Tag Archives: Presence Haiku Journal

Poems, Publications

Presence haiku journal

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I took over as co-editor of Presence Haiku Journal recently, along with James Roderick Burns and Becky Dwyer who are, like me, members of Edinburgh Haiku Circle.

Our first issue (#82) appeared at the end of July, and we’re currently open for submissions for #83 – until the end of September, with the magazine due out towards the end of November.

We’ve changed a few things, but kept a lot the same, including the sequence of the contents – starting with tanka, having the haiku in seasonal sections (concluding with a no-season section) and interspersing these with haibun. The magazine closes with an essay and a substantial Reviews section, and we’re grateful for the continuing work of Judy Kendall and Julie Mellor in commissioning and compiling these.

Matthew Paul continues to manage the website.

As for the changes, we’re delighted that Barrie Tullett has brought his designer’s eye to bear on the parts and the whole. We’ve reduced the number of poems we publish too, so that those we do select are given more room on the page.

And Sean O’Connor will join us from #83 as Haibun Editor.

You can buy individual copies or take out an annual subscription (which buys you three copies) here.

Edinburgh Poetry Tours, exhibitions, Poems, Walks

News & updates, May 2025

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I’m aware I haven’t posted here for quite a while, the main reason being that I’ve got into the habit of putting out my news in other ways, mainly regular posts on instagram, and an occasional newsletter sent out via Mailchimp.

You can find the last newsletter, which I sent out at the start of May, here. This is the introduction:

I’ll be leading poetry walks on the Edinburgh Fringe again this year, for the first time since 2019. – Along with Rod Burns and Becky Dwyer, I’ve become co-editor of Presence Haiku Journal, established by the late Martin Lucas and edited since 2014 by Ian Storr. – I have work in a forthcoming exhibition at MOCA Dunoon, paying tribute to Ian Hamilton Finlay whose centenary falls this year. – I’m leading a walking renga at Glasgow Botanic Gardens on Sunday 25th May, i.m Gerry Loose. – Plus a short poem published recently in Poetry Scotland.

If you want to read more about any of these, you can find the mailing here.

And if you want to sign up to receive future mailings, you can do so below.

If instagram is your thing, there I’m @kencockburnedinburgh Last year I took a different theme each month, which turned out to be a lot of work, and this year I’m posting on a more ad hoc basis.

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