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busted haiku
With his first book of poetry John Coulton Waugh introduces a category of cutting-edge short poems, paired with striking photographs and artwork, that he calls
busted haiku
. With glossy pages and high quality printing, busted is a unique gift idea for any poetry buff.
Waugh's busted haiku is an unconventional and thought-provoking poetry collection, part meditation, part rebellion. In these minimalist yet piercing verses, Waugh redefines haiku and senryu forms, breaking them open to reveal raw, humorous, and deeply human insights. With flair and wit, alongside striking images, he explores memory, time, and the fractured beauty of perception. This is haiku after the rules have gone home, poetry that’s been set free.
In busted, Waugh delivers a vivid, unfiltered exploration of modern consciousness through the fractured lens of poetic brevity. These are not traditional haiku or senryu; they are “busted,” reshaped into free-form meditations that question language, perception, and what it means to see and to be. Paired with evocative artwork on every page, and drawing inspiration from Zen, humor, and personal reflection, Waugh’s poems wander the boundary between presence and absurdity. From “first loves / her hand and mine” to “first crocus pokes winter in the ass,” his words dance between reverence and irreverence, silence and laughter.
The collection is both accessible and profound, inviting readers to engage rather than simply observe, to participate in seeing the world anew. With an artist’s eye and a philosopher’s wit, Waugh creates a space where poetry and play converge. Perfect for readers of Richard Brautigan, Billy Collins, Matsuo Bashō (reimagined), and Charles Bukowski, busted haiku will resonate with lovers of experimental and Zen-inspired poetry.
The high quality printing, with artwork and photographs on every other page, make busted haiku a unique gift for any occasion, especially for lovers of spontaneity and imagination.
Read more at bustedhaiku.com
Waugh's busted haiku is an unconventional and thought-provoking poetry collection, part meditation, part rebellion. In these minimalist yet piercing verses, Waugh redefines haiku and senryu forms, breaking them open to reveal raw, humorous, and deeply human insights. With flair and wit, alongside striking images, he explores memory, time, and the fractured beauty of perception. This is haiku after the rules have gone home, poetry that’s been set free.
In busted, Waugh delivers a vivid, unfiltered exploration of modern consciousness through the fractured lens of poetic brevity. These are not traditional haiku or senryu; they are “busted,” reshaped into free-form meditations that question language, perception, and what it means to see and to be. Paired with evocative artwork on every page, and drawing inspiration from Zen, humor, and personal reflection, Waugh’s poems wander the boundary between presence and absurdity. From “first loves / her hand and mine” to “first crocus pokes winter in the ass,” his words dance between reverence and irreverence, silence and laughter.
The collection is both accessible and profound, inviting readers to engage rather than simply observe, to participate in seeing the world anew. With an artist’s eye and a philosopher’s wit, Waugh creates a space where poetry and play converge. Perfect for readers of Richard Brautigan, Billy Collins, Matsuo Bashō (reimagined), and Charles Bukowski, busted haiku will resonate with lovers of experimental and Zen-inspired poetry.
The high quality printing, with artwork and photographs on every other page, make busted haiku a unique gift for any occasion, especially for lovers of spontaneity and imagination.
Read more at bustedhaiku.com
84 pages, Hardcover
Published December 14, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 26, 2026
There is a moment in this slim, gorgeous book where the poem reads simply "used enlightenment / as-is / needs work," and I laughed out loud, alone, at my kitchen table. That is what John Coulton Waugh does here. He catches you off guard and then, before you can recover, says something that actually lands.
Busted Haiku is not trying to be a traditional poetry collection and it knows it. The outroduction, placed where an introduction would conventionally go, explains that these poems come unbidden, late at night, as flashes rather than craft sessions. That honesty shapes how you read them. They feel found rather than constructed, which is both their charm and occasionally their limitation.
The pairing of poem and photograph works better than I expected. A dandelion surviving between a tire and a curb. A child watching art at a museum. Shattered glass. The images do not illustrate the words so much as sit beside them, companions in the same mood. The design is genuinely beautiful.
Where I wanted slightly more was consistency. Some of the shorter pieces feel less like a completed thought and more like a fragment waiting for a second line that never arrived. Not every page earns its silence.
But then you hit "tiny spider / i too hang in vastness" or "withered vine memories / hang / from the old house" and the whole thing justifies itself completely.
This is a book you leave on a coffee table and return to when you need a small reminder that someone else is paying attention to the strangeness of being alive.
Busted Haiku is not trying to be a traditional poetry collection and it knows it. The outroduction, placed where an introduction would conventionally go, explains that these poems come unbidden, late at night, as flashes rather than craft sessions. That honesty shapes how you read them. They feel found rather than constructed, which is both their charm and occasionally their limitation.
The pairing of poem and photograph works better than I expected. A dandelion surviving between a tire and a curb. A child watching art at a museum. Shattered glass. The images do not illustrate the words so much as sit beside them, companions in the same mood. The design is genuinely beautiful.
Where I wanted slightly more was consistency. Some of the shorter pieces feel less like a completed thought and more like a fragment waiting for a second line that never arrived. Not every page earns its silence.
But then you hit "tiny spider / i too hang in vastness" or "withered vine memories / hang / from the old house" and the whole thing justifies itself completely.
This is a book you leave on a coffee table and return to when you need a small reminder that someone else is paying attention to the strangeness of being alive.
February 14, 2026
Poking holes in reality’s wallpaper
Washington state author John Waugh lives in Lopez Island brings his uniquely creative gifts to bring free-form meditations that question language, perception, and what it means to see and to be. As he has stated on his website, ‘My Muse invaded my consciousness one day to urge me to develop a new sub-genre of haiku poetry. This resulted in what I call busted haiku, the subject of this website, and of the book by the same name.’
Opening this beautifully composed and illustrated volume invites contemplation as well as initiating smiles as turning each page offers Waugh’s brief but pungent poems accompanied by photographs and art works that encourage further musings. A few examples:
loves me not / she loves me / I quit while ahead
promise me everything / no strings today
tiny spider / I too hang in vastness
The art of by Kate Scott and Lorry K White along with images by the author and moments of inspiration from fascinating sources bring a sense of universality to this radiant collection. Highly recommended!
Washington state author John Waugh lives in Lopez Island brings his uniquely creative gifts to bring free-form meditations that question language, perception, and what it means to see and to be. As he has stated on his website, ‘My Muse invaded my consciousness one day to urge me to develop a new sub-genre of haiku poetry. This resulted in what I call busted haiku, the subject of this website, and of the book by the same name.’
Opening this beautifully composed and illustrated volume invites contemplation as well as initiating smiles as turning each page offers Waugh’s brief but pungent poems accompanied by photographs and art works that encourage further musings. A few examples:
loves me not / she loves me / I quit while ahead
promise me everything / no strings today
tiny spider / I too hang in vastness
The art of by Kate Scott and Lorry K White along with images by the author and moments of inspiration from fascinating sources bring a sense of universality to this radiant collection. Highly recommended!
December 16, 2025
A Sharp, Playful, Quietly Profound Debut
John Coulton Waugh’s Busted Haiku is one of those rare poetry collections that feels both mischievous and meditative at once. Drawing from the bones of haiku and senryu but refusing to be confined by them, Waugh breaks the form open, sometimes gently, sometimes with a wink and invites the reader into a world where humor, irreverence, and sudden clarity coexist in a single breath.
The pairing of poems with photographs and artwork adds another layer of texture. The visuals don’t merely decorate; they converse with the text, amplifying the sense of fractured perception and playful inquiry that runs through the book.
A beautifully produced, thought-provoking, and delightfully offbeat collection.
John Coulton Waugh’s Busted Haiku is one of those rare poetry collections that feels both mischievous and meditative at once. Drawing from the bones of haiku and senryu but refusing to be confined by them, Waugh breaks the form open, sometimes gently, sometimes with a wink and invites the reader into a world where humor, irreverence, and sudden clarity coexist in a single breath.
The pairing of poems with photographs and artwork adds another layer of texture. The visuals don’t merely decorate; they converse with the text, amplifying the sense of fractured perception and playful inquiry that runs through the book.
A beautifully produced, thought-provoking, and delightfully offbeat collection.
March 29, 2026
the world needs more of this
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews