When I was young I developed my first passion. It was not for the principal or the red haired friend of my older brother. My passion was for poetry. I loved the sound of words. I loved rhyme and mostly I loved the way that poetry moved me. Things could be spoken of in poetry, feelings expressed. And I took to the pen like a baby to the bottle and soon was carving my own.

Poems that inspired me included "The Highwayman" with Bess the landlord's daughter killing herself to alert her true love to danger. ( such passion surely deserved my attention!) It inspired me to write a little ditty called "The Ballad of Maggie Maggee."

I was all of ten and as I had seen in the back pages of the magazines my parents read an advert about songwriters wanted. Carefully I printed it out on foolscap and sent it off the States. I awaited my big discovery- imagining myself something of a female Gordon Lightfoot, singing and composing songs like "The Edmund Fitzgerald." Singers from all over would press me into service. Well, I'm still waiting on the call. Still, my passion for words, for poems and for songs has never diminished. I write for adults, for scifi markets, for greeting cards and yes, even for children.

In a child's world, poetry is never boring and that's what makes it so fun to create. A few simple rules need to be followed.

1. Kids appreciate rhythm and love to explorer with words. Unlike a story, a poem can be memorized and told to friends. Think of jumping and skipping songs, such as

2. Poetry can be used to make picture books come alive, and authors like Richard Scarry do it well and make a good living at it. If you are considering writing a poetry picture book here are a few pointers. Rhymes and the rhythm of the work will have to be spot on. Children demand it and so do the editors! If you are working with verse try it out loud a few times. Count the syllables as you do. Then try it out on some young listeners and see what they think.

A word of warning where books are concerned, Never hire your own illustrator. It doesn't matter how talented your sister in law or godson is. The publisher will almost always want to hire there own. Though some multi talented authors can actually draw as well and illustrate their own work, these are far and few between. Best leave it to the editor to match your words with art. However sometimes a brief note to explain any complicated illustrations needs can be okay.

3. Not ready for a book quite yet? There are many children's publications that take poems as fillers. Most want rhyming poems. Follow guidelines carefully and write to the market. For instance, Adventures, a Christian publication for kids, says short, fun, easy-to-understand, age-appropriate poetry that correlates with the Bible story, Bible Truth, or lesson goals is welcome. "We prefer rhythmic, pattern poems, but will accept free verse if reads smoothly out loud." Length: 4-8 lines.

Ladybug wants light verse, traditional or humorous poems with a maximum of 20 lines. They buy 40 poems a year. Pockets buys poems but they must relate to the upcoming theme. Health poems are sought by places such as Turtle magazine(who use it on their back and front covers.) Spider wants poems (and stories) to instill a love of reading in children, the target audience 6 to 9 years old. History set to verse can be picked up by such magazines as Cobblestone(again, according to theme.)

4. But why stop at magazines? The greeting card business is also on the look out for poetry, not just for adults but for kids as well. Designer Greetings, Life Greetings and P.S. Greetings are just a few. Humor is usually appreciated as is easy rhymes that kids can read over and over again. On line publications for kids (though the pay can sometimes be minimal,) as well as anthologies geared towards kids are also good places to try your poems.

So what are you waiting for? Develop a passion for poetry and have some fun, make some kids smile and make some money along the way. And remember:
There would be nothing worse
then a world without verse!