Poem a Day 23: A tanka

Welcome to Day 23! Today's prompt is a type of poem: a tanka. This is another nifty little quickie form, like the lai, the haiku, and the lune, and a profoundly romantic one – by tradition, both romantic and profound. It starts off like a haiku: three lines, with a syllable count 5 / 7 / 5, focusing on imagery, with a ‘twist’ or unexpected change of direction. It then has two extra lines, of 7 syllables each, with a transcendental or profound meaning that leaves the reader reflecting. They're traditionally written to express gratitude, love, or self-reflection.

Line #	Syllables	Content
1	5 syllables	The first part: like a haiku, it
2	7 syllables	explores a precise moment or
3	5 syllables	image, and twists drection
4	7 syllables	The second part: a profound
5	7 syllables	meaning that prompts reflection

Tanka originated in Japan, thirteen centuries ago, and as The Tanka Journal explains, "Suitors would send a tanka to a woman the day after a date, and she would reply in kind. These were short messages (like secret letters) expressing love, desire, meaning, or gratitude. These poems often culminated in a transcendental message."

Here are three examples, from my own writing:

Velvet echoes
Chatter clinks, glasses roar
Tree-lights dance my eyes
You’re always two blue ticks close
Your silver purr takes me home

                     *

An onion-skin flake
copper-soft, tea-bright, weightless
falls free of white flesh
Ink slips off it, helplessly.
Press the nib harder, it breaks.

                     *

mud slides under ice
pollards finger the wet sky
your ghost-glove grips mine
stark willowherbs, snowing seed,
promise impossible heat

Copyright means I can't show you other people's contemporary examples, but The Tanka Journal has heaps if you want to read some more.

And for an idea of what to write about, it seems only fitting to write a secret love letter – an illicit one, even – to someone or something. One of the delicate balances in poem-writing is to put in your own meaning while still leaving space for the reader's meaning. There are all sorts of ways to approach this, and one delightful way is to tell your secrets in plain view, discreetly daringly. (It doesn't have to be a person, remember: chances are I'll be writing yet another love-letter to my favourite writing spot!)

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The Meddling with Poetry course explores a host of different poetry forms as well as the musicality of language, poetic imagery, and other aspects of the poetic. It's 8 weeks long, one evening a week, and absolute beginners and experienced writers are equally welcome. You can read more details and book a place here.