About
confluence is a Japanese short-form journal centered on innovation and community. Our mission is to make a significant and lasting contribution to haiku, tanka, and related literary forms by:
- Publishing outstanding work that stretches the possibilities of the forms,
- Providing a venue for emerging poets to showcase a representative sample of their work and receive readership and recognition,
- Creating a vital, global community of poet Fellows, that collaborate together and engage deeply with one another’s work, and
- Introducing Japanese short-form poetry as a vibrant literary form to new readers and writers, outside the current niche of haiku and tanka poets.
confluence is edited by a team of four poets: Ryland Shengzhi Li, Rowan Beckett Minor, Matt Snyder, and David Green. You can contact the editors at editor [at] confluencehaiku [dot] com.
Editors
Ryland Shengzhi Li
Editor in Chief
Ryland Shengzhi Li (李晟之) (he/him) is a poet and environmental lawyer living in Northern Virginia, USA. He got initiated into Japanese short form poetry through Towpath, a local haiku group in the National Capital Area. Poetry teaches him how to pay attention and to see the beauty and interdependence of all things. His favorite poets include Mary Oliver, Kahlil Gibran, and Jenny Ward Angyal, whose writings are beautiful, profound, and wise. In his free time, Ryland also enjoys being with loved ones, exploring America’s public lands, and capturing photos of exquisite and hidden things. Find out more about Ryland’s haiku journey at The Haiku Foundation.
Rowan Beckett Minor
Associate Editor
Rowan Beckett Minor (they/them) is a disabled Melungeon poet from Prince, WV who currently resides in Cleveland, OH. They are editor-in-chief of #FemkuMag, which they founded in 2018. Their work has been featured in: Mayfly, The Heron’s Nest, A New Resonance 12, as a confluence fellow for 2024-2025, as a presenter for Haiku North America (2019, 2021), and as co-judge for the HSA Brady Senryu Contest (2022). Rowan has been the recipient of several awards, including the Haiku Moment Award for Best of Autumn Moon Haiku Journal, Volume 7 and three winning poems in the 2023 Trailblazer Contest. They also served as the Haiku Society of America Midwest Regional Coordinator in 2024. When not utilizing poetry for healing and activism, Rowan can be found watching Twilight Zone and collecting ethically sourced oddities.
Matt Snyder
Associate Editor
Matt Snyder is a gardener, runner, poet, uncle, living in NC by way of DC from IN. He came to haiku by happy accident, and found community and inspiration in groups like Towpath and NC Haiku. Since taking up the pen, his work has appeared in a variety of journals, anthologies, and other places. Writing haiku helps Matt to be present, observant, and appreciative. More of his projects at Pittsboro Pine Press.
David Green
Associate Editor
Senior Fellows
Once our poet Fellows successfully complete their fellowship year, they become Senior Fellows. Senior Fellows may remain an integral part of the confluence community, including by participating in collaborative writing events, nominating new Fellows, joining the editorial team, and more.
2024-25
- Carissa Coane - Los Angeles, California
- Nicky Gutierrez - Akron, Ohio
- Rowan Beckett Minor - Cleveland, Ohio
- David Green - Chicago, Illinois
- Lorraine A Padden - San Diego, California
- Daniel Shank Cruz - Jersey City, New Jersey
- Vandana Parashar - Panchkula, India
Former Editors
We are grateful for our former editors who brought confluence to where it is today: Antoinette Cheung (2024-25) and Aidan Castle (2024). Like Senior Fellows, former editors also remain an integral part of the confluence community and may participate in our collaborative writing events, nominate new Fellows, and more.