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Author Padma Venkatraman‘s most recent novel A Time to Dance was an Honour Winner in the 2015 South Asia Book Award and was chosen for inclusion in IBBY’s 2015 Selection of Outstanding Books for Young … Continue reading ... →

I love reading—it’s an obsession of mine. But I also love hearing the written word spoken. Last night I attended one of the many poetry readings being held around the country in honor of National Poetry Month. This one was at the Ann Arbor District Library and featured poet Robert Fanning.  (One of the founders of the InsideOut Literary Arts Project in the Detroit schools.) It was so much fun. His voice is wonderful whether imitating Elvis, or a big box store announcing closing time.

Another highlight of the evening was KiKI, a child of about nine, who got up at open mic and sang a song she’d written. It was her first time before an audience. She captured all our hearts . . . (Thank you, Kiki. “It will be alright.”)

Now, since it’s National Poetry Month, I thought I’d repost something I wrote for the SCBWI-Mi chapter newsletter about listening to poetry. (That’s the Soc. of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators newsletter.)

Enjoy! 

Finding Passion in the Spoken Word

“I would like to walk out of my heart under the wide sky.”

from Lament, by Rainer Maria Rilke

 

Like a lot of writers I started out writing poetry at an early age. In the 70s and 80s I participated in poetry readings, guerilla poetry (”taking it to the streets”), and I contributed to small literary presses. In addition, I worked as an assistant editor to a local small press that had a national distribution. In short, I was part of the whole “poetry scene” that swelled in the mid 70s. Then life intervened-college, career and family.

 

In the late 1990s, when I began to consider writing for children, poetry slamming (competitive poetry performance) had taken everybody by storm. I found myself drawn to the spine-tingling energy, the heart-on-the-sleeve emotionalism, and the bittersweet pain that can be conveyed by speaking the written word with passion. I wanted another shot of that rarified 100% liquid silver wordsmithing that I had so adored in my youth.

 

I attended local poetry readings again, participated in open mic sessions, was invited to read and even had more of my poetry for adults published. This work on adult-themed pieces became a counterpoint to my writing for children-a place where I could tackle themes not appropriate for kids, or use symbols and metaphors that took an adult sensibility to interpret.

 

Grappling with images, line length, caesuras, rhythm, metaphors, etc. . . . Yes! It was like a homecoming. What delight there truly is in unlocking one’s heart and walking out under a wide sky. Rilke had it right. I’ve stenciled that line of his around a mirror in my home to remind me.

 

Certainly, some of the poetry you hear at readings may be pretty bad. Some poems you may not understand. And some will keep you awake at night so that the only cure is getting up, opening your journal and writing. However, almost all of it will be either deeply felt, or will gloss our human foibles with the shine of humor.

 

No matter what you are writing, I urge you to hear our wonderful language spoken in performance. Look locally for colleges, universities, bookstores, libraries or coffeehouses that are presenting poets or hosting

poetry series. Listen and observe. If you’re comfortable in the setting -and most groups are pretty open, supportive, and non-ageist - sign up for the open mic sessions. If it’s a group that meets afterward to critique each other, listen.

 

Then go home and walk out of your heart by writing a poem.

Keep wordsmithing!

(And don’t forget to keep up with the National Poetry challenge: 30 poems/30 days. And if you’re poetry-addled, like me, 30 forms, as well!)

Ciao!

Shutta