Cover for collection of poetry for children

[Stephen Whiteside]

The thinking behind it is quite interesting.

Walker Books are conscious that rhyming verse could be perceived in the marketplace as rather old fashioned. For this reason, we have made an effort to place the book in a cultural context - it is modern, original poetry for children in the tradition of Banjo Paterson, C. J. Dennis, etc.

The 'look' of the book supports this. The designer has tried to create a design that looks simultaneously old and new. In other words, the book looks a bit like "E. W. Cole's Funny Picture Book" - a 19th century classic - but also looks quite modern. The book is also saying, yes, we know this is digging deep into historic roots, but it is also modern, exciting and relevant to today's children.

The general feeling is that the book will sink or swim on its reception in schools. In other words, it matters more how the cover looks to teachers than how it looks to students. The publisher feels there will be very few sales outside the school market. Of course, I will be doing everything within my power to prove them wrong, but they are the experts.

I will be particularly trying to promote the book as being ideal for grandparents to share with their grandchildren. All of the poetry in the book is written to be recited or read aloud 'around the campfire', or in other social situations. To my mind, it is a way of keeping alive the oral tradition of storytelling. It is also a great way of sparking children's interest in rhyming verse. For some, it might even prove a gateway to a discovery of the older poets, such as Paterson.

The book is very much an experiment. Walker are taking quite a risk supporting me and my poetry. I only hope they will feel at the end of the day that the risk was justified.

Fingers crossed!

[Stephen Whiteside]

Thanks, Glenny.

The book has been over twenty years in the planning, and there were many times I thought it would not happen at all.

I got the strategy after attending a Writers' Guild conference on 'Writing for Children' at Katoomba in 1990.

Sometimes I have to pinch myself to convince myself it is not all a dream. I suppose it is a dream, but it is a dream come true...

[Stephen Whiteside]

One other thought.

I remember many years ago hearing a Mattel toy manufacturer saying that the most popular colours for children are red and yellow, and they try to concentrate on those two colours for their toys, so Walker have definitely got the colours right!

[Neville Briggs]

The book is also saying, yes, we know this is digging deep into historic roots, but it is also modern, exciting and relevant to today's children.

Exactly !! and as I said perfect. The designer has succeeded in making the design old but new.
There's nothing bland about it. As George Orwell might have said " all opinions are equal, but some opinions are more equal than others "

[Stephen Whiteside]

Thanks for that affirmation, Neville. I appreciate it.

[Heather]

It sounds really exciting Stephen. I look forward to seeing and reading it.. Might make a good 2nd birthday gift for a little girl I know.....

Heather

[Stephen Whiteside]

Thanks, Heather. She's a little young, but I'm sure she can grow into it...

[Duncan Williams]

nice cover, Stephen. a great design. good imagination.


Duncan.

[David Campbell]

The children's book market is a tough one to break into...there's a lot of competition and many well-established names, particularly in the 9+ age-group which the book targets. The publisher's comment about schools may well be right and it would undoubtedly help if those who go into schools on a regular basis could promote the book in some way. Will Walker Books produce anything in the way of promotional handouts, Stephen? Something on paper can often work better than a website reference.

Even when there's no competition it's hard going. Back in 2004 my wife and I and an artist friend produced a poetry book called Simply Poetry! (published by Tertiary Press, now Pearson) for the pre-school (5 and under) market. There was virtually nothing else around for that age-group and, although it won (as part of a series) a 2005 award for excellence in educational publishing in the TAFE sector, we still struggled to get it into child-care centres and kindergartens. Mainly because the child-care co-ordinators and kindergarten teachers were often unfamiliar with/afraid of poetry! They just didn't know how to deal with it, particularly the structure of rhyme and metre. Over the years, most of our sales seem to have gone to parents/grandparents, which backs up Stephen's aim in this direction. (We're not competing with Stephen's target audience, so I hope he won't mind me slipping in the fact that Simply Poetry! can be bought via: http://www.pearson.com.au/9780864585592) An ideal gift for a 2-year-old, Heather!

Another possible area of interest for book sales is Speech and Drama teachers, who are always on the lookout for new material for their students. There are a number of eisteddfods every year at which these children compete, and rhyming verse is ideally suited to this sort of event. It's a perfect way of continuing the oral tradition that Stephen mentions, and if Speech and Drama students take their poems back into primary and secondary schools it may help to overcome some of the lack of confidence that these teachers also seem to have regarding traditional verse. Stephen's right in saying that Walker books are taking a risk, but it's great to see a publisher backing poetry for children and we need to give it all the support we can.

Cheers
David

[Heather]

Never miss an opportunity David!