One of the best ways to write poetry is by writing found poems. You can take journal entries, excerpts from books, and even short stories and make them better by condensing and creating poetry that can then be turned into a children's books.
The following example shows how to write a found poem:
1. Story
The windows at either end of the hall had thick blinds, but they could see well, because of the light coming from the last room at one end of the hall.
The boys were shaking, but they still crept down the hall to the room with the bright light. Sure enough, the light came from a perfect oval hole in the wall. It was large enough for a person to squeeze through and was positioned about a foot away from the door. Such a strange place for a hole, they thought.
With their backs flat against the opposite wall from the hole, both boys held their weapons with severity and knelt down to try to look into the hole. They had to squint and then cover their eyes. It was like cutting into an onion.
With weeping eyes, and before they got a chance to see anything, they heard a small, “Come in.”
2. Highlight sections and arrange them
End of the hall had thick blinds
They could see well
shaking bodies
The light came from a perfect oval hole
In the wall
A foot away
Boys held their weapons
Knelt down
eyes squinting into the hole
Heard a small, “Come in.”
3.Highlight again and repeat something! Of course, you can always go back to the original prose. Look at what you are writing and find a poem.
The Truth about Poetry: It sells makes great Children's books!
Children's books need to be concise, they need repetition, they need colorful words and sometimes even rhythm. Write a child's story, then cut out the excess. In other words, write a found poem.
Could you change out words and turn the following into a child's poem (without wine of course)? Pick a different topic and different words with the same syllables. Use some of the same words. And it's okay! This poem is in the public domain so no one is checking to see if you used too much. It's free to use.
Feast
By Edna St. Vincent Millay
I drank at every vine. The last was like the first. I came upon no wine So wonderful as thirst.
I gnawed at every root. I ate of every plant. I came upon no fruit So wonderful as want.
Feed the grape and bean To the vintner and monger: I will lie down lean With my thirst and my hunger.
LEARN FROM the BEST
Poetry is easier than most people think. Yes, you can have end rhyme, internal rhyme, and iambic pentameter. But you can also choose free verse. Look up poems by Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson. Copy the artists by rewriting their poems. Change the words, change the content, and in the end you have a different poem that works. Check out our poetry bundle to learn more! You even get a colorful picture book example.
