Spring Haiku and Tanka

I attend a wonderful writing for pleasure class on a Wednesday and these are the two pieces I wrote this week that I thought I would share with my followers to celebrate the beginning of Spring:

HAIKU

Wind rain sunshine slants

Blossom falls on snowdrop heads

Soldiers bowed by war

TANKA

Snowdrops crocuses

Newborn lambs and chicks to feed

Magpies stealing nests

To rebuild and start again

Life renews Innocence dies

Mslexia newsletter

 Here is the latest Mslexia newsletter containing details of competitions and more:

We're always telling you about the features of our Diary & Planner – designed to help you kickstart your creativity at any time – but how about we show you? Every month begins with information specially selected to inspire and steer your writing – all you need to do is turn the page. Here's a taste of our March calendar:  Competitions and Callouts Rubery Book Award submit: self-published, or independently published, books. First prize: £2,000. New Welsh Review Award submit: prose with a Welsh theme or setting between 5,000 and 30,000 words. Prize:£1,000 and e-publishing deal. Fish Poetry Prize submit: unpublished poems up to 60 lines. First prize: €1,000, plus publication. The Plough Poetry Prize submit: poems on any subject, no more than 42 lines. First prize: £1,000. Wildness accepts: poetry (up to ten) fiction and nonfiction (no more than 5,000 words). Granta accepts: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art and photography for both print and online during their open submission windows. Litro accepts: short fiction, flash fiction, nonfiction (memoir, literary journalism, travel narratives) and artwork. Pitch Calendar If you want to pitch a seasonal article, poem or short fiction, you need to plan (and pitch) your work well in advance, especially if you’re aiming at quarterly publications. Here are some dates for June to help you get ahead of the game: 1-30 – LGBTQ+ Pride Month 7 – 25 years since Tony Blair was heckled at the Women’s Institute 5 – World Environment Day 12 – Anne Frank was born on this day in 1929 15 – The Magna Carta was signed on this day in 1215 16 – Bloomsbury Day 20 – World Refugee Day Literary Events Deptford Literature Festival: celebrates the diversity and creativity of the local area with a day of stories and performances. Farnham Literary Festival: varied programme of events including author talks, panel discussions and readings alongside workshops and writing competitions. Mslexia Women’s Writing Week: life-changing online course for writers taught by world-class tutors. Oxford Literary Festival: events, talks and interviews with some of the UK’s leading authors and speakers. StAnza Poetry Festival: wide-ranging programme of events in St Andrews and online to bring a fresh perspective on a theme through poetry, visual art, music and performance. York Literature Festival: takes place in iconic locations across the city with a programme of talks, lectures, panels, performances and workshops.     We designed the Mslexia Diary & Planner to motivate and guide you. A monthly rundown of ways to expand your writing practice means you can be confident in achieving your goals in 2025.   SUPPORT MY WRITING YEAR ✨   Copyright © 2025 Mslexia, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Mslexia P O BOX 656 Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne And Wear NE99 1PZ United Kingdom