Leafy Landmarks: The Benefit of Layers in a Poetry Collection

“Poetry collections are a tough sell.”
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If I had a dime for every time I heard that comment during my publishing journey! The market for poetry collections may be slimmer than for other types of picture books, but poetry collections DO sell. (Want proof? Check out Sylvia Vardell’s SNEAK PEEK LISTS, where she unveils the upcoming children’s poetry collections for each year.)

​I’m excited to have my poetry collection LEAFY LANDMARKS: TRAVELS WITH TREES on the 2024 list! (Releases March 15th.) This book takes readers on a road trip through poems to visit famous and historic trees around the United States. LEAFY LANDMARKS has been on its own long road trip, traveling almost 18-years from idea to publication.

​What finally helped me sell this collection? Adding LAYERS!
 
LAYERS are those different topics or angles that appeal to different readers. Adding layers to a poetry collection (or any picture book for that matter) widens your audience and marketability.
 
When I first began LEAFY LANDMARKS, the manuscript had one layer: history. I wanted to tell the story of old trees that witnessed important historical moments, like The Emancipation Oak. Beneath the branches of this live oak in Hampton Virginia, former slaves once gathered to hear the first Southern reading of The Emancipation Proclamation. The earliest version of my book wasn’t even a poetry collection. It was a series of prose vignettes organized chronologically according to historical moments.

​The next layer I added: poetry. I trimmed the vignettes into sidebars and wrote a poem for each tree. I purposefully used a different poetry form for each landmark. This added variety and educator appeal. (As a former language arts teacher, I know that educators seek out mentor poems that model different poetry forms.) To emphasis the variety of poems, I added a glossary of poetry forms. Eventually, thanks to the clever vision of the art director and my wonderful illustrator, Anne Lambelet, these poetic definitions became part of the end pages.

​My third layer: science and nature. Trees are more than steadfast sentinels of history. They are living, breathing, essential parts of nature. I wove the science of trees into the poems and sidebars where ever I could. I also wrote back matter that discussed the environmental importance of caring for trees. (Adding back matter is a great way to bolster a poetry collection’s layers- a topic for another time!)
 

​History, poetry, science. Three layers. Not bad. But something was missing. At this point, my collection was still organized chronologically. This wasn’t a very kid-friendly structure. I knew the importance of having a strong story arc, or “engine” as I like to call it. (See my Rhyme Doctor’s post DOES YOUR POETRY COLLECTION HAVE AN ENGINE? for more on that topic.) So, I added my fourth and final layer: geography. I wrote an introductory poem “Hit the Road,” and framed the collection as a family road trip. Then, I reorganized the poems according to their location on the road trip.

​With four layers and wide audience appeal, LEAFY LANDMARKS finally reached its destination as a published picture book with Sleeping Bear Press.
 
Consider adding fresh layers to your children’s poetry collection. It may help smooth your own road to publication!