Parramatta festival RIVERBEATS 09 - NWG Inc members and friends have been invited to write haiku for this exciting annual festival, that draws musicians and artists from around Australia and the world.

Our mentor for this project is Riverbeats Creative Director, Geoff Miller (see pic). Our poems will be projected on large screens and buildings at the banks of the Parramatta River.

The theme is water and spirituality – interpret as widely as you wish.

If you are a member or gatherer (NWG Inc) please get involved if you haven’t already! If you are another Sydney poet, your Haiku are welcome too. Email your Haiku to the nwginc editors address by end of June. Please mark the subject as HAIKU since we are also in the midst of receiving entries for ZineWest 09.

If your Haiku is chosen, you will be asked to complete an entry form. No payment, sorry, just a few moments of exposure to a big audience!

Haiku workshops:
In July, we will include haiku workshops in our usual Parramatta Gatherings:
Saturdays 11 July and 25 July
3-5pm
Mars Hill Cafe, 331 Church St Parramatta (upstairs).

Please note the following:

We are sticking to tradition and following the three line format of:
First Line: 5 Syllables
Second Line: 7 Syllables
Third Line: 5 Syllables

Here’s an example from one of our early submissions:

Dark shadows at dusk
River laps quietly by
Ignoring drama

Also we are trying to avoid rhymes, similes and metaphors.