#Writing Advice for Young #Poets

Experiment with language, form, voice as much as prose novelists do. 

Take risks and avoid letting anyone trap you in critical “boxes”!

#POETRYMONTH and JAZZ APPRECIATION MONTH…

In addition to all the other fun (and spring showers), April is JAZZ APPRECIATION MONTH. 

In honor of JAM, here are a couple of verses from THE SOUND OF LETTING GO...

There are more guys than girls in the jazz world,

next to no lady trumpeters (oh, there are a few).

But it doesn’t matter because, for me, jazz trumpet is all about one guy:

Miles Davis.

He made this famous album in 1959

called Kind of Blue,

which is kind of, always,

how I feel.

That album gets into your bones,

goes and goes;

starts, hesitates, reaches out, feels

for the music, the sound, the thing you want to change.

Always grasping for the unattainable makes you

kind of excited,

kind of sorry.

c 2014 Stasia Ward Kehoe

all rights reserved

The Poetry Oscars!

Okay, not exactly, but don’t you wish you could be at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, NYC tonight for this…

Yes, you see Tina Fey, Patrick Stewart and Julianna Margulies on that GUEST READER LIST OF AWESOME! Here's what I'd wear if I were going...

Heck yeah, why not red? (It's J. Crew, btw)

Now you're curious, right? Here's the link for more info: http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/92

POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY!

Seems like a little thing, but it's kind of awesome and enormous. All you have to is carry a poem in your pocket today and, maybe, if you can find a way, share it with someone (even if it's just your dog).

You don't even need to find a poem because the Academy of American Poets has an app for that (or a widget or something--I don't know exactly what it is but it's easy enough for even me). Here it is:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5643

Here's the poem I'll be pocketing. It's one of my all-time favorites:

When I Heard the Learned Astronomer

  by Walt Whitman

When I heard the learn'd astronomer,

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,

When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide,

   and measure them,

When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with

   much applause in the lecture-room,

How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,

Till rising and gliding out I wander'd off by myself,

In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,

Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.

From THE SOUND OF LETTING GO & Enter to Win

There are more guys than girls in jazz.

Next-to-no lady trumpeters (oh, there are a few)

but it doesn't matter because, for me, jazz trumpet is all about one guy

Miles Davis.

He made this famous album in 1959

called Kind of Blue

which is kind of, always,

how I feel.

That album gets into your bones

goes and goes

starts, hesitates, reaches out, feels

gor the music, the sound, the thing you want to change

always grasping for the unattainable makes you

kind of excited,

kind of sorry.

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poetry excerpt  c 2014 Stasia Ward Kehoe 

all rights reserved

April Fool's Day & National Poetry Month

Is it fitting that National Poetry Month begins on April Fools Day?

Here, courtesy of poets.org, are 30 Ways to Celebrate, including a poetry-themed filmography and other suprising and fun suggestions! And here's how some writers might answer my question...

My imagination makes me human and makes me a fool; it gives me all the world and exiles me from it.

URSULA K. LE GUIN, Harper's magazine, Aug. 1990

The greatest fool may ask more than the wisest man can answer.

CHARLES CALEB COLTON, Laco

Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.

ALEXANDER POPE, An Essay on Criticism

And perhaps my favorite

A fool thinks himself to be wise, 

but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.   

– William Shakespeare

What do you think?

The Act of Poetry

Hope you've joined the Amazon/Goodreads Author Shaming Experiment of Fun already but, if not, you can CHECK IT OUT HERE.

I am thrilled to be writing today's post in support of VERSENOVELS.COM hosted by the inimitable Gabrielle.

I wrote standard, prose-form manuscripts (never published) for years before meeting Ellen Hopkins at a conference and never turning back. Just hours after taking attending her break-out session, I began a self-directed crash course in "Great Works in Verse." I read Karen Hesse and Sonya Sones, Sharon Creech and Jaqueline Woodson, and on and on.

One of the things I struggled with then (and still do) is the WHY of choosing the verse format. Is verse akin to, say, Impressionism in painting--a choice of form? Or does verse require some greater argument? Haven't we all heard editors or agents say things like "to acquire a novel in verse, it has to be very clear to me that the novel HAS to be written in this style"?

Another struggle has been the tension between VERSE and linear PLOT. I feel like there are times when something akin to split-line prose--less imagistic, more pragmatic--is required to guide the reader and protagonist toward some critical plot moment. As a poet, can I give myself permission to let this type of writing in to serve the STORY?

I have found some answers in prose novels that deal with the act of creating poetry, or break the mold of form in a way that I find instructive to poets.  Here are four for your consideration:

THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE by Jandy Nelson - a grieving teen finds understanding and solace through releasing poetry into the world.

ADIOS, NIRVANA by Conrad Wesselhoeft - a gifted young poet and musician struggles to find his voice after the death of his twin brother.

THE BOOK THIEF by Markus Zusak - a musing on death and reading featuring chapter titles that are word lists and imagistic, poetic structuring of all kinds.

JUMPED IN by Patrick Flores-Scott - a novel about two slacker-loners who become unlikely friends as they try to write kick-ass verse for the class poetry slam.

As a verse novelist, I find these books instructive and inspiring. They lead me to conclude that verse novels and prose novels do not exist separately but as the ends of a beautiful spectrum of forms through which writers deliver story.

I don’t write POETRY either

I don’t think I’ll ever forget the writing conference I attended (quite a few years back now) where an editor read aloud a page of my work then made a rather sharp comment about being “careful about the difference between poetry and split line prose.” Truth? It gutted me. I went back to my work and tried to figure out a way to weed out the split line prose. I reviewed my favorite poetry collections…checked all the poems magnetized to my refrigerator…reread favorite verse novels by Sharon Creech, Jacqueline Woodson, Sonya Sones, Ellen Hopkins, Caroline Starr Rose, Guadalupe Garcia McCall…delved into my beloved Paul Fussel’s POETIC METER & POETIC FORM for the zillionth time…

Here’s what I discovered.

There’s split-line prose in a great deal of poetry. And LOTS of it in verse novels. Because, to build an entire novel, you may want the reader to be able to hold onto plot, syntax.  That requires the incorporation of prose elements. THE ART LIES IN…

• where you choose to break each line
• creating subtle internal rhymes and motifs, and sometimes even poems within poems (see Hopkins’ work)
• the juxtaposition of abstract verses with strong, linear text
• choosing only the best words, unobstructed by grammar traditions but constricted by holding onto the verse format, to get close to the bone--to depict raw, visceral emotion
• using the freedom and flexibility of the verse structure to reflect shape, movement, music, the act of reading, and other abstract creative notions through form

• understanding the value of structure, white space...choosing what words to leave off the page

It’s funny. I think of myself as both a POET and NOT-A-POET. I do not know whether this is because I am afraid to commit; because I’m really not sure; because I fear I won’t be fully accepted by either more definitive poets or more traditional novelists; or because I am happy in this nether-space called VERSE NOVELIST—it’s where I sing.

WROTE BUT NEVER POSTED, 3rd EDITION

This post was originally titled THE HUNGER GAMES & LEARNING YOUR CRAFT

I'm not a big LinkedIn person but I do occasionally update my profile. It was while doing so recently that I saw that I'd been working in publishing for EIGHTEEN YEARS. First I thought that just couldn't be true. Then I realized that I started working at Random House the year before my eldest was born.  Here are some other things I realized.

• It took me forever to get my act together to try to become a published writer. (To be clear, the delays caused by my four kids were totally worth it.)
• Having the opportunity to work on the "other" (non-author) side of the business does not give you a leg-up in becoming a best-seller but certainly arms you with a healthy understanding of your odds.

I loved The Hunger Games, am terribly excited to see the movie and hope that I love it. The recent flop that was John Carter kind of proves that even the hulk-muscled arm of Disney can't MAKE a movie property a success.  Still, I have a good feeling about THG.

TODAY...

In an ode to nostalgia, herewith a link to a pre-Common-Core writing guide I wrote for Random House:  http://www.seussville.com/activities/HOORAY_TeachersGuide.pdf. It is for a Seuss/Prelutsky title, so it's in verse. Foreshadowing? Coincidence? Karma?

Also, in this earlier post, I was already showing a predilection for capitalization and parentheticals.
Finally, I can report that I did like, thought didn't love, THG, and that  I am currently looking forward to seeing THE HEAT (yes, I am a Sandy B. fan), DIVERGENT and WORLD WAR Z (who knew back when I was only 18 years into publishing that zombies would become the new vampires?).

Bookanistas: Wrapping Up National Poetry Month

I've been a very bad poet this April with not nearly enough celebration of National Poetry Month. By way of apology, I am going to give away A SIGNED COPY of AUDITION. 

All you have to do to enter is LIKE MY FACEBOOK AUTHOR PAGE, then leave me a comment HERE VIA MY WEBSITE (sorry you have to scroll down a bit) or below this post with an email at which I can contact you if you are one of the randomly drawn winners.

Here's a bit of book love for two great titles to round out your poetry shelves. The first is a fantastic resource for teachers and writers...
Here's the  B&N LINK for the book or visit the amazing Sylvia Vardell's poetry blog HERE.









And the second is a great YA verse novel about family and mental illness that never loses its topicality or its power. Here's the B&N LINK and the clicky thing for Sonya Sones's terrific website.

This contest will end when my facebook author page reaches 150 likes so TELL YOUR FRIENDS and the drawing could be, like, tomorrow!

Want more Bookanista Book love...?

Katy Upperman  ponders LOVE AND OTHER PERISHABLE ITEMS by Laura Buzo

Kimberly Sabatini wonders at WHEN YOU WERE HERE by Daisy Whitney
Elana Johson  falls for THE FAULT IN OUR STARS by John Green
Tracy Banghart  loves LACRIMOSA by Christine Fonseca
Corrine Jackson adores the ARCADIA BELL series by Jenn Bennett
Rebecca Behrens delves into CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein
Lenore Appelhans raves about THE RULES by Stacey ade
Christine Fonseca  celebrates UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi
Jessica Love hails THIS IS WHAT HAPPY LOOKS LIKE by Jennifer E. Smith
Shannon Messenger  discusses some recent reads

A National Poetry Month present...

The opening pages of my first YA verse novel, AUDITION.

When you are a dancer

 

You learn the beginning

Is first position.
Heels together,
Feet pointed as far to the sides
As your rotating hips will allow.

And when you are small

And at that beginning,
Your body is as flexible
As your mind.

There you stand,

Potbellied,
Eager.

They do not say to you then

That, when you are sixteen,
Doubt may cramp your muscled calves,
Arch your arrow back,
Leap into your mind.

They do not say to you

When you start in first position

That you may never be

Thin enough

Strong enough

Flexible enough

That you may never be

Enough.

 

SARA 78

 On the third of July,

I stand with a hundred other girls,
From stick-thin to gently rounded,
From tiny, taut packages of muscle
To gawky, long-limbed sylphs,

All wearing pink tights,

Black leotards.
Hair
Sprayed slick
Against our scalps,
Up and away.
Not a single stray strand to distract
From the tilt of our heads
Or the length of our necks.

I notice a few girls dared

Garnish their chignons
With beads, flowers.

Would it help them grab the attention
Of Dame Veronique de la Chance?
Of choreographer Yevgeny Yelnikov?

Of one of the other important teachers

Who have come to scout talent
Here in Boston today?
Or even catch the spectacled eye
Of the secretary in heavy, blue skirt,
Thick shoes,
Taking notes on a battered clipboard
Where our names
Are connected
To the numbers we wear pinned
Onto front and back?

I was given number 78.

Should I have worn flowers in my hair?

c 2011 Stasia Ward Kehoe

Leave a comment below and your email via the "contact" tab above and I'll email you your very own free AUDITION SAMPLER pdf.

Bookanistas: Poem in Your Pocket Day

We're just one week away from the Academy of American Poets' POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY- a day to celebrate the beauty of verse in ways large and small. HERE'S THE LINK to the Academy's website with more info.



This is the book of poetry that got me EVEN MORE HOOKED on the form than I was before...


 

Here's the start of the poem "Two Husbands" that will be riding in my pocket next week. It's amazing how much insight Taylor packs into the first short stanza.

1
She says she'll leave him if he screws around;
why not attempt it, if that's all it takes?
He fears forgiveness through her, he has found
uprightness in his dreams of dodged mistakes.

(From THE FLYING CHANGE: Poems by Henry Taylor) - BTW, he won the Pulitzer for this book!

ARE YOU READY???

For more Bookanista Book love (poetic and otherwise)...

 Corrine Jackson is swept away by SUCH A RUSH

Christine Fonseca  interviews THE LIES THAT BIND authors Lisa & Laura Roecker
Elana Johson  celebrates THE SELECTION by Kiera Cass
Jessica Love is wowed by WHERE THINGS COME BACK by John Corey Whaley
Tracy Banghart  delves into THE HOST (book & movie) by Stephenie Meyer
Katy Upperman  discusses  Erica Lorraine Scheidt’s USE S FOR BOYS

 

Bookanistas: It's NATIONAL POETRY MONTH and...

I'm preparing to participate in Face to Face for All 8th Poetry Roundup at the Texas Library Association's Annual Conference along with Douglas Florian, Dana Jensen, Timothy McLaughlin, and Guadalupe Garcia McCall.  So, here's the start of my National Poetry Month Reading List (in pictures, not poems!)...

 

Are you planning to read any poetry this April?



Learn more about National Poetry Month at this page at the Academy of American Poets' beautiful site.




And here are some more Bookanista goodies to start your spring!

Christine Fonseca is wowed by WANDERLOVE

Katy Upperman delights in SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY
Tracy Banghart honors THE HEX HALL trilogy

Corrine Jackson is thrilled over A TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER

Hilary Wagner deems the DANNY DRAGONBREATH Series Fantastic!





Let me know if there are mistakes, problems with the links, etc...

Wordy Wednesday: A LIST OF BEAUTIFUL THINGS

Browsing through the Library of Congress website last night, I came across POETRY 180, a lovely project initiated by the former Poet Laureate Billy Collins. It's a list of poems for American high schools but, honestly, just take a look as it's a gorgeous poetry roster any reader or writer will enjoy. 

Also, for your viewing pleasure, and related only insofar as he's a beautiful creature, one of my favorite animals at the Central Park Zoo in NYC (took this photo last summer):






Fiction Friday: POEMS & GOOD NEWS & A THEME FOR AUGUST

As previously mentioned, I'm doing a lot of writing, not reading, this week.  That said, one of my sons picked up a beautiful book that might interest you poetry fans: Garrison Keillor's elegant collection of GOOD POEMS.

And a quick thanks to Kathy Chung, the amazing new coordinator of the Surrey International Writing Conference for sharing my good news about AUDITION with the SIWC community. SIWC is a great conference, this year being held October 22-24, near Vancouver, BC. Unlike SCBWI, it's not just for children's writers but they've got tons of great agents and editors, an amazing writing community, and some terrific classes on craft. I still use the notes I took during Hallie Ephron's 2008 lecture on plotting. And she'll be back at the conference this fall. Check it out!

I can't believe we're here on the verge of August, my first "theme month" for the blog.  Look out for all kinds of thoughts about WRITING IN TANDEM.