[Michael Cantor]

Count me in as one who is very interested. I've written a good deal of linked tanka (sometimes interspersed with Western rhymed and metered stanzas in a he said/she said format), a number have been published, and one even received a Pushcart nomination, but I really don't know what I'm doing.

I have some understanding of haiku, but I'm not sure - beyond the syllable count - regarding the guidelines for tanka or linked tanka in terms of what is intended to be accomplished, and what tools should the poet use? What makes it "special", and different from any other five line syllabic poem? Is irony always a factor, for example? Word play? Elements of nature/season, as in haiku? Dunno. I essentially treat it as extended and more flexible haiku. I use tanka only in narrative poems on Japan, where it appears to fit in and help, and I force a Japanese-like flatness into the rhythm, trying to avoid slipping into meter. And, like haiku, I try to work with images and impressions, and let the reader do the rest of the work. But basically, what tanka provides me is "Japanese-ness", and I don't think that was the original intention, since the Japanese didn't have to worry about whether their poetry sounded Japanese. Additional insight would be appreciated and helpful.