Laurels: Tanka Society of America Online Journal, Number 6, August 2026

My thanks to guest editor Rick Jackofsky for including the following tanka on the theme of "mono no aware"!

at my feet,

cicada shells lie empty

and forlorn . . .

I miss the sound of you

singing our babies to sleep

Onions in Moonlight: Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2025

withered leaves

filigreed with frost . . .

all the time

it takes to transform

tarnish into silver

Laurels: Tanka Society of America Online Journal, Number 5, February 2026

My thanks to guest editor Tom Clausen for including the following tanka on the theme of "travel"!

an appaloosa

canters along the ridge

one taste

of sagebrush wind is all

it takes to carry me home

Laurels: Tanka Society of America Online Journal, Number 4, August 2025

My thanks to guest editor Jackie Chou for including the following tanka for the theme: "time"!

tonight

the soliloquy of snow

does not console . . .

your voice forever lost

to those who loved you

Each in Our Own Way, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2024

Edited by Michele L. Harvey

a waterfall,

translucent against

this mountain . . .

your face as you slip

beyond the veil

 

Laurels: Tanka Society of America Online Journal, Number 3, February 2025

My thanks to guest editor Margaret Tau for including the following tanka for the theme: "choice"!

an orca

backflips near our boat . . .

when was

the last time we tried

to impress each other

Eye to Eye, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2023

Edited by Randy Brooks

winter light . . .

nuggets of purple mica

gleam on my desk

and suddenly, I can

think only of lilacs

Tanka Society of America - Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contst, 2024

My thanks to the judges, Vandana Parashar and Reid Hepworth, for selecting the following tanka for this year's contest:

an arbutus

sheds its outer bark . . .

my skin

is the only thing

holding me together

Honourable Mention

2024 Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest

Judges' Comments:

This tanka poignantly captures the fragility and resilience of human existence. The shedding of the arbutus tree's bark mirrors the poet's own vulnerability and a sense of raw survival, hence suggesting a deep connection with nature.

Tanka Society of America Twitter Bird Special Feature, April 2024

 Curated by Susan Burch

Day 17 - April 17, 2024

linden trees

splashed with sunlight

here and there

a few leaves turning

into yellow warblers

Laurels: Tanka Society of America Online Journal, Number 1, February 2024

My thanks to guest editor Richard L. Matta for including the following tanka for the theme: "a makeover: finding beauty in the broken"!

lying on this bed

of sun-warmed moss

and lichen,

I imagine myself

a fruiting body

 

One Moment at a Time, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2022

Edited by Jim Chessing

Honoured to have the section "Caressed by Ferns", named for the following tanka:

newly turned,

this earth where soon

you will lie

caressed by the soft

fingertips of ferns

Tanka Society of America Twitter Work Special Feature, April 2023

 Curated by Susan Burch

Day 2 - April 2, 2023

pens and brushes,

the tools of my trade . . .

I wield them

like swords in this fight

against infirmity

Tanka Society of America Twitter Sci-fi Special Feature, April 2022

Curated by Susan Burch

Day 19 - April 19, 2022

(note: this tanka art first appeared in Scryptic 1.4, March 2018)

 

Self-Portrait, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2021

a plague

of smokestacks belching

obscenities . . .

on this frosted morning,

even they are beautiful

 

Tanka Society of America Twitter Pandemic Special, April 2021

Curated by Susan Burch

Day 1 - April 1, 2021

rain doves build

a nest on our balcony

we, too

are learning the art

of sheltering in place

Tanka 2020: Poems from Today's World

Red Moon Press (editor Alexis Rotella)

 

Dance into the World, Tanka Society of America Twentieth Anniversary Anthology, 2020

Edited by Michael Dylan Welch

sprites flash

across purpling skies

for an instant

I forget the grim state

of this locked-down life

 

Tanka Society of America 20th Anniversary Twitter Tanka Haiga Feature, April 2020

Thank you to curator, Susan Burch!


April 3, 2020

Honourable Mention, 2018 Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest

Tanka Society of America 7-Day Twitter Tanka Project, May 2020

My thanks to curator, Susan Burch!


Day 1 - May 10, 2020

I carry
an ocean within
my pocket . . .
this blue lace agate
etched with ancient tides

Honourable Mention, 2018 Fleeting Words Tanka Contest

Day 2 - May 11, 2020

a smudge
of blackbirds swirling
into evening . . .
how fluid the shape
of this sorrow

2nd Place, 2018 Fleeting Words Tanka Contest

Day 3 - May 12, 2020

1st Place, 2016 Mandyߴs Pages Tanka Contest

Day 4 - May 13, 2020

the growth rings

of otoliths and trees . . .

when did she

become smaller

than her daughters

2nd Place, 2017 Fleeting Words Tanka Contest

Day 5 - May 14, 2020

a star tortoise

carries the universe

on its back . . .

are we slowly moving

away from each other

2nd Place, 2018 San Francisco International Tanka Contest

Day 6 - May 15, 2020

1st Place, 2016 Fleeting Words Tanka Contest

Day 7 - May 16, 2020

the ocean

was in a rage last night

but today,

these peace offerings

of blue mussels and kelp

1st Place, 2018 Sanford Goldstein International Tanka Contest

A Thousand Voices, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2019

Edited by Alexis Rotella:


a mirage
shimmers above
golden grain . . .
I reach out to touch
my sister's halo

Of Love and War and the Life In Between, Tanka Society of America Members' Anthology 2018

overnight,
filaments of hair ice
grow longer . . .
how tenuous these threads
that bind us to each other