Pensacola Magazine, February 2021

Page 20

HAIKU SLAM Counting Syllables and Connecting Community by Dakota Parks

Back in 1980s Chicago at the Green Mill Jazz Club, a group of local poets were trying to get the broader community involved in the tight-knit poetry scene. By fusing

together writing, performance, competition and audience participation, slam poetry, or slam events were created. At a slam, random members of the audience judge the poems, and the poet with the highest points at the end wins. In a similar fashion, to bridge the gaps between the literary and poetry community, the West Florida Literary Federation’s newest formed Poet’s Roundtable is hosting a haiku slam. 20 Pensacola Magazine

The slam is the brainchild of the Poet’s Roundtable, a collaborative group of local poets consisting of newly appointed poet laureate of Northwest Florida, Katherine Nelson-Born; Charles McCaskill, a finalist for poet laureate and author of three poetry books; and Asia Samson, a prolific spoken word artist and slam poetry coach. Aimed at bringing the community together and celebrating the multiple facets of written and spoken word, the roundtable is working together to promote writing challenges, workshops and new events, like the haiku challenge and slam.

“The haiku challenge was born from the Poet’s Roundtable as we discussed how to bring a slam to the community,” Nelson-Born explained. “We wanted a place to encourage new and experienced writers in the same space while bridging the gap that exists between some of the older population in the literary community and some of the powerful younger voices in the poetry community. The haiku is a short but very powerful form of poetry that everyone can relate to. Plus, performing a quick three-line poem is less nerve wracking to people who haven’t performed before, so it lowers the pressure.” Drawing from the Japanese poetry form with a 17-syllable count of five-seven-five, or the

American model championed by Jack Kerouac, the haiku challenge tasked members of the community to write a haiku every day in the month of January based on writing prompts posted to the West Florida Literary Federation’s social media. Prompts range from your last Google search and first childhood memory to reflecting on nature and historical moments. The challenge served as a prelude to the poetry slam being hosted in February, where participants are invited to share their haikus. Don’t worry—there’s still plenty of time to read the prompts and get involved if you missed the daily prompts in January.

“Being limited to how many syllables you can use forces you to get creative,” McCaskill said. “It’s not limited to just haikus, but any writing form that has guidelines can open up possibilities to a writer. It really encourages this creative and intentional use of words. Throw in the performing nature of slam, mixed with the discipline to choose the right words to convey a message, and I’m excited to see how poets step up to the challenge of it all.” Both Nelson-Born and McCaskill accredit Samson to really ushering poetry slams to Pensacola. Touring universities performing spoken word and competing in slam competitions since 2004, Samson began hosting


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