There are moments that lean toward wonder but never quite cross the threshold. A trick where the thread shows, a wish that flickers but doesn’t hold, a shimmer that fades as quickly as it appeared.
It’s not failure, exactly - it’s the pause where anticipation lingers, suspended, before settling back into the ordinary. That edge between possibility and reality can feel sharper than either side, leaving you with the sense that you nearly touched something impossible.
For our latest Haiku Feud, we asked poets to live inside that in-between space: the almost, the could-have-been, the instant where marvel wavered and slipped away. They distilled that fleeting sensation into 17 syllables, small spells that nearly held.
Here’s the haiku that brushed against magic and left us breathless in its wake:
🏆 Winning Haiku by Steven Small
Temporary love
a summer of fireflies
left to dim in fall
🥈 Runner-Up by Kyle Parker
A flick, then a burst!
Darkness eliminated
Electrons vibrate.
And because every submission was incredible, we’re sharing them all below.
Haiku Feud Submissions
The children waving
their magic wands
fireflies appear
by Sari Grandstaff
He ran off the cliff
like Wile E Coyote.
Floated…Looked down…Yikes…
by Peter Freeman
The Black Magician
Casting the spells from within
Death goes unpunished
by Tyrike Brown
Months of nurturing
Both prepared and excited
A new born cries out
by Joseph Adomavicia
Speckled countertops
everything bagel almost
never existed
by Jessica Whipple
There's a day hap'ning
Wake up! Get up! Wait for what?
You are being called.
by Jane Leibowitz
You train it on your
mother’s voice just so you can
hear how she loves you.
by Salena Casha
The spell had been cast
It faded away like stars
In the early dawn
by Isabella Ivy
Leaves and hot water
delight brews as it alters
first sweet sips of tea
by Jodi Kurpiel
My vibrancy, back:
Spreading like watercolor
Abstract revival
by Elizabeth Bihn
A crescent moon shines
With each sip of chamomile
Lotuses blooming
by Brandon Bellissimo
Join the Next Haiku Feud
Want to see your words featured next time? Follow us on Instagram @haikuists for the next Haiku Feud prompt.
Bring Poetry to Your Next Event
Imagine this same magic live at your event. Our typewriter poets create one-of-a-kind haiku for your guests in real time.
Perfect for:
✨ Weddings
✨ Corporate events
✨ Birthday parties & anniversaries
✨ Brand activations
