen Brooks, who created and performed a kyogen style dance using haiku composed by the society's members. The dance was performed at the society's fiftieth anniversary dinner held on May 10, 2025, and again at the Haiku Retreat on November 6, 2025. I was over the moon to know that the following two haiku were incorporated into her performance:

my body

becoming weightless . . .

spindrift

yutori

offering my held breath

to the wind

(note: yutori = the Japanese philosophy of creating space (mentally, physically, and emotionally) for joy and longevity)

Password: Journal of Very Short Poetry, Issue 3.2, June 2026

K-shaped 

the beetle in her belly

dive in

Frogpond, Vol. 49, Number 1, Winter 2026

Thrilled that the following poem was selected by Joan C. Fingon and Lee Hudspeth for inclusion in their essay: "Somewhere Over the Rainbow: The Power of Color in Haiku":

Section: Color Words and Parts of Speech

"Strange's poem below gives equal weight to "dandelion" and "yellow" in the beginning and at the end of the monoku. By separating the two words, i.e., instead of writing "yellow dandelions," the poet emphasizes the yellowness of the entire experience. Here, "yellow"—as a primary color and as a property—is equally as important as the flower's color and the mood it represents.

dandelions the multiplication factor of yellow

Bottle Rockets #45

Frogpond, Vol. 48, Number 3, Autumn 2025

Honoured that this issue contains a lovely review of Random Blue Sparks by Allyson Whipple which can be accessed under the book's tab of this blog. Also featured in this issue are the results of the 2025 Haiku Society of America Merit Book Awards in which Random Blue Sparks placed third. The judges' report can also be found under the book's tab of this blog.

Wales Haiku Journal, Spring 2026

fossil hunter

dragonflies sunning

on the erratic