Can You Haiku? Announcing a new WNI writing contest

We've had so much fun with our first two writing contests, First Line and Short Story, that we're kicking off a new one. Poetry writers, this is your moment to shine! (And we encourage non-poets to have a go at it, too--who knows what latent poet within you is just waiting to come out?)

Japanese in origin,  a haiku is "a short poem that uses imagistic language to convey the essence of an experience of nature or the season intuitively linked to the human condition," according to hsa-haiku.org. The most common form of haiku is a poem of seventeen syllables: five in the first line, seven in the second, and five in the third, like this:

An old silent pond...
A frog jumps into the pond,
splash! Silence again. (Basho Matsuo)

and this: 

Whitecaps on the bay:
A broken signboard banging
In the April wind. (Richard Wright)

Traditionally  haiku has a focus on nature and the seasons. For this contest, you are free to write on the topic of your choice, as long as you follow the three-line pattern of five syllables-seven syllables-five syllables. You may enter up to 3 haiku in the contest.

The "Can you Haiku?" contest opens on Tuesday, May 1, and entries will be accepted through June 15. Winners will be announced July 1. The first-place winner will receive $30 cash, and second- and third-place winners receive a prize as well. Check the complete rules and instructions here.

As always, this contest is FREE to enter. So fire up your keyboards and show us what you've got! Best of luck, everybody.