school holidays
in the empty yard
flame tree blossoms

_{—Tuyet Van Do, Australia}

peach iced tea
a wasp determined
to have its fill

_{—Deborah Karl-Brandt, Germany}

summer heat i become the mirage

_{—Mona Bedi, India}

communing over the fence summer squashes

_{—Julie Schwerin, United States}

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About

Tuyet Van Do lives in Melbourne, Australia. She loves poetry and writes whenever inspiration strikes. Her work has been widely published in various journals and anthologies. She was nominated for the Touchstone Award for Individual Poems (2022, 2025), and was the winner of The Irmo Cherry Blossom Festival Haiku Contest (2025).

Leon Tefft is a poet and author of Wild Orchids, Haiku Evolution and Haiku Traditions from Greenville, South Carolina. He is a member of the Haiku Society of America and the Tanka Society of America. You can see more of Leon’s work and connect with him at leontefft.com.

Louise Hopewell is an Australian poet and playwright based in Naarm/Melbourne. When not writing, Louise can be found riding her bicycle or playing ukulele.

Deborah Karl-Brandt works as an author, editor, and educator. Her poems have been published widely, and several have won awards. In 2025, she was selected as a fellow at Confluence. Her new book, Wild Rabbit Moon, was published in 2026.

Mona Bedi is a medical doctor in Delhi, India. Her haiku and senryu have been published in many journals of repute.She has received many awards.

Mircea Moldovan lives in the village of Letca, Romania. He has been writing haiku since 2021, having been published in numerous journals. He has won several international competitions, and have received mentions.

Julie Schwerin (she/her) is an associate editor at The Heron’s Nest (www.theheronsnest.com) and a member of the Red Moon Anthology Editorial team. Her first full-length collection of haiku, “fencing with the moon”, is now available through Finishing Line Press.

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