The joy of verse: How verse novels can help to get children reading

This is the joy of verse. 

My first novel, Pearl Beach, 
is written in free verse. 
Yes, there are still relatable characters. Yes, there is still an engaging plot. Yes, there is an intriguing and beautiful setting you’ll want to jet off to at once. 
All of the pieces that come together to create a wonderful children’s book are there, with one major difference. 
Fewer words on the page.  

It is not written for ease of reading, but it is a worthwhile by-product. It is written for the lyrical flow, the beauty of poetry, 
the way in which words written in this way speak differently 
to words written in prose. 

As a teacher, I have seen the impact of verse novels on my students. A sense of accomplishment when completing what can often be shorter books to the counterpart middle grade and YA books in the genre. 
And in addition – the magic of these words. By brilliant authors such as Elizabeth Acevedo, Jacqueline Woodson, Matt Goodfellow, capture powerful emotions in short lines, that perhaps could not be captured in any other way. 

Is it prose? Poetry? Narrative? There are no rules, and that is the magic. For students bogged down and stuck on the intricacies of grammar and punctuation, they can be liberated in their writing by the fact that in free verse, it doesn’t matter. You, as the writer, are the master of the destiny of your words. And you can do with them as you please. 

— 

I have loved to write ever since I could hold a pencil in my hand and form twisted letters on the page. When I was in my early twenties, lit by a warm watted bulb of inspiration, I began to write a novel. At first words tumbled from brain to white space, but then as I continued… they stalled, staggered 
and by the finish line of the word count and the story arc, my words felt as exhausted as me. The format felt tired and old fashioned. Not something beautiful, that could transport the reader. And YES, of course, there are SO many brilliant writers, who CAN take readers there with their remarkable prose; fill endless pages with collections of words 
that just sing.  
BUT for a reader, particularly a young reader, finding their place in the literary world, it is wonderful to have the option 
of another genre to choose

Disheartened by my first attempt at manuscript, I opened my laptop again and again, desperate to finish it off.
But I found every time the screen flashed on the words simply would not come. 

One day, I decided to start again. 
I had a scene in mind. 
A thirteen-year-old girl wetting the bed. The mortification. The HORROR. And when I sat down to write it, it came out 
just like that. 
In short sharp sentences, 
more lyrical 
than anything I had written before. 

You see, 
before anything else, I am a poet. 
I have been since a child and performing at poetry slams since my late teens. 

This felt natural, 
It felt good, 
It felt right.  

And so, Pearl Beach was born. 

—

I have an eight-year-old daughter. The only books she has ever finished reading are those she can read in one sitting.
Graphic novels are usually perfect for this, and that is her preferred genre. Some kids are just like this. YES, we should encourage perseverance – a page a sitting, a chapter a night – 
but for reluctant readers, hundreds of pages can feel too daunting to even start. 

I have been delighted and thrilled to see so many children and young teens devouring Pearl Beach. Reading it in one go. The gratification! The joy! Being able to sink your teeth into a book that has raw depth, 
characters that feel real, situations that hit home… and finish it in ONE GO! How brilliant is that? 

The simplicity 
The lyricism 
The sheer beauty 
of a few words 
on a big white page. 

That  
is the joy of verse. 

Pearl Beach by Beth Steiner is out now.