How (and Why) to Write Poetry for Children
My mother loved poetry. In her youth she memorized poets of all genres, from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to Edgar Allen Poe to Ogden Nash, her favorite. It didn’t seem strange to hear her suddenly break out in a morsel of verse from her repertoire. She was a genius at being able to summon a poem to meet an everyday situation.
(8 Reasons Why Poetry Is Good for the Soul.)
I, too, loved poetry from an early age, thanks to Mom and Dr. Seuss. I learned to read with The Cat in the Hat, published the year I turned three. Thing One and Thing Two, Horton, Sam-I-Am, Yertle: they accompanied me everywhere, because I carried them inside me. I still do.
When our children were young, we read them books of all kinds, including poetry. A favorite was Shel Silverstein. Have you read his poems? If not, run to the nearest library or bookstore! Our kids, now long grown up, still recite their favorites.
With a lifelong immersion in rhyme, it’s no wonder that when I began writing books for children, I fell naturally into writing verse. My husband and I love poetry, our kids love poetry. Don’t all kids love poetry?
I quickly learned that while all kids did, that didn’t seem the case with editors.
I was self-taught in the art of writing and publishing. I attended all the conferences I could. I kept hearing that “editors don’t want to read manuscripts written in rhyme,” some even to the point of stating that in their submission guidelines: “Will Not Consider Books Written in Poetry.”
What? But kids love poetry! Why not write books in poetry?
I discovered that editors did not want to see submissions of children’s books written in poetry because there was so much Terrible, Horrible, No Good Poetry being submitted. The myth that writing poetry is easy and writing poetry for children the easiest of all is just that—a myth. Choosing words that rhyme is one thing, doing it well is another.
But despite the challenge of getting in the door with a publisher, I loved writing in rhyme, and despite the reluctance on the part of editors to read such a manuscript, I still believed in it. The only option was to learn how to write poetry well.
Here are some highlights of what I learned, and what I still practice. I’m always learning!
1. Read Good Poetry
Good poetry is poetry that flows effortlessly when read silently or aloud; poetry that delights. What poems or poets do that for you? Since we’re talking about writing poetry for children, read the books that have stood the test of time.
Ask your friends which books their children love. Read the books you loved as a child, and those your children or grandchildren love. Explore the newer books that catch your eye (and ear). Your librarian or bookstore can help you find what’s popular and well-loved.
Listen to audiobooks, and clips of poets reading on social media.
Just read. Silently, and aloud.
2. Take a Swim in the Alphabet Soup
Writing poetry isn’t just finding words that rhyme and inserting them at the end of lines. A writer of poetry needs to learn the building blocks of writing a quality poem: Meter, rhythm, line, diction, tone, voice, stanza. Defining each of them adequately takes more than a short article like this.
Fortunately, the award-winning poet Mary Oliver has given us A Poetry Handbook: A Prose Guide to Understanding and Writing Poetry.* It’s short! And readable! And perfect for learning what Oliver calls “the thoughtful machinery of the poem.”
I’m no mechanic, but it is a pleasure and delight to get one’s hands messy with this kind of elbow grease.
3. Poetry or Prose?
Play with the possibilities. I love writing my books for children in poetry, but first I ask myself, “Would this story flow better in prose? Or will it be stronger in verse?”
If you’re not sure, try both. See which grabs your energy. Write the story in the format that suits it best.
4. Think Outside the Box
Or: There’s more to writing poems than verse.
In all the forms, you should immerse!
(Yes, that’s an intentional example of No Good, Very Bad poetry!)
There are a multitude of poem formats. Most of my children’s books written in rhyme follow the two-line couplet form. It works, and it’s fine. But have fun learning different forms. I learned these from books on the topic written for children.**
When I wrote, Since the Baby Came: A Sibling’s Learning-to-Love Story in 16 Poems,** my quest was to write each poetic “chapter” in a different style of verse so that children might experience the poetic style and joyful diversity of poetic forms, even if the learning was subtle and unnoticed. In fact, if the form of any poem distracted from the story, then I had failed.
(100+ Poetic Forms for Poets.)
When I began, I had no clue how many different poem forms exist. The discovery felt like opening a treasure chest and discovering a bounty of beautiful jewels, each as marvelous as the next.
I played with these “jewels,” trying to craft something unique. Some attempts failed, and I have a file of discards to prove it. But I loved, loved, loved the challenge. Villanelle. Roundel. Triolet. All these were new and exciting to me, and I was pushing 60 years old!
Triolet. The name itself is a delight. Eight lines; line one repeats as lines four and seven; line two repeats as line eight. Gulp.
I used it for the poem, “I Wonder What the Baby Dreams:”
I wonder what the baby dreams,
when finally he falls asleep
And silence takes the place of screams.
I wonder what the baby dreams.
He is content, or so he seems,
All hushed and not a single peep!
I wonder what the baby dreams,
when finally he falls asleep. ***
Check out Kathleen Long Bostrom’s Since the Baby Came: A Sibling’s Learning-to-Love Story in 16 Poems here:
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5. Write As You Would Speak
Don’t force a rhyme by twisting a sentence structure. You wouldn’t say, “What a beautiful day! The rain I love to watch.” So avoid writing poems that way.
Do write poetry that flows as smoothly as natural conversation.
6. Do a “Cold Read”
Ask another person to read your poem aloud without reading it silently first.
Is the reading smooth and natural? Or does the rhythm cause the reader to stumble? Are any lines difficult to figure out? Are you satisfied with how your poetry sounds when read aloud?
My husband and my critique group do cold reads for me. It is surprising how often they “trip” on a stanza I thought was perfect. In our heads, we’ve made the rhythm work, but it might not be as clean as it should be.
Children’s books are written to be read aloud. Doing it well is essential, especially when you’re writing poetry, which should flow as effortlessly off the tongue as prose.
7. Ready? Set? Go!
Ok, now it’s your turn! Trust me—the learning and discovery and practice or writing in poetry for children is pure joy! If you don’t love it, don’t do it.
My hunch is that you’ll savor every minute.
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*Oliver, Mary. 1994. A Poetry Handbook. Boston, New York: Mariner Books: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, p. 4.
**Harley, Avis. 2000: Fly With Poetry: An ABC of Poetry. Colorado Spring: Wordsong/Boyds Mills Press.
**Janeczko, Paul. 2009. A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press.
***Bostrom, Kathleen Long. 2003. Since the Baby Came: A Sibling’s Learning-to-Love Story in 16 Poems. Colorado Springs: WaterBrook & Multnomah, p. 19.