[Jen K.]

Hey, does anyone have any good suggestions for books on learning rhyme?  I have a couple of rhyming stories that I'm trying to polish up, and though I think I have an okay ear, I'm at a point where I need help with technique.  Thanks in advance!   :D

[MystiqueWriter1]

Jen all of us here must of grown up with Dr. Seuss. He is an excellant rhymer that no one can beat!! Why not read some of his books and if not go to Google and type in Children's Rhyming Books, I am sure it will bring many up.




  Elaina

[DellaRF Posts: 1,594 Status: Offline website: www.DellaRossFereri.com Twitter: @DellaRF WWW]

Jen,
I'd suggest checking out a stack of rhyming books from the library.   Then, ask yourself:
Which books do you LOVE and why?  
Read these books over and over to analyze them.  
My guess is that you love the story first, and that the rhyme enhances the story, or makes it playful or interesting. (Like Verla says, STORY FIRST! )

(You may also ask yourself why certain books DON'T excite you. Or what you would change about them.)

The other thing I do is keep a Favorites Folder (on my computer).  This is where I type out the texts to favorite picture book texts.  It helps me with the flow and rhythm.  
   
I'm curious what other rhymers do to improve their craft.  

Great thread!
~Della

[Verla Kay Posts: 4,634 Status: Offline Invite Verla Kay to speak in your area WWW]

There is some great information on earlier rhyming threads on this message board, too.  Use the Search button at the top of the Board menu, and put in the word "rhyme."  That should bring up most of the messages on here that talked about rhyme.

[Jen K.]

Thanks for the advice, everyone!  I've read all the rhyming PBs I've been able to get my hands on -- between the library and the bookstores (hundreds).  Yesterday, I hit B&N again to take a look at the newest crop (The Runaway Pumpkin, The Frog in the Bog, One Dark Night,  On a Wintry Morning, Santa Claus is Grumpy, Finklehopper Frog, etc...).  Some great stuff.  

But I still find that I stumble when I'm reading some of the rhyme that's out there.  And I've had conflicting opinions from rhymers, editors, and non-rhymers reading my stuff.  I think I actually need to take my stories apart, stanza by stanza, and maybe even chart out the meter and rhythm?  Verla, I found the thread you were talking about, and that seems like it will be a good starting point.  What an amazing amount of knowledge on this board!

I'm also thinking about rewriting my stories in prose just to see which is stronger.  I can't explain why these stories came out in rhyme since I've never considered myself a natural rhymer, so I'm still in a quandary over whether I'm best off leaving the poetry to the experts!  

 

??? ???

[OhioKate]

As one of Jen K.'s critique partners (we call ourselves the Spiders) I can tell you that she writes great stories and her rhyme is excellent. But I'm one of the non-rhymers she's referring to in her post, so you have to take my opinion with a grain of salt.

(C'mon Jen, let's hold our noses and dive to 50 together....)

[Jen K.]

Kate, your check is in the mail, with a BIG slice of pumpkin pie!  

[MamaG]

Rhyming can be so fun but SO exasperating!!!  I personally have never had a story idea come into my pea brain that didn't involve rhyme!  I have found that having someone else read it out to me helps.  : Don't rely on only one person though!!!  Just as rhyme doesn't work for all writers, it doesn't work for all readers!  I had a friend read one of my WIP's to me and it was horrible!!! No matter what I did to fix it  :and no matter how good it sounded when other's read it to me!  Then I heard her read some well-established rhymes and realized she just had no comprehension of rhythm and flow when reading!! :

[Jen K.]

I've done this, too, Jen.  Sometimes a story will come to me in rhyme, but I find it is stronger in prose, or vice versa.  It sometimes totally changes the tone of the story, more than just the flow of the words.
As far as leaving poetry to the experts- how do you think any of them became experts?  They worked at it until they became experts.

Thanks, Els.  I needed that!  It's just that the experts are so darn good!  It can be daunting at times.  

And MamaG, you said it!  Exasperating, frustrating, aggravating, and just plain torture searching for that 'perfect' word that just happens to rhyme with another 'perfect' word.  But the satisfaction of finding it is pure GOLD (like the stuff in Verla's wonderful rhyming book -- though I hope to have more luck than Jasper!).