Poetry Friday Round-up – Release Week

I cannot believe it is the first week in March already – and yet, here we are, with storms and floods ravaging large areas on the south-east coast of Australia and Ukraine digging deep to show incredible fortitude in the face of aggression. My heart has been heavy. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NIV)

And in amongst this turbulence, What Snail Knows slipped quietly into Australian bookshops – followed by beautiful, detailed reviews and so much love. I hadn’t expected such a response – and I am incredibly thankful for those who have taken the time to share. Here’s a little snippet from some of them. (Click the reviewer’s name to read each review in its entirety.)

💗 Kim Yeoman: I am in awe once again of Kathryn Apel’s skill in weaving together similes, metaphors, alliteration, imagery, rhyme and shape poetry with compassion and creativity to tell Lucy’s story.

💗 Lamont: Lucy is a character that you will fall in love with from the start. This story will be thoroughly enjoyed by junior to middle primary level readers.

💗 Sandy Bigna: This beautifully constructed verse novel for younger readers gently illuminates themes of loneliness, belonging, kindness, friendship and family. It will both break your heart and make you smile. Highly recommended for your 7+ reader.

💗 Barbara Braxton: A most poignant verse novel… a potent story of loneliness, friendship, acceptance, and building and connecting with community.

Mandy Foots light pencil artwork bring Snail and Lucy to life.

To coincide with release week, I was interviewed on the Australian Alphabet Soup blog, so if you’re intrigued about the answer to any of these questions, click the pic to read more.

Australian readers can also leave a comment on UQP’s Facebook or Instagram giveaway posts for your chance to win a copy of the book.

And don’t forget to leave your links below, for the Poetry Friday round-up.

I’m looking forward to catching you all on the rounds.

Australian Verse Novel Resource – NCACL

The past many months I have been working on a project with the National Centre for Australian Children’s Literature, and fellow verse novelist Sally Murphy, to create a resource related to Australian verse novels. I am so pleased to share that the project is complete – and far better than I ever imagined possible. In short, it looks amazing!

I am super-excited that the Australian Verse Novel Resource is now live! Australia has a rich history with verse novels, and it is so good to have a centralised jump-off point for readers and educators alike, to find and read more and more of these wonderful books. I’m also proud that this resource can fly a flag on the world’s stage, for a genre that Australia has championed for so long.

The resource will be launched (both in-person and online) by the highly respected Aussie author of many genres, Jackie French, AM. The 5pm AEDT launch time won’t work for friends in the Northern hemisphere – but the Australian Verse Novel Resource itself is timeless. And I most definitely recommend that you check it out!

The Australian Verse Novel Resource provides a comprehensive listing of titles, including; annotations, themes, useful resources, awards and Australian curriculum. The Resource is intended to help educators, librarians, readers and academics identify and explore Australian verse novels. I’m pretty confident it delivers. 🙂

In the lead-up to the launch I was interviewed by the lovely, knowledgeable and very generous Joy Lawn on her blog, Paperbark Words. It kind of feels like I’ve peeled back a portion of my skull, committing things to paper that I’ve not done before – but I so appreciate Joy’s questions and observations, and the way she had me both delving into the past, and considering future practises.

Be sure to have a cuppa on hand, because it is a longish read.🙃

And don’t forget to check out this week’s links for Poetry Friday at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme. Because you can never have too much poetry. Thanks, Matt.

Fit as a Fidget – Hoppy Feet!

I have been determined to blog for Poetry Friday this week, but it wasn’t until I sat down to write the post that it registered … This is launch week for the new poetry anthology HOP TO IT: POEMS TO GET YOU MOVING, compiled by Syliva Vardell and Janet Wong and published by Pomelo Books. This is particularly exciting, because, I have a poem in the collection, alongside so many friends!

HOP TO IT: POEMS TO GET YOU MOVING is an anthology of 100 new poems by 90 poets—with STEM and social studies connections, thematic mini-lessons, read aloud tips, and useful activities to help maximize student learning and social-emotional development. Poems involve the whole body and incorporate a wide variety of movements – even deskercise – and current topics, such as life during a pandemic, wearing masks, virtual learning…

My poem was inspired by an active little lad I taught – and his Grandma’s reference to his fidget feet. (We call them jigglers, in our family.) I’ll be sharing my poem as a part of the Pomelo Books Zoom Poetry Party, happening this Saturday at 10am Qld-time. (Which is Friday, 7pm Central Time for American/Canadian peeps.) If you’d like to join us for the party, drop me an email, or a comment, and I’ll send you the link. 🙂

Meanwhile, time to get as fit as a fidget!

Janice Scully is hosting Poetry Friday today at Salt City Verse. I’m pretty sure I won’t be the only one sharing snippets from HOP TO IT this week.

Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Award Winners

For Poetry Friday, I give you the Awards Presentation Ceremony for the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards, streamed from Gunnedah this morning. What a rich resource this is, for poetry lovers, educators and proud Aussies. I highly recommend it! As much as I would have loved to be in Gunnedah today for a live presentation ceremony, I cannot regret this fantastic video.

It was an honour and a privilege to be the Primary Judge for 2019/2020. And to see these young poets presenting their work so creatively and professionally.

Congratulations to all involved!

Carol Varsalona is hosting the Poetry Friday roundup at https://beyondliteracylink.blogspot.com. Thanks, Carol. 🙃

Have a fabulous weekend!

Poetry Swap – Tricia Stohr-Hunt

Hi all. I’m popping back in to share another poetry treasure that arrived in my inbox, this from Tricia Stohr-Hunt, who wasn’t familiar with the work of Australian poets, and in reading around discovered my favourite, ‘My Country’, by Dorothea Mackellar. Tricia had planned to write a golden shovel – but instead crafted this wonderful poem, using lines from the first stanza of Dorothea’s poem. Continue reading →

A Week of Poetry Pep Up

This past week I have been running a Poetry Pep Up across social media platforms, with thanks to the support of CQRASN and the lovely Trudie Leigo. You can play catch-up with the prompts by clicking on the relevant day below, to go direct. It’s not too late to put some sparkle in your day, fire up your creativity, and build writing muscle. Continue reading →

Poetry Pep Up – A Free Online Writing Opportunity

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I’m rather thrilled to be working with the Central Queensland Regional Arts Service Network (CQRASN) to run a free, online five-day Poetry Pep Up, from 1-5 June. The challenge is suitable for newbies or old-hands. Continue reading →

I Don’t Want a Pet SNAKE!

A ssssshort and sssssharp post today to ssssshare a reading of my poem, ‘I Don’t Want a Pet SNAKE’, published by The School Magazine, Blast Off 4, 2020, illustrated by Christopher Nielsen and read by Geoffrey McSkimming.

Use it to teach persuasive texts… and caution in what you wish for. And read it just for fun!

NSW Education Department planned this resource, using it in a study of alliteration.

To see what Jama’s cooking up for Poetry Friday (Oooh… There be chocolate!) – and to get all the good links – click across to Jama’s Alphabet Soup. Thanks for hosting this week!

‘Too Many Friends’ Video & DIY Mother’s Day Gift Sorted!

My goodness! Life has been busy! I can’t believe it’s been so long since I’ve linked in for Poetry Friday. I’m just thankful that I’ve connected to lots of you through Twitter or Instagram, so I’ve not been completely out of your loop. It’s been wonderful to catch snippets of what everyone is doing with poetry and life – and so reassuring to see/hear from you! Keep keeping well … and keep sharing your joy and hope. The world is a better place for it!

I’m sharing a video for today’s post, hoping it’s helpful for educators and carers in this difficult time. I read a poem called ‘I Don’t EAT My Friends‘, from my verse novel, ‘Too Many Friends’, and I briefly chat about lollies, friends, pet-friends, then quickly share a poetry project for young listeners/writers … to connect them to their friends. You’ll find a friend template (and more crafty activities) under the Too Many Friends Stuff tab, above. Continue reading →

Progressive Poem – Day 13

Hoping you have all had a restful Easter – even if it wasn’t where, how or with whom you’d originally planned. As with much of the world, we stay-cayed. We could have camped by one of creeks on our property, but opted to stay at the house, and ride back and forth to the creek each afternoon/evening, for paddling/campfire/damper, etc…

It was our first real foray onto the creek after February rains filled the dry bed, and the mosquitos swarmed. Now the mud and mosquitos have settled, paddling up the creek, felt like I was catching up with an old friend after a long parting. (So many changes, after sustained dry weather, though. Lots of dead trees…😿)

This morning we slipped out early for a paddle upstream, where the creek narrows, and is surrounded by scrubby rainforest. We sloshed through shallow sandy patches, clambered over rocks, and tramped through tangled vines and along cattle tracks …

Morning pedal, paddle and potter…

I came home, refreshed, to read that the Progressive Poem (complete with raccoon and loon) had wended its way along the wiregrass track, to my blog.

This year the progressive poem has morphed into a Choose Your Own Adventure piece – with each poet contributing two options for their own line. So, my first task was to make a choice from Linda Mitchell’s two lines… (you’ll find them here; A Word Edgewise) and then drop two of my own, for Margaret Simons (co-ordinator of this year’s progressive poem) to ponder. I love that Margaret is following me – because we’ve been tag-teaming each other in our kayaks, on opposite sides of the globe!🛶

So, with this morning’s scramble through scrub fresh in my mind, I knew what I wanted to bring to the poem. An interruption. A surprise. Anticipation.

I crack the door open, but will it be a moment of wonder, or drama, that steps through?

Sweet violets shimmy, daffodils sway
along the wiregrass path to the lake.
I carry a rucksack of tasty cakes
and a banjo passed down from my gram.

I follow the tracks of deer and raccoon
and echo the call of a wandering loon.
A whispering breeze joins in our song.
and night melts into a rose gold dawn.

Deep into nature’s embrace, I fold.
Promise of spring helps shake the cold
hints of sun lightly dapple the trees
calling out the sleepy bees.

Leaf-litter crackles … I pause. Twig snaps. (Option One)
Through a gap in the timber I catch a glimpse (Option Two)

And now, I pass the paddle to Margaret. Which line will she choose? What will she discover? You’ll find it at Reflections on the Teche, tomorrow.

Thank-you Irene Latham, for starting us on our Progressive Poem journey – and Margaret for keeping us rolling. It is always fun to take part!