Saturday, June 3, 2017
Poetry Theres an Ointment for That
Poetry Theres an Ointment for That
Ive been wondering: Ive written a picture book text in unrhymed verse, although the format is in verse, due to the rhythm. How to I query on this? And what would be the format of the text? In regular paragraph form? Or in verse form? Can you advise me on that?I love poetry. I browse the childrens poetry section at bookstores, and I read poetry in my spare time.
Im not the only one, either. Plenty of editors enjoy good poetry. And it is for this very reason that most editors HATE poetry in query letters.
Im not implying that your poetry isnt good. I just want to bring across what youre up against.
The mild bludgeoning the English language gets in prose when in the hands of some writers becomes a cheerful disemboweling when the same people attempt poetry. Every editor has seen a great quantity of this sort of thing. Its terrible to watch the language we love be dressed up in quaint and merry bells and then flayed alive.
So seeing poetry or verse in a query letter, especially when whats being pitched to me is a picture book, not a poetry book (and thus not something that absolutely must be poetry), has, after much experience, come to give me the feeling of incipient hives. It is often the precursor of a manuscript that cares more about being poetry than about having a sales hook or any compelling content, and indeed often fails at all three.
In consideration of this justifiable prejudice among editors, and because your verse is not rhyming, I would strongly suggest that you not mention that your book is in verse when you query it. If it works to format it in paragraph form, go ahead and do that, too. And once youve taken the lyricism of your writing out of the query letters equation, if you cant think what makes your book good competition for the many other picture books out there, then thats when you know youve got a problem.
Good luck!
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