“STYLE IS NOT HOW YOU WRITE IT IS HOW YOUDO NOT WRITE LIKE ANYONE ELSE”

“Style is not how you write.It is how you do not write like anyone else. * * *How do you know if you're a writer?Write something everyday for two weeks, then stop, if you can.If you can't, you're a writer.And no one, no matter how hard they may try,will ever be able to stop you from following your writing dreams. * * *You can find your writer's voiceby simply listening to that little Muse insidethat says in a low, soft whisper, "Listen to this... * * *Enter the writing processwith a childlike sense of wonder and discovery.Let it surprise you. * * *Poems for children help themcelebrate the joy and wonder of their world.Humorous poems tickle the funny bone of their imaginations. * * *There are many fine poets writing for children today.The greatest reward for each of us is in knowing that our effortsmight stir the minds and hearts of young readers with a visionand wonder of the world and themselves that may be new to themor reveal something already familiar in new and enlightening ways.* * * The path to inspiration startsBeyond the trails we’ve known;Each writer’s block is not a rock,But just a stepping stone. * * *When you write for children,don't write for children.Write from the child in you. * * *Poems look at the world from the inside out. * * *The act of writing brings with it a sense of discovery,of discovering on the page something you didn't know you knewuntil you wrote it. * * * The answer to the artistComes quicker than a blinkThough initial inspirationIs not what you might think. The Muse is full of magic,Though her vision’s sometimes dim;The artist does not choose the work,It is the work that chooses him. * * *Poem-Making 101.Poetry shows. Prose tells.Choose precise, concrete words.Remove prose from your poems.Use images that evoke the senses.Avoid the abstract, the verbose, the overstated.Trust the poem to take you where it wants to go.Follow it closely, recording its path with imagery. * * *What's a Poem? A whisper, a shout,thoughts turnedinside out. A laugh,a sigh,an echopassing by. A rhythm,a rhyme,a momentcaught in time. A moon,a star,a glimpseof who you are. * * * A poem is a little pathThat leads you through the trees.It takes you to the cliffs and shores,To anywhere you please. Follow it and trust your wayWith mind and heart as one,And when the journey’s over,You’ll find you’ve just begun. * * * A poem is a spider webSpun with words of wonder,Woven lace held in placeBy whispers made of thunder. * * * A poem is a busy beeBuzzing in your head.His hive is full of hidden thoughtsWaiting to be said. His honey comes from your ideasThat he makes into rhyme.He flies around looking forWhat goes on in your mind. When it is time to let him outTo make some poetry,He gathers up your secret thoughtsAnd then he sets them free.”

“How calm and quiet a delightIt is aloneTo read, and meditate, and write.”

“I just don't know how to write a love letter. What can you say to a girl that shows you really like her?""How about, enclosed please find a cookie?”

“Writing is something that you don't know how to do. You sit down and it's something that happens, or it may not happen. So, how can you teach anybody how to write? It's beyond me, because you yourself don't even know if you're going to be able to. I'm always worried, well, you know, every time I go upstairs with my wine bottle. Sometimes I'll sit at that typewriter for fifteen minutes, you know. I don't go up there to write. The typewriter's up there. If it doesn't start moving, I say, well this could be the night that I hit the dust.”

“Nothing is too long or too short either if you have a true and interesting tale and what I call a "graphic" writing style combined with educational aims.”

“It’s absolutely essential that a writer know himself, for until he knows his abilities and limitations, his talents and problems, he will be unable to produce anything of real value. Secondly, you must be able to look coldly at what you do. The writer must know for whom he writes, why he writes, and if his writing says what he means for it to say. Writing is, in a way, a contest of knowing, of seeing the dream, of getting there, and of achieving what you set out to do. The simplest way to reach this goal is to simply say what you mean as clearly and precisely as you know how.--Harper Lee”