East Meets West

W3 challenge

Bob
A Limerick and Kyoka cross paths.

There once was a fella named Bob,
Who thought he was wise for the job
He started to brag,
Then opened the bag,
But shamed himself at the hobnob.

sullen and cranky
he ripped open the chip bag
chips flew in the air
hurling the bag to the ground
he smashed all the chips he found

Kaci Rigney Copyright 2026

Reena’s prompt: East meets West
For this week’s W³ challenge, writers are invited to combine one Western poetic form with one Japanese poetic form. You may choose any one of the following combinations.

1. Cinquain + Haiku

Cinquain follows the syllabic structure of 2, 4, 6, 8, 2.

Haiku may follow any of the following syllabic structures:

• 3, 5, 3
• 5, 7, 5
• Short, long, short

Both parts should either reflect the same theme, or the second part may overturn the first with a shift in mood. However, they should remain connected in some way and not read like two separate poems.

2. Shadorma Haibun

Haibun is tightly written prose, preferably nonfiction, written in first person. Replace the haiku in this format with a shadorma, and feel free to vary its placement.

You may place the shadorma at the beginning, middle, or end.

Shadorma follows the syllabic structure of 3, 5, 3, 3, 7, 5.

3. Limerick + Kyōka

Limerick is a light-hearted five-line verse with the rhyme scheme AABBA.

Kyōka is a playful Japanese verse form with the syllabic structure 5, 7, 5, 7, 7. You may use the following progression as a guide:

• Line 1: exaggerated detail
• Line 2: satirical twist
• Line 3: playful commentary
• Line 4: mocking reflection
• Line 5: comic conclusion

4. Poet’s choice

If you think you can do better by combining other Western and Japanese forms, feel free to experiment. Just let us know the names and syllabic structures of the forms you chose.