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Sunflower Tanka: A 2025 Anthology of Tanka, Tanka Prose, & Experimental Tanka
Sunflower Tanka, edited by Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, is an annual anthology showcasing contemporary tanka, tanka prose, and experimental tanka. Each volume brings together a vibrant tapestry of voices—both emerging and established—from across the globe.
For 2025, our theme “Dreams” invites poets to explore the symbolic language of dreaming, where metaphors blur the line between reality and imagination. Dreams often serve as gateways to layered meaning, offering fertile ground for syllabic poetry.
This year’s contributors journeyed deep into their dreamscapes, opening portals to boundless creativity. Through the timeless form of syllabic verse, they captured visions that transcend waking life, weaving poetry that resonates with mystery, wonder, and the infinite possibilities of the human imagination.
For 2025, our theme “Dreams” invites poets to explore the symbolic language of dreaming, where metaphors blur the line between reality and imagination. Dreams often serve as gateways to layered meaning, offering fertile ground for syllabic poetry.
This year’s contributors journeyed deep into their dreamscapes, opening portals to boundless creativity. Through the timeless form of syllabic verse, they captured visions that transcend waking life, weaving poetry that resonates with mystery, wonder, and the infinite possibilities of the human imagination.
172 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 3, 2025
1 person is currently reading
About the author
Colleen M. Chesebro
17 books88 followersColleen M. Chesebro grew up in a large city in the Midwest. Keen on making her own way in the world, she joined the United States Air Force after graduation to tour the world and find herself. To this day, that search continues.
An avid reader, Colleen M. Chesebro rekindled her love of writing poetry after years spent working in the accounting industry. These days, she loves crafting syllabic poetry, flash fiction, and creative fiction and nonfiction.
In addition to poetry books, Chesebro’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry.
She’s an avid supporter of her writing community on tankatuesday.com by editing the Sunflower Tanka Anthology, a yearly syllabic poetry anthology dedicated to tanka, tanka prose, & other experimental tanka forms.
In January 2022, Colleen founded Unicorn Cats Publishing Services to assist poets and authors in creating e-books and print books for publication. In addition, she creates book covers for Kindle and print book versions.
Chesebro lives in the house of her dreams in mid-Michigan, surrounded by the Great Lakes, with her husband and two (unicorn) cats, Chloe & Sophie.
Find Colleen at Tanka Tuesday at www.tankatuesday.com.
Find Colleen’s author blog at www.colleenchesebro.org.
An avid reader, Colleen M. Chesebro rekindled her love of writing poetry after years spent working in the accounting industry. These days, she loves crafting syllabic poetry, flash fiction, and creative fiction and nonfiction.
In addition to poetry books, Chesebro’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry.
She’s an avid supporter of her writing community on tankatuesday.com by editing the Sunflower Tanka Anthology, a yearly syllabic poetry anthology dedicated to tanka, tanka prose, & other experimental tanka forms.
In January 2022, Colleen founded Unicorn Cats Publishing Services to assist poets and authors in creating e-books and print books for publication. In addition, she creates book covers for Kindle and print book versions.
Chesebro lives in the house of her dreams in mid-Michigan, surrounded by the Great Lakes, with her husband and two (unicorn) cats, Chloe & Sophie.
Find Colleen at Tanka Tuesday at www.tankatuesday.com.
Find Colleen’s author blog at www.colleenchesebro.org.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 29, 2025
This is the second anthology of Sunflower Tanka edited by Colleen Chesebro and Robbie Cheadle. I was impressed with the first collection (written around the theme of “Into the Light”) and looked forward to diving into this one.
The theme of this collection is “Dreams,” and an introduction to the collection shares the inspiration for the theme and the many ways in which the word can be interpreted. If you seek dreams of romance, you will find a few of those, for those are a vital part of human dreaming, but there are also poems about abiding love, about loss, about regrets, disappointment, and longing. There are dreams dashed and dreams that will never come to pass. I found the collection rich in variety and many, many poems deeply resonant.
The anthology includes over 150 poems written by 54 poets from around the world. Tanka is a Japanese style of poetry, and this collection highlights several variations on the well-known 5-line tanka, including tanka-prose, taiga, bussokusekika, experimental tanka, garland tanka, and tanka puente. Each author has a “chapter” of three poems, preceded by a short bibliography, should readers want to learn more about the authors and their work.
The editors introduce each tanka form at the end of the book with examples chosen from among the submitted poetry. Some of my favorite poems were highlighted in this section.
It was challenging to pick favorites from a collection rife with beautifully written poems, so I chose two conventional tanka (only five lines) to share. Tanka are untitled.
This one is by Tammy L. Gajewski:
Momma drew a breath
rattling liquid bubbled slow
like new frogs in warm red mud
she floated to big ursa
leaving me alone in bed
And this one by Selma Martin:
all the words have faded
August sun took care of that
faded, too, my dreams
yet bees hum ‘round globes of clover
a tale sweeter than a rhyme
A highly recommended collection for lovers of poetry.
The theme of this collection is “Dreams,” and an introduction to the collection shares the inspiration for the theme and the many ways in which the word can be interpreted. If you seek dreams of romance, you will find a few of those, for those are a vital part of human dreaming, but there are also poems about abiding love, about loss, about regrets, disappointment, and longing. There are dreams dashed and dreams that will never come to pass. I found the collection rich in variety and many, many poems deeply resonant.
The anthology includes over 150 poems written by 54 poets from around the world. Tanka is a Japanese style of poetry, and this collection highlights several variations on the well-known 5-line tanka, including tanka-prose, taiga, bussokusekika, experimental tanka, garland tanka, and tanka puente. Each author has a “chapter” of three poems, preceded by a short bibliography, should readers want to learn more about the authors and their work.
The editors introduce each tanka form at the end of the book with examples chosen from among the submitted poetry. Some of my favorite poems were highlighted in this section.
It was challenging to pick favorites from a collection rife with beautifully written poems, so I chose two conventional tanka (only five lines) to share. Tanka are untitled.
This one is by Tammy L. Gajewski:
Momma drew a breath
rattling liquid bubbled slow
like new frogs in warm red mud
she floated to big ursa
leaving me alone in bed
And this one by Selma Martin:
all the words have faded
August sun took care of that
faded, too, my dreams
yet bees hum ‘round globes of clover
a tale sweeter than a rhyme
A highly recommended collection for lovers of poetry.
December 10, 2025
This is the second edition of the Sunflower Tanka, and this year’s theme was dreams. Normally, I would list all the poets, but this year there were an amazing fifty-four, and too many to include. I am a fan of symbolic poetry and the tanka format. A favorite is tanka prose, but in reading this, I fell in love with the garland tanka and will be giving it a try. I enjoyed meeting each poet, some I knew, others were new to me. They were from all around the world and really added to the depth and perspective of this collection. There is no way I could narrow it down to just a couple of my favorites or outstanding examples; everything I read was good. I loved the different takes on dreams that wove through my emotions as I read. There were many I’d have to stop and reread to appreciate the beautiful images created. This could easily be one of my favorite collections, showcasing so many poetic voices. I highly recommend this to anyone who loves poetry!
December 30, 2025
"The Sunflower Tanka Anthology" compiled by Colleen Chesebro and Robbie Cheadle as contributing editors is a delightful collection of syllabic poetry contributed by fifty-four poets from all around the world. If the theme of the first edition of the anthology, published in 2024 was “Into the Light”, the theme of the 2025 edition was “Dreams”. The compiled poems feel like a luminous exploration of the theme, dreams as both personal moments and as a shared human language and experience. Poets from across the globe give voice to their visions, each shaped by different cultures, traditions and backgrounds, yet the theme of dreams and dreaming weaves them all into a beautifully cohesive whole.
The concise elegance of Tanka poetry sits wonderfully beside reflective Tanka prose and wonderful Taigas, allowing fleeting images, half-remembered visions or quiet longings to surface with clarity and emotional depth. What makes the collection especially compelling is the sense of universality that it gives, transcending the personal into the wider scope of the human journey. Dreams become therefore bridges – between past and future, sleeping and waking time, the self and the world, and each piece feels like an invitation to pause and listen.
Ultimately, this elegant bringing together of poetic voices, having the Tanka poetry and prose form as a common denominator, reveals how dreams can help and heal, can inspire or unsettle, can make us pause and ponder or carry us along, but beyond all… how they can connect us all beyond borders. I enjoyed the variety of perspectives and tones through the creations gathered in the anthology, the ebb and flow of diverse points of view and takes on the idea of dreams.
I am absolutely delighted to be one of the contributors and add this lovely publication to my poetry collection! The splendid cover of the anthology was created by Colleen using one of Robbie's watercolor paintings and the green-haired flower maiden based on Meadow, a character from one of Teagan Riordain Geneviene’s imaginative stories, Atonement in Bloom.
The anthology is both gentle and expansive, gracefully forthcoming and with a warm velvety feel to it, as if of a genuine togetherness, thus offering readers a contemplative stroll through the separate and shared mindscape of human dreams and imagination. I warmly recommend it to all lovers of poetry, of beauty and... of dreams!
The concise elegance of Tanka poetry sits wonderfully beside reflective Tanka prose and wonderful Taigas, allowing fleeting images, half-remembered visions or quiet longings to surface with clarity and emotional depth. What makes the collection especially compelling is the sense of universality that it gives, transcending the personal into the wider scope of the human journey. Dreams become therefore bridges – between past and future, sleeping and waking time, the self and the world, and each piece feels like an invitation to pause and listen.
Ultimately, this elegant bringing together of poetic voices, having the Tanka poetry and prose form as a common denominator, reveals how dreams can help and heal, can inspire or unsettle, can make us pause and ponder or carry us along, but beyond all… how they can connect us all beyond borders. I enjoyed the variety of perspectives and tones through the creations gathered in the anthology, the ebb and flow of diverse points of view and takes on the idea of dreams.
I am absolutely delighted to be one of the contributors and add this lovely publication to my poetry collection! The splendid cover of the anthology was created by Colleen using one of Robbie's watercolor paintings and the green-haired flower maiden based on Meadow, a character from one of Teagan Riordain Geneviene’s imaginative stories, Atonement in Bloom.
The anthology is both gentle and expansive, gracefully forthcoming and with a warm velvety feel to it, as if of a genuine togetherness, thus offering readers a contemplative stroll through the separate and shared mindscape of human dreams and imagination. I warmly recommend it to all lovers of poetry, of beauty and... of dreams!
December 30, 2025
“Dreams have always been a part of us. Long ago, our ancestors gazed into the fire and retold the stories from their dreams. Some believed their dreams to be messages from the gods or previews of future events. Even now, our dreams remain one of the greatest mysteries of our time.” p. 11
I am honored to have my poems included in this anthology about the various meanings of dreams. Colleen Chesebro and Robbie Cheadle have created a unique collection of poetry.
Starting with the cover, the colors and artwork were so appealing. I would read it just based on the attractive cover.
There were poems with narrative sections, long and short, and many with no narrative. All took the reader on a world of images beyond their own imaginations.
This was one of my favorites by Michael Fishman. It was preceded by a touching story of a couple who cared for each other, but had lost that first-love spark. She was advised by a counselor to go on a trip by herself to get grounded. He was devastated.
“there on the sidewalk—
image of you still with me,
dreams burn with hot fire
feeling the tears fall as you
take the bus to anywhere”
(p. 61)
I particularly love the Garland Tanka form, where the first five tankas contribute one line each to the last stanza. This is the last stanza of a Tanka Garland by Miriam Hurdle, which is particularly charming. I can see her sifting through clouds to find her next adventure.
“I see myself in dreams
searching through layers of clouds
ready to take steps
my head agrees with my heart
arriving at my dream at last”
(p. 77)
One of my favorite parts after reading all the poems was to read Colleen’s and Robbie’s analyses of several of their favorites. Poetry speaks to all of us on a very personal level, and talking about it introduces the reader to another perspective. This poem by Freya Pickard was one of Robbie’s and my favorites.
“dream play together
chequered board of green and white
instead of counters
vegetables, fruit, and nuts;
I don’t understand the rules
Robbie: This poem made me think. How often do we enter into situations or make decisions without understanding, or even knowing, the rules? This impetuousness and/or lack of initiative can lead to us making grave mistakes.”
(p. 159)
The poem made me think of a dream my mother told me after she had a heart attack and came out of medically induced sleep. Cats directed an orchestra, and flowers came out of the walls while she watched a concert from “Room 101.” The number was somehow important. Different topic, but the substance of dreams constitutes places we go where we don’t know the rules.
This book rates reading several times, and gets five stars from me. Well done, authors and editors.
I am honored to have my poems included in this anthology about the various meanings of dreams. Colleen Chesebro and Robbie Cheadle have created a unique collection of poetry.
Starting with the cover, the colors and artwork were so appealing. I would read it just based on the attractive cover.
There were poems with narrative sections, long and short, and many with no narrative. All took the reader on a world of images beyond their own imaginations.
This was one of my favorites by Michael Fishman. It was preceded by a touching story of a couple who cared for each other, but had lost that first-love spark. She was advised by a counselor to go on a trip by herself to get grounded. He was devastated.
“there on the sidewalk—
image of you still with me,
dreams burn with hot fire
feeling the tears fall as you
take the bus to anywhere”
(p. 61)
I particularly love the Garland Tanka form, where the first five tankas contribute one line each to the last stanza. This is the last stanza of a Tanka Garland by Miriam Hurdle, which is particularly charming. I can see her sifting through clouds to find her next adventure.
“I see myself in dreams
searching through layers of clouds
ready to take steps
my head agrees with my heart
arriving at my dream at last”
(p. 77)
One of my favorite parts after reading all the poems was to read Colleen’s and Robbie’s analyses of several of their favorites. Poetry speaks to all of us on a very personal level, and talking about it introduces the reader to another perspective. This poem by Freya Pickard was one of Robbie’s and my favorites.
“dream play together
chequered board of green and white
instead of counters
vegetables, fruit, and nuts;
I don’t understand the rules
Robbie: This poem made me think. How often do we enter into situations or make decisions without understanding, or even knowing, the rules? This impetuousness and/or lack of initiative can lead to us making grave mistakes.”
(p. 159)
The poem made me think of a dream my mother told me after she had a heart attack and came out of medically induced sleep. Cats directed an orchestra, and flowers came out of the walls while she watched a concert from “Room 101.” The number was somehow important. Different topic, but the substance of dreams constitutes places we go where we don’t know the rules.
This book rates reading several times, and gets five stars from me. Well done, authors and editors.
January 29, 2026
Reflective Tanka—who would’ve thought?! You’ll want to eavesdrop.
You know how they claim that the syllabic verses in Sunflower Tanka, A 2025 Anthology of Tanka, Tanka Prose, & Experimental Tanka - Dreams- edited by Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, captures visions that transcend waking life, and that it weaves poetry that resonates with mystery, wonder, and the infinite possibilities of the human imagination? Well, this reader is here to tell you it’s all true. Sunflower Tanka, by contributing editors Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, is that and more. The delightful poetry anthology that includes poets from all over the world melds voices through poetry that anyone who enjoys the beauty of the written word will be drawn to. There’s plenty to select from in the fifty-four voices included within.
One of my very favorite poems is by Author Nicole Smith. Her Taiga in which she talks about remembering and honoring her beloved, still turned to the sun like a sunflower. Also, Author Yvette M. Calleiro Taiga: the image and words in miracle baby that expresses my feelings about my own babies. How fantastic is this! But each poem brings something relevant that opened me up for more. To the editors I say, thanks for making this anthology available to all.
I splurged on a paperback copy and am happy to confess the book has my markings now. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I feel pampered. So, if you’re debating on whether or not this book is worth it, I assure you it is. It will show you plenty about dreams and other things you’d never know otherwise but will understand instinctively.
Lastly, I need to mention that I’m delighted to be one of the contributors (Ch. 33) in this lovely collection writing to you from my husband’s native land, Japan, and I give this lovely dreamy collection a proud, resounding five star rating. Get it to find out why.
You know how they claim that the syllabic verses in Sunflower Tanka, A 2025 Anthology of Tanka, Tanka Prose, & Experimental Tanka - Dreams- edited by Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, captures visions that transcend waking life, and that it weaves poetry that resonates with mystery, wonder, and the infinite possibilities of the human imagination? Well, this reader is here to tell you it’s all true. Sunflower Tanka, by contributing editors Robbie Cheadle and Colleen M. Chesebro, is that and more. The delightful poetry anthology that includes poets from all over the world melds voices through poetry that anyone who enjoys the beauty of the written word will be drawn to. There’s plenty to select from in the fifty-four voices included within.
One of my very favorite poems is by Author Nicole Smith. Her Taiga in which she talks about remembering and honoring her beloved, still turned to the sun like a sunflower. Also, Author Yvette M. Calleiro Taiga: the image and words in miracle baby that expresses my feelings about my own babies. How fantastic is this! But each poem brings something relevant that opened me up for more. To the editors I say, thanks for making this anthology available to all.
I splurged on a paperback copy and am happy to confess the book has my markings now. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I feel pampered. So, if you’re debating on whether or not this book is worth it, I assure you it is. It will show you plenty about dreams and other things you’d never know otherwise but will understand instinctively.
Lastly, I need to mention that I’m delighted to be one of the contributors (Ch. 33) in this lovely collection writing to you from my husband’s native land, Japan, and I give this lovely dreamy collection a proud, resounding five star rating. Get it to find out why.
December 13, 2025
This is a collection of beautiful syllabic poems contributed by 54 poets from around the world. All the poems centre around the theme of dreams and the range of interpretations is fascinating.
The poems in the collection comprise of tanka, tanka prose, garland tanka, tanka Puente, bussokuseki, rensaku and taiga which includes a black and white image and they collectively form a delightful poetry adventure.
The collection is introduced with an interesting overview about the inspiration for the theme and the various meanings of the word dreams. This section closes with a delightful tanka by partnering editor, Colleen Chesebro, as follows:
rain cools with sky-mist
sweet drops spark my appetite
whispering prayers
moonlight breaks through the darkness
a feverish dream of you
The collection concludes with a selection of each of the partnering editors favourite poems and the reasons why those specific poems resonated with each of them.
One of my favourite poems is by Yvette M. Calleiro:
miracle baby
you came to me in a dream
blessing from above
missing puzzle piece in life
my greatest accomplishment
I feel this way about my own two sons and so this poem has stayed in my heart.
A delightful collection of poetry that will make a lovely gift to others or to yourself.
The poems in the collection comprise of tanka, tanka prose, garland tanka, tanka Puente, bussokuseki, rensaku and taiga which includes a black and white image and they collectively form a delightful poetry adventure.
The collection is introduced with an interesting overview about the inspiration for the theme and the various meanings of the word dreams. This section closes with a delightful tanka by partnering editor, Colleen Chesebro, as follows:
rain cools with sky-mist
sweet drops spark my appetite
whispering prayers
moonlight breaks through the darkness
a feverish dream of you
The collection concludes with a selection of each of the partnering editors favourite poems and the reasons why those specific poems resonated with each of them.
One of my favourite poems is by Yvette M. Calleiro:
miracle baby
you came to me in a dream
blessing from above
missing puzzle piece in life
my greatest accomplishment
I feel this way about my own two sons and so this poem has stayed in my heart.
A delightful collection of poetry that will make a lovely gift to others or to yourself.
December 20, 2025
Sunflower Tanka 2025 anthology of Tanka, Tanka Prose and Experimental Tanka begins with an introduction and a short explanation of the different forms of poetry included in this collection: Tanka, Tanka Prose, Bussokuseki, (a new form for me to try,) Rensaku, Experimental Tanka, Garland Tanka, Tanka Puente, and Taiga!
The topic is dreams. And what dreams they are for poets to indulge their creative juices in! Resulting in such a range of marvellous interpretations.
You'll find poems from a wide variety of international poets to connect with. There are 54 poets in the 2025 anthology!
It is lovingly compiled by the contributing editors, Robbie Cheadle and Colleen Chesebro with a short analysis of their favourite poems at the end.
It's a delightful collection and a great introduction to new poets to enjoy as well as old favourites to return to again.
I bought a paperback copy. What a treat.
The topic is dreams. And what dreams they are for poets to indulge their creative juices in! Resulting in such a range of marvellous interpretations.
You'll find poems from a wide variety of international poets to connect with. There are 54 poets in the 2025 anthology!
It is lovingly compiled by the contributing editors, Robbie Cheadle and Colleen Chesebro with a short analysis of their favourite poems at the end.
It's a delightful collection and a great introduction to new poets to enjoy as well as old favourites to return to again.
I bought a paperback copy. What a treat.
February 6, 2026
This is another wonderful SUNFLOWER TANKA offering as special as last year’s with many of the same contributors—from all over the world—along with first timers of this particular anthology.
There are so many moving prose, I couldn’t begin to list them.
Along with many other gems, this one caught my eye:
‘I slept quietly
But felt a hand holding mine
I knew it was hers
It was my grandmother’s touch
Crossing the vales from heaven.’
If you read last year’s tankas, but haven’t yet read 2025, you are in for a wonderful treat. Enjoy. I certainly did.
There are so many moving prose, I couldn’t begin to list them.
Along with many other gems, this one caught my eye:
‘I slept quietly
But felt a hand holding mine
I knew it was hers
It was my grandmother’s touch
Crossing the vales from heaven.’
If you read last year’s tankas, but haven’t yet read 2025, you are in for a wonderful treat. Enjoy. I certainly did.
December 8, 2025
Reading Sunflower Tanka was like a journey through the souls of dozens of poets. Each writer contributed Tanka poems about dreams — theirs or others. I was captivated by the visually rich imagery, the self-revelations, and the longing hiding in the dreams. Each poem was/is unique, and that kept me turning the pages and treasuring the writer's self-gift. I highly recommend the collection.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews