Poetic journal

A poetic journal is a literary genre combining aspects of poetry with the daily, or near daily, "takes" of journal writing. Born of twin impulses: to track change in daily life and to memorialize experience, poetic journals owe allegiances to Asian writing — particularly the Japanese haibun of Matsuo Bashō, The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon, and the poetic diaries of Masaoka Shiki — as well as Objectivist poets and others associated with Donald Allen's anthology The New American Poetry 1945-1960. Unlike traditional diaries or journals that focus primarily on recounting a day's experience, poetic journals emphasize the act of writing itself in collaboration with the day's account. Taking its cue from post-Jack Kerouac writers, like Bernadette Mayer and Clark Coolidge, the poetic journal aims to be all-inclusive as well as timely and attentive. To quote Tyler Doherty in his introduction to For the Time Being: The Bootstrap Book of Poetic Journals, " [The poetic journal] doesn't try to tell us what the world is, so much as remind us that the world is."

Influences
Asian Influences: Matsuo Bashō, Sei Shōnagon, Masaoka Shiki.

19th Century Naturalist Influences: Henry David Thoreau.

Objectivist influences: William Carlos Williams, Lorine Niedecker, Charles Reznikoff.

Selected poetic journals
Poetic Journal Anthologies: Tyler Doherty & Tom Morgan: For the Time-Being: The Bootstrap Book of Poetic Journals Poetic Journals: Paul Blackburn: The Journals

Tyler Doherty: Bodhidharma Never Came to Hatboro

Larry Eigner: Readiness / Enough / Depends / On

Zoketsu Norman Fischer: The Narrow Roads of Japan

Allen Ginsberg: The Fall of America

Jack Kerouac: Book of Sketches

Joanne Kyger: Again; As Ever; Patzcuaro

David Lehman: The Daily Mirror

Bernadette Mayer: Midwinter’s Day

Michael Rothenberg: Unhurried Vision, The Paris Journals, Narcissus

Ron Silliman: Bart; Xing

Louis MacNeice: Autumn Journal; Xing

Andrew Schelling: The Road to Ocosingo; Two Elk: A High Country Notebook

Joel Sloman: Cuban Journal

Gary Snyder: Earth House Hold

Philip Whalen: Goofbook

John Wieners: 707 Scott Street Robert Crosson: Daybook