frank(ly) i thank ya
not to mess with my tanka
(syllabic rut stuck)
why can’t japanese mora
fit my english euphora?
Frank J. Tassone challenges us to “meet the bar” of tanka/kyoka writing at dVerse poets pub.I had learned strict syllabic writing of these forms so was surprised by Frank’s notes:
“Now, a brief word on tanka/kyoka and syllabic writing. Beginners are often taught that both tanka and kyoka need to be written in no more than 31 syllables, usually broken up into a 5-7-5-7-7 pattern. However, an English syllable is a different linguistic unit from a Japanese mora, and the counts refer to mora, not syllable. If an English-language writer of Japanese forms wants to write accurately, the proper syllable count for a haiku/senryu would be 10-12, and a tanka/kyoka 20-24.”
a poem in my pocket 
May 23, 2020 @ 11:23:08
So funny–and clever. It made me smile. 😀
May 22, 2020 @ 19:06:15
kaykuala
why can’t japanese mora
fit my english euphora?
Good question, lynn! Very clever take!
Hank
May 22, 2020 @ 19:14:32
thanks, Hank…nice to see u here
May 22, 2020 @ 14:53:42
You made me smile. (K)
May 22, 2020 @ 17:54:07
🙂
May 22, 2020 @ 12:20:15
Simply ~~~ brilliant.
May 22, 2020 @ 13:55:18
i bow, Helen
May 22, 2020 @ 10:40:59
HA! I love, love, LOVE this one. Delightful sarcasm!
May 22, 2020 @ 13:56:23
Thanks for your appreciation, Bev 🙂
May 22, 2020 @ 06:24:05
Nice last two lines with mora and euphora.
May 22, 2020 @ 09:42:00
🙂
May 22, 2020 @ 04:03:22
A fun tanka, Lynn!
May 21, 2020 @ 23:48:18
Very clever and witty. ‘(syllabic rut stuck)’ is a beaut line.
May 22, 2020 @ 09:41:08
Glad you like it 🙂
May 21, 2020 @ 20:14:12
Hilarious! I only wish I had emojis for this laptop I’m using! A true-grit kyoka, if ever I saw one! brava!
May 21, 2020 @ 21:56:46
Thank you, Frank…so glad you liked it!