New to Haiku: Advice for Beginners – Reid Hepworth

Today at New to Haiku, let’s welcome Reid Hepworth. She is the author of two collections of poetry, loss is a river (2024) and the improbability of sea monkeys (2025). She placed third in the Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Awards for 2026, and her work has been nominated for a Touchstone Award and three times for a Pushcart Prize. Thank you for sharing your haiku journey with us, Reid!

In Advice for Beginners posts, we ask established haiku poets to share a bit about themselves so that you can meet them and learn more about their writing journeys. We, too, wanted to learn what advice they would give to beginning haiku poets. You can read posts from previous Advice for Beginners interviewees here.

Welcome to New to Haiku, Reid! How did you come to learn about haiku?

I was first introduced to haiku in elementary school and again in high school. I do not recall much about it at the time, other than we were told it was a short poem consisting of three lines. Syllable count was emphasized, but beyond that I don’t remember any mention of a nature reference or kireji [cutting words]. I think if someone had told me about those two pieces, I would have been drawn immediately.

Do you have a haiku mentor?

When I first started writing haiku, I joined a Facebook group where poets shared their work-in-progress and poems they had published. Marilyn Ward facilitated this group and was a fabulous resource.

Alan Summers often provided feedback and encouragement on my work. He was also one of the first editors to publish one of my poems and nominate me for a Touchstone Award. At the time I didn’t even know what a Touchstone was!

To me, mentors are anyone who works their craft. I learn from reading, discussing the form, engaging with other poets. I am inspired daily. This is a very giving community. We are blessed.

Where do you most often write?

As much as possible, I write in nature. It’s where my creative juices are happiest. Even though I aspire to write every day, I don’t force it. Sometimes life gets in the way and I can’t get out and about. When that happens, I look out the window and breathe in my surroundings.

Do you have a writing process?

Writing is an organic process for me. I strive to read and write haiku every day as this builds muscle memory. I learned this from playing ukulele. Practicing 10-15 minutes a day builds skills much faster than practicing for long periods (for example, cramming one’s practice into one long day per week). So I strive for small bursts.

If something piques my interest, I formulate as I walk, repeating the poem in my head until I find a rhythm. I also recite out loud, listening for musicality. Once a poem feels right, I jot it down in my Notes app on my iPhone.

I try to let my poems breathe for a while before I focus on framework, etc. Letting a poem marinade for a bit provides me with a fresh set of eyes. What sounds great in the moment can be absolute fodder a few days later.

My practice for haibun or tanka-prose is similar, but typically the prose is written at home, in a quiet space where I am not distracted (usually in bed or laying on the couch. For some reason, writing prose works best for me when I am horizontal). This is probably too much information!

How do you approach reading haiku?

I do not like to be disturbed when reading. So, a quiet space where I won’t be interrupted is key for me. I usually read a poem a few times . . . first for flow, musicality, content and then framework.

What are your favourite haiku that you have written and can you share a story behind one of them?

I’m not sure why I have chosen all single line poems, but here are a few:

with or without you snowdrops

until I’m fully awake hooting owl

paddling the rapids aging parents

parting reeds a green heron unmasks the moon

I wrote parting reeds on a walk beside a pond in Georgian Bay. I had just moved to Ontario to re-join my partner after my mother passed away and was feeling especially blue. Herons are one of my favourite birds and ones I associate with my mum as I saw so many after she died. At the time, I had never seen a green heron before, so was particularly chuffed to see this one tucked between some reeds. My mood lifted right away. I wrote this one as I stood watching. A magical moment.

You were an editor at Drifting Sands for about one and half years and at Triveni’s The Haibun Gallery for a year. What do you look for in a haibun? What do you feel are the key components of haibun?

For me, there are three components to a strong haibun or tanka-prose: 1) A title that entices; 2) engaging prose that flows well, doesn’t meander too much, and sounds good when read aloud (ie. no stumbling when reading it); and 3) where the haiku or tanka can stand alone and elevate the prose and title to the next level . . . to create a cohesive and engaging read. I also look to see how polished a piece is. It’s important for writers to submit our very best work, to proofread before sending.

You used to work as an Expressive Arts Therapist. How does your professional background influence your haiku, haibun and other poetry?

Given my working life, I have become comfortable over the years discussing uncomfortable topics. I like to write about real things, normalize topics in a way that can help others do the same. I have no hesitation writing about “the hard stuff.” I feel my writing is best when I am authentic. It can be quite cathartic and in some circumstances can help me let go of old storylines, situations or experiences that were holding me back. As a former therapist and counsellor I have seen the benefits of using different creative modalities to bring about healing.

At first glance, your books of poetry appear to cover different thematic topics. Yet both explore memory, love and loss. How did you organize your collections? Were you working on them both at the same time?

Yes, I worked on them simultaneously. However, loss is a river was a much quicker process than the improbability of sea monkeys (which took 4 years to bring to fruition).

I wrote loss is a river when I was caring for my mother in the last stages of her life. While some of the poems had been previously published, many of them were written in the last few months of my mum’s life. And given the urgency of the time and the grief I was experiencing, the writing process was extremely cathartic and fast moving. There was a period of time when I could only focus on the present, so the improbability of sea monkeys had to be put aside.

I found it quite easy to pick the poems for each book as in my head they were quite different, even though they contain similar themes.

For those just starting out, what advice would you give?

This is what works for me, it may not work for everyone:

• Read as much as you can from a diverse selection of poets and styles. Read as many journals as you can. This will help you understand what type of work a journal is interested in, and which journal fits you. Yes, it’s important to find the right fit for you as much as it is to find the right fit for the journal.
• Join a writing group (online or in-person) or reach out to a poet you admire. I feel that giving and receiving feedback can make the difference between being an okay writer to becoming a strong one.
• Write daily (Think small bursts, muscle memory).
• Try collaborative work. It’s fun and you may make a friend, which is always a good thing.
• Do not rush to submit. Give your work the time it needs to evolve and be the best it can be. I am guilty of putting work out before it was ready and I regret it now. Don’t be me. Be you.
• Don’t be daunted by rejection: it’s part of the writing process and is a useful tool for learning.
• Most importantly, have fun. If it feels like a slog, put the pen down (or whatever tool you use to write). Give it a rest. Sometimes a poem requires a long rest. Listen to it. There is no point rushing to make something work, or trying to adhere to a deadline. The poem will come when it is ready.

These are three of my favourite books:

• Haiku: Haiku Enlightenment by Gabriel Rosenstock
• Haibun: Haibun: A Writer’s Guide by Roberta Beary, Lew Watts and Rich Youmans
• Tanka: the tanka anthology: 800 of the best tanka in English by 68 of its finest practitioners. Edited by Michael McClintock, Pamela Miller Ness and Jim Kacian (for me this is a treasure trove).

These books are great for beginners and for seasoned poets.

Reid Hepworth is a Pushcart Prize and Touchstone nominated poet who has written two books, loss is a river and the improbability of sea monkeys (both by Adisakrit Publishing). The improbability of sea monkeys recently placed 3rd in the Haiku Society of America’s Merit Book Awards for 2026. Reid spent most of her life on Canada’s West Coast. She has recently relocated to Nova Scotia.