Good Karma » Writing

She’s Not

Karma — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:56:41 +0000

For all you moms with tween girls…maybe you can relate.

Chrissy

She’s not cute anymore.

Not pretty. Not adorable.

She’s not toothless.

She’s not thigh-high, tugging my shirt.

She’s not begging for Barbies.

She’s not following her brothers around,

trying to get their attention.

She’s not reading Magic Schoolhouse

or watching Blues Clues.

But damn she’s beautiful.

When did that happen?

Poetry Friday-In memory of Shel

Karma — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:57:30 +0000

Shel….

The master of show, and never tell.

Shel.

Wrote pint-sized sarcasm oh-so-well.

Shel.

Didn’t care that children often rebel.

Shel.

At visual humor, oh how he excelled.

Shel.

Putting kids everywhere under his spell.

Shel.

Sure to inspire, sure to compel.

Shel.

Went up and not down when he fell.

Shel.

KW….

Poems for Poetry Month

Karma — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:14:10 +0000

I’ll be posting some original poetry for National Poetry Month. They will range from somber to silly. Here is a more somber selection.

I have been asked by many children to write poems about dealing with grief after losing a pet. Here is a poem I wrote shortly after our dog Chip (13 yrs old, loyal family dog) died. This is for every child that has lost a pet. As parents we often try to distract kids from their grief by trying to get them to play, promising them pizza or fun things, etc.. Sometimes they just need grieving time. The loss of a pet leaves a hole.

I Don’t Feel Like….

My dog died yesterday and I don’t really wanna play

I don’t feel like eating pizza when my dog ain’t here to share.

I don’t feel like riding bikes or digging worms or telling jokes.

I don’t feel like much of anything. This world just isn’t fair.

I don’t feel like making friends, and I don’t feel like making forts.

I don’t feel like going searching for a big, ol’, ugly frog.

I don’t feel like watching movies, I don’t feel like eating candy.

I don’t feel like much of anything but playing with my dog.

National Poetry Month, some ideas for teachers

Karma — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 16:16:24 +0000

You know, when I teach older primary students (5th, 6th) a poetry seminar, I always start by asking who likes poetry. Many times only four or five students will raise their hands. Then I ask, “How many like music sung by a band or singer?” and most of the kids will raise their hands. I then say, “AH HA! So you DO like poetry?!” I point out that poetry is EVERYWHERE. It’s in commercials, music, and even video games (Oblivion, a popular video game, is full of cryptic poems). When kids realize that many of their favorite songs are nothing more than poetry set to music they open up a little bit. Share with them some truly humorous poems and they open up even more. Lay that foundation, and moving onto more somber or contemplative poetry isn’t nearly as painful.

So whenever you have students compile poetry for poetry notebooks, compilations–allow them a few pages for the lyrics of their favorite songs. This leads you into a great meter lesson by the way. And as something of a meter-cop I always look for good meter lessons!

Cool Meter Lesson

A lot of great songs don’t scan so well when simply read. Meter is greatly affected by singing–beats can be added to a line simply by singing one word for a longer time or adding “ooooo, ohhhh, ya ya”. A good meter lesson is to have the kids agree on one popular song (of course they must choose only from songs with clean lyrics..ha ha) and see if it scans when read aloud. If not, work with the students on adding words or changing lines just enough to keep true to the original thoughts of the song, while improving meter. (This lesson requires that the teacher has a basic concept of good meter and poetry rhythm.)

Good Poetry for Kids

Well, I hate to brag…but my new poetry book for kids has quite a mixture of poems, from the contemplative to the outrageously ridiculous, and I try to include a lot of teaching opportunities as well. (Teachers, there’s even a poem in honor of you–since so many humorous children’s poems villanize you–look for my poem called Red Letter Day)

Other great choices are Shel Silverstien, Jack Prelutsky, Doug Florian, Mary Ann Hoberman, Nikki Grimes. For more classic poems just introduce them to the tried and true–Emily Dickinson, Frost, Lear, Stevenson…and for something entirely different check out Robert Service. His poem “Bessie’s Boil” may be a bit hard for them to understand at first, but if you explain the brogue they will HOWL with laughter.

K….

Quick tip–read rhyme until you’re sick of it!

Karma — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 17:39:58 +0000

You all know I write rhyming books. I am a huge advocate of reading rhyme to kids–but remember read it until the child has it memorized. The great power in rhyme for kids is that good rhyme is easily committed to memory. Once a child remembers a rhyme every word in the poem or story is locked in their mind forever in context–which is what makes rhyme such a great vocabulary builder. But if you just read a rhyming story one or two times chances are it won’t work it’s way into the old brain cells permanently. So read, read, read the story over and over again. And again. And yes, again. Eventually your child will be able to read the story to you.

Really, you’ll thank me someday! Hee hee.

K….

Giveaway open until Friday! NOW CLOSED

Karma — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:52:29 +0000

~~Hi all! Just a quick update–the current giveaway is open until this Friday. I’ve gotten tons of entries, so keep em coming.~~

~~As of right now I’m working on my newest poetry collection. I can’t believe what a challenge it is to write 120 poems! But what a fun challenge.~~

~~That brings me to a question–what poem subjects do you think need attention to? I’d love to hear your ideas. Remember, think Shel Silverstien (my poet hero).~~

~~Looking forward to your entries and ideas!~~

K…

Fairy Tales…

Karma — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 22:46:07 +0000

As a child I wrapped fairy tales around my mind as I would wrap a snug blanket around myself on a chill day. Stories insulated me from the hard, cold world. But when I reached teen years I longed for a different kind of escape. At that age I read mostly horror, or stark, bleak historical fiction filled with all the realism I could handle. I was always reading stories that adults around me deemed “innapropriate” (read–too old). At that age it seemed more of an escape to read about people who had it “really” bad. My life seemed fairly rosy in comparison. And then I tired of darkness and realism. It dawned on me that horror was really just a cruel caricature of fairy tales. The princess never married the prince and the wicked witch always won. I wanted the happily ever after again. With a sigh of relief I set aside Steven King and tumbled joyfully into Narnia again.

It felt like coming home. And then I became a children’s book author.

C.S. Lewis said: “Someday you will be old enough to read fairy tales again.”

Are you old enough to read fairy tales again? If so, perhaps you are also young enough (at heart) to write them.

K….

Writing Poetry Exercises

Karma — Thu, 22 May 2008 13:01:13 +0000

I’m writing another poetry book! 120 poems isn’t just a cake walk (hmm…”Cake Walk” sounds like a fun poem title). Sometimes my muse flies off into the sunset and leaves me sitting in the dark, wondering what I’m going to write about. I found this page and bookmarked it for times I’m low on inspiration. Check it out if you’re wanting to stimulate the brain to do something, anything productive!

Here’s a few more to consider, especially when writing poems for kids:

Take common cliches and turn them on end (just from this post I’ve gleaned two poem titles–”Sitting in the Dark” and “Cake Walk). Cliches can make great poems for kids.

Talk to your friends with children and ask them about fun/funny issues they are dealing with currently. Write them down. I did this with an online writing group and literally have dozes of fresh ideas that would never have occurred to me on my own.

Look at your children. Surely something inspires you. Cowlicks? Dirt smudges? Runny noses? Stained shirts? Big eyes? They are a fount of inspiration.

But remember one thing–never write a poem for a child with a punchline that hinges on things that “you” find cute and adorable about children. This makes kids feel like the butt of a joke and it doesn’t take their interests into consideration. It talks down to them and will turn them off every time. If it makes you go, “awwww, aren’t kids cute” you might want to delete or revise.

And never replace a difficult word because “kids might not know what it means”. Poetry is one of the best ways for children to learn vocabulary. Dumbing down writing for children is, in my opinion, a crime.

K…

National Poetry Month Giveaway! NOW CLOSED!

Karma — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:49:00 +0000

April is National Poetry Month! Isn’t that fantastic? A month dedicated to poetry, poems, verse, rhyme, meter–things that make this writer’s heart swell with joy. To celebrate this wonderful month I’m having a giveaway!

In honor of my poor husband being gimped up after his ACL surgery I’m giving away a signed copy of my book Bear Feels Sick, which also works well for National Poetry Month because it is written in rhymed verse (as are many of my books).

~~This giveaway will be held by lottery. To enter you simply need to answer this question.~~

~~What is the title of my upcoming collection of poems for kids similar in style to Shel Silverstein’s poetry books?~~

~~You will find the answer somewhere on my website (Hint: Have you read my bio?)~~

To enter visit my contest entry page http://karmawilson.com/contest.php, read the rules and fill in the required forms. Remember, US and Canadian residents only and you must be over age eighteen. The contest will close in one week on Tuesday, 8th at 11:59 PM MT time. I will number all entries and select a winner using a random number selector. Good luck!

~~Speaking of my upcoming book of poems, here’s a little preview of the types of poems you may find inside.~~

~~Alligator Purse~~

~~“Oh dahling, don’t you love my purse,~~

~~It’s genuine alligator.”~~

~~She said that just this morning~~

~~but then a little later~~

~~she reached inside for something~~

~~and it ate her.~~

~~Have a great week!~~

K…

Frogs and snakes and geckos, oh my!

Karma — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 22:49:17 +0000

I am currently working on illustrating one of my board books with my own photos. It’s a touch-n-feel board book about baby animals. Baby animals have proved, um, interesting to photograph. Let’s put it this way: You know when you’re trying to get good photos of your kids for Christmas and they will not stop moving, hitting each other, or crossing their eyes at the camera? Yea, well, baby animals poop on the camera, and the photographer for that matter and none of them sit still! But for the most part it’s been a gratifying project that is teaching me a lot about being a photographer.

My editors thought a great touch-n-feel element would be baby lizards or frogs or snakes (eek!). I reminded them that it’s March in Montana and there’s a foot of snow on the ground. Luckily I found a person willing to let me photograph his baby gecko. I’m not partial to lizards, but I have to admit this little guy was cute. His was the size of my pinky. As a bonus he didn’t relieve himself on my camera equipment or me and he was the stillest of all the baby animals I’ve photographed.

Thus far the most difficult baby animal to photograph has been a llama. The llama himself wasn’t bad, but his mother was insane. She charged me and tried to spit on me. I have a picture her baring her teeth at me which I took after I barely escaped her charge by slipping through the fence. I’m going to write a book called Llama, Llama, Psychotic Mama!

Well, I took hundreds of pictures but not all will be in the book. Here’s one to celebrate spring. Chicks are hard to photograph by the way. They get this funny, angry look on their faces and they fall asleep every minute or so. When they aren’t sleeping they are chasing imaginary bugs. But they are pretty cute.

K…