quagmire and then quicksand 

inside the ninth nightmare 
a quacking queen of hearts 

deepening disquiet 
the new cell phone’s 
querulous vibrato 

Quentin the Narrator yawns as they wait for their name to be called in the doctor’s office. All they want is some meds to knock them out at bedtime. Something that will quell their 3 AM quaking. The doctor, a certain Quincey Q. Quigley, recommends a choice of natural remedies, either chamomile tea or a glass of warm milk. His muted quips inform Quentin they must quit all digital devices by 9 PM. If the bathroom is needed during normal sleep hours, a nightstand flashlight should obviate the need for any harsh lighting. “Are you serious?” Quentin queries. The doctor sighs. “Here is the list of recommendations we give patients who suffer from the same quandary. Try them for a month, Quentin. Then let’s see where we are.” Quentin pockets the paper without a glance. At the bus stop, they look at their list of phone contacts. After a few taps and swipes, Dr. Quigley’s full name, address, and phone number vanish from their screen. Quentin yawns. Their eyes close. Shaking their head, they blink furiously. Then pull their quadrillionth energy drink out of their backpack. As the bus pulls up, Quentin the Narrator downs the liquid contents in one quadraphonic gulp.

—Special Mention: Q-whimsy Award, in MacQ’s Cheribun Challenge #2

Roberta Beary

is the longtime haibun editor for Modern Haiku, and co-author of Haibun: A Writer’s Guide (Ad Hoc Fiction, 2023), as well as the author of three award-winning poetry collections. Individual writing awards include Bridport Prize for Poetry, Touchstone Award for Haibun, and Kusamakura Grand Prize for Haiku. Beary’s work has appeared in The New York Times, Rattle, Atticus Review, MacQueen’s Quinterly, and other publications. Beary identifies as gender-fluid and calls Washington, DC (USA) and County Mayo, Ireland home.

More on the Web: By, About, and Beyond

⚡ Haibun: A Writer’s Guide, by Roberta Beary, Lew Watts, and Rich Youmans, reviewed by Ce Rosenow in MacQueen’s Quinterly (Issue 24, 20 August 2024)

⚡ Guests Kat Lehmann and Roberta Beary on “Experimental Haibun”: Episode 72 of The Poetry Space podcast by Katie Dozier and Timothy Green (2 August 2024)

⚡ New Book: Haibun: A Writer’s Guide by Roberta Beary, Lew Watts and Rich Youmans, an interview in Flash Frontier (July 2023)

⚡ Dealing With Rejection, an essay by Beary in MacQueen’s Quinterly (Issue 12, March 2022)

⚡ Featured Guest: Roberta Beary on Rattlecast 133 hosted by Tim Green, editor of Rattle poetry journal (YouTube, 28 February 2022)

⚡ Tiny Love Stories in The New York Times (8 January 2019); scroll five stories down the page for Roberta Beary’s “Now It’s All Fresh Fish” and her photograph of lobster traps in Clew Bay, Ireland.

⚡ The art of brevity, an interview by Ciara Moynihan in Mayo News (22 January 2019)