poetry forms - Auroras & Blossoms

Hello folks!

Cendrine recently created a new literary genre that fits perfectly what we do at Auroras & Blossoms. We believe that its uniqueness will appeal to many of you! It’s called the Flashku.

The flashku is a short flash fiction piece that borrows elements from the sixku, the kindku, and the haiku. So, basically, it’s poetic prose!

How does it work? The rules are very simple:

50-100 words only.
7 words must be taken from another piece (credits mandatory)
Inspired by an image (permission and credits mandatory)
Minimal descriptions
Climax at about 80% through the piece (not a hard rule, just a way to guide your writing)
Positive / inspirational twist or resolution at the end

That’s it!

Here is an example of flashku

The Puddle

When they greeted each other, she asked herself if it was love.

Suddenly, the reflection in the puddle was disturbed. “Pitter-patter,” said the rain. They smiled.

“The garden is not far. Just at the end of the road,” he said, gently inviting her to follow him. Their wanderings together always were a unique source of comfort. So, she jumped over the puddle…

Mesmerized by the crackling fire, she remembered the silence of their first kiss.

And now, a lifetime later, as they looked at each other, she finally knew.

———–

Flashku inspired by Kahlil Gibran’s The Wanderer

Image credits: Cendrine Marrouat

We hope that you will enjoy experimenting with this very unique literary genre. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Thanks for reading and as always, happy writing!

Cendrine & David

Hello folks!

If you have followed us for a while, you know how much we like inspiring you to write and create. The success of our Kindku prompted us to continue coming up with unique ideas.

This time, we wanted to appeal to a broader audience of artists with a form that mixes the written and visual elements. Cendrine had already started with her Sixku, a tribute to the Haiku and photography. But we wanted to take things up a notch.

The result is the Pareiku! (Cool name, right? 😉 )

The word “pareiku” combines two concepts:

‘pareidolia’ – the tendency to perceive a specific, often meaningful image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern.
‘-ku’ – a tribute to Japanese poetry forms like the haiku and tanka.

The rules are quite simple:

Link together two seemingly unrelated images as one via a 19-syllable poem.
The poem must have a title and follow the 7-5-7 syllable pattern. Punctuation is optional.
The two images can feature the same or different types of visual art. But you must own copyrights / have permission from the artist(s) to use those images. And credits are required at the end of your piece.
Pareiku are meant to be positive / inspirational and family-friendly. So no erotica and no swear words allowed.

We have created some examples for you on the official page of the Pareiku. Click here to view them.

We hope that you will enjoy experimenting with this very unique art form. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Thanks for reading and as always, happy writing!

Cendrine & David

Tag: poetry forms

Announcing the Flashku!

Announcing the Pareiku

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