Join host Patricia on the Poetry Pea Podcast for a Poetry Pea Salon with award-winning haiku poet Melissa Dennison, reading from her book Caravan: A Trail of Haiku.

Discover the surprising poetic possibilities of snails, from silvery trails in the frost to the frustrations of a gardener. Melissa reads her haiku and discusses the inspiration behind her work, exploring seasonal references (kigo), juxtaposition, word associations and the art of finding poetry in the smallest details.

Patricia and Melissa take a closer look at individual poems, discussing how contrasting seasons can deepen a haiku, how a single word can open up unexpected associations, and how poets can guide readers towards new ways of seeing the world.

Melissa Dennison is a member of the Haiku Foundation’s Re:Virals team and was named among Europe’s top 100 haiku poets in 2025 and 2026.

Whether you write haiku, enjoy reading Japanese short-form poetry, or are simply curious about how everyday observations become memorable poems, this episode offers inspiration and insight into the craft of haiku.

In this episode:

• Melissa Dennison reads from Caravan: A Trail of Haiku
• Writing haiku inspired by snails and the natural world
• Kigo, seasonal contrast and juxtaposition
• Word associations and the layers of meaning in short poetry
• Exploring the poet’s intentions and the reader’s interpretation

Find Caravan: A Trail of Haiku via the link in the show notes.

Listen, enjoy, and perhaps look twice at the next snail trail you see.

The Poetry Pea Podcast celebrates haiku, senryū, tanka, haibun and other forms of short poetry, bringing poets and readers together to explore the craft and joy of writing.

Keep writing. Ciao!