Michael Antman is the author of the novels Cherry Whip: Twentieth Anniversary Edition, Everything Solid Has a Shadow, and the recently completed novel A Distant Place of Slaughter. He is a two-time finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Balakian Award for Excellence in Book Reviewing. He is also a theatre critic, urban photographer and poet, and formerly the Global Head of Marketing for a Fortune 100 company

This is Michael’s second appearance on Re-Creative. This time he tells Joe and Mark the origin of his love for Japanese culture. According to Michael, it all happened because he didn’t know what a “porter” was (it’s not what you think…)

Well, that and his discovery of a six volume history of haiku:

To Michael, haiku has always been “a wonderful diversion.” It’s a passion that Mark shares, both Michael and Mark having actually published haiku in The Mainichi Daily News.

“A writer writes,” Michael reminds us, advice he received from fellow writer Scott Turow. “I’m a writer, that’s what I do.”

And to prove it (not that we needed proof), he shares with us all a choice morsel of his own haiku in the episode.

And here are four other haiku that Michael has written, one for each season:

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